Italy in a tough test against Switzerland.. and Germany struggles with Denmark

The Euro 2024 Round of 16 kicks off today in Berlin, with Italy, who qualified with difficulty, facing their neighbours Switzerland.

The Azzurri needed an eighth minute of stoppage time from the relatively unknown Mattia Zaccagni to equalise for Croatia and finish second in Group B, five points behind Spain.

His coach Luciano Spalletti said that the last title holder in the summer of 2021, for the second time in its history, deserved to qualify, but he directed criticism at his players, and the 65-year-old also launched a campaign against the media that put pressure on his team.

Compared to the last edition, when Italy beat Switzerland 3-0 in the group stage, the three scorers in that match, Manuel Locatelli and Ciro Immobile, as well as midfielder Marco Verratti, have been ruled out, veteran defenders Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci have retired, and Juventus striker Federico Chiesa is still far from his best.

In contrast, coach Murat Yakin’s squad includes several professionals in the Italian league, including Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer, the Serie A champion, and Bologna trio Dan N’Doye, Remo Freuler and Michel Abischer.

Switzerland are in the knockout stages for the sixth time in a row in a major tournament, having eliminated France on penalties in the last edition before being eliminated in the same scenario by Spain in the quarter-finals.

The match against Switzerland will be a revenge for the four-time world champions, as Nati denied them direct qualification to the Qatar 2022 World Cup after they topped Group 3 of the European qualifiers and forced them to play the continental play-off, where they were eliminated from the semi-finals of the third path after losing at home to North Macedonia 0-1 with a goal scored in stoppage time.

The winner of this match will meet the winner between England and Slovakia.

In the second match, host Germany will play the round of 16 of Euro 2024 against Denmark in Dortmund, hoping to learn from its recent draw with Switzerland, which is playing a tough match against title holder Italy in Berlin.

After nearly a decade of faltering at major tournaments, Germany made a good start in the group stage with two wins over Scotland (5-1) and Hungary (2-0), but in the third they almost lost the lead in their first group, before a goal from the unknown striker a few years ago, Niclas Füllkrug, saved them in the dying moments and gave them a point against Switzerland.

Julian Nagelsmann’s side have a more established history than their northern neighbours, but memories of the 1992 final still linger for many.

After receiving a last-minute invitation following Yugoslavia’s exclusion, the Danish Dynamite pulled off a stunning upset by beating Germany 2-0 in Sweden.

Then-Germany coach Berti Vogts admitted in his column in RB on Thursday that his team had “underestimated” the Danes, writing: “In 1992, we lost the final to a big Danish team despite being favourites, just like the German team now. Everyone thought we had the title in our pocket. Unfortunately, some players shared that opinion.”

It is true that Germany won only three times in 11 matches in 2023, but they have not lost yet in 2024, achieving five wins and two draws, while Nagelsmann is sticking to his starting lineup.

In contrast, Denmark, led by Christian Eriksen, qualified with three draws and finished second in their group on fair play behind Slovenia.

The winner of this match will meet the qualifier between Spain and Georgia.