The Netherlands hosts Italy in Amsterdam on Monday night in their second Group 1 fixture of League A in the UEFA Nations League 2020-21.
Team Preview
Netherlands ready to grab three more points on Monday night to go on top of the Group table of League A in the UEFA Nations League 2020-21. Dwight Lodeweges's men registered a 1-0 victory over Poland in their opening fixture on Friday. The Oranje were the runner-up of the inaugural edition of Nations League, losing to Portugal in the final. The Netherlands would aim to take 6 points end of the first leg as the next matches will be played in October as per the schedule. Steven Bergwijn netted a match-winning goal in the second half for Holland and handed a 1-0 victory in the competition opener. Ahead of the two fixtures against Bosnia and Italy next month, a win on Monday night would give them a safe spot in the table.
Meanwhile, their rivals are coming off of 1-1 draw against Bosnia on the same night. After going down 1-0 through the strike from Edin Dzeko in the game, Italy was heading towards a loss but Stefano Sensi scored the equalizer to share one point with Bosnia. Roberto Mancini's side’s next target is tough and they have to face last season’s runner-up in an away fixture. They had a disappointing campaign in the 2018-19 edition, finishing 2nd behind Portugal who eventually was the winner of the tournament. The Azzurri had a great form in Euro 2020 qualifiers, winning all 10 of their qualifying matches. During this winning streak, they scored 37 goals and conceded just four goals. In H2H records, Mancini's side has an upper hand, losing only three games from their 21 previous meetings in all competitions.
Possible Lineups and Current Form
Netherlands
Lineup: Cillessen; Hateboer, Veltman, Van Dijk, Ake; F. de Jong, De Roon; Depay, Wijnaldum, Bergwijn, L. de Jong
Current Form: W W W D W W
Italy
Lineup: Donnarumma; Florenzi, Bonucci, Chiellini, Biraghi; Barella, Sensi, Pellegrini; Insigne, Immobile, Zaniolo
Current Form: W W W W W D
Key Players
Netherlands
L. de Jong
3 goals in Europa League 2019-20
Virgil Van Dijk
5 goals in Premier League 2019-20
Italy
Jorginho
3 goals, 1 assist in Euro Qualifier 2020
Ciro Immobile
3 goals, 2 assist in Euro Qualifier 2020
