Conte Tips Italy To Eliminate Belgium From EURO 2020
Antonio Conte has tipped Italy to get the better of Belgium when the two sides meet in the quarterfinals of EURO 2020 in Munich on Friday.
Italy are on a 31-game unbeaten run and advanced to the last-eight after seeing off Austria 2-1 in extra time while Belgium will come into the game on the back of a 13-game unbeaten streak.
Roberto Mancini’s men will be buoyed by the fact that Belgium have fitness concerns with Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard but the Red Devils will still have Romelu Lukaku, who scored 24 goals last season as Conte led Inter Milan to a first Serie A title in eleven years.
Conte has highlighted the importance of Lukaku to Roberto Martinez’s side but is adamant Italy will make it into the semi-finals at the end of the contest.
Conte, who left Inter at the end of the 2020-21 season, told the Gazzetta dello Sport: "As well as the psychological aspect and the attitude: that indispensable mix of grit, concentration, desire to help, the ability to suffer and not give up.
"Each player must put themselves at the service of the group. There are three qualities that differentiate top athletes from normal athletes in modern football: strength, speed and endurance.
"I'm not even talking about the technical qualities that I take for granted. To all this, which is the basis for achieving important results, our national team has shown that it knows how to add its own expression and an idea of the game that other teams have shown less, relying more on important individuals, capable of deciding a game on their own or almost.
"This is what I have also seen some great national teams do, given as favourites. Our next opponent Belgium is a strong team individually and collectively.
"Lukaku is a force of nature, he works alone, but I discover hot water in saying that the presence or absence of De Bruyne and Hazard on Friday can change the balance.
"I have a lot of respect for the coach [Roberto] Martinez for the work he has done in recent years, but the performance against Portugal did not fully convince me both in the attacking phase and in the defensive phase.
"But Mancini does not need advice, on a tactical level the Italian technicians know how to prepare the game like few others, Roberto [Mancini] will field a team that will be able to manage every situation."
The two sides met in the group stages of EURO 2016, with a Conte-led Italy side beating Belgium 2-0.
