Italy v England betting tips, Nations League, football
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Italy v England betting tips: Three Lions out to impress

| 21.09.2022
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Italy v England betting tips, odds and preview

England’s main focus is the World Cup later this year but they will also be keen to avoid the humiliation of Nations League relegation as we pick out some Italy v England betting tips.

Defeat in Milan would ensure Gareth Southgate’s men finish bottom of Group A3 with a game to spare, which would do little for confidence ahead of the tournament in Qatar later this year.

Friday’s match at the San Siro kicks off at 7.45pm in the UK and is live on Channel 4.

England on countdown to Qatar

The Nations League double-header against Italy and Germany is the last chance for Southgate to work with his players before naming the England World Cup squad.

The clock is ticking before the Group B opener against Iran in November and the chance to secure a ticket to Qatar should ensure England are in a better frame of mind than they were in June when they failed to win any of their four matches.

The timing of those games, at the end of a long domestic season, was far from ideal and England should be in better shape than they were when losing twice to Hungary either side of draws with Germany and Italy.

With Italy having failed to qualify for the World Cup, their motivation levels may not be as high as the Three Lions and we’re backing an away win at 8/5 as the first of our Italy v England betting tips.

Big chance for Toney

The biggest talking point of Southgate’s squad selection was a first call-up for Brentford striker Ivan Toney.

The 26-year-old has not represented his country at any level and went on a myriad of loans before impressing at Peterborough and shining for Brentford.

Toney has scored five goals this season and will be desperate to show he should lead England’s attack if anything happens to Harry Kane.

Tammy Abraham is also in the squad but it would be a surprise if Toney does not get some time on the pitch and he is 9/2 to score the last goal of the match.

Italy have one eye on the future

The timing of the World Cup means there will be little preparation time once domestic leagues are paused in November.

That should ensure Southgate names his strongest possible team in Milan and he will be keen to bounce back from the disappointing results in the summer.

“Reflecting on the last couple of months, clearly as an international manager you don’t have any games to quickly put the disappointment behind you,” the England manager said.

“We have had a long period to reflect but now we are really looking forward to two high-quality matches that will be a great test for us and a crucial part of our preparation for the World Cup.

“It is only eight weeks until we will be naming our squad for Qatar so every minute counts.”

Italy v England betting tips, Nations League, football

In contrast to Southgate, Italy coach Roberto Mancini is looking to the future with his squad and has given opportunities to several new faces including Leeds youngster Wilfried Gnonto.

Italy may have claimed the bragging rights at the Euro 2020 final after famously winning the penalty shoot-out but they have been inconsistent since then.

Home draws with Bulgaria and Switzerland plus away to Northern Ireland proved costly in World Cup qualifying and their play-off defeat at home to North Macedonia was a huge surprise.

Their last outing was a 5-2 defeat in Germany and the goalless draw with England in June was their only clean sheet in the last seven matches.

For the last of our Italy v England predictions, we like the #YourCall option of 11/2 for England to avoid defeat, both teams to score in the second half and over 2.5 goals.

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All odds and markets correct as of date of publication

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Author

Andrew McDermott

Andrew is a sports betting content journalist at PA Media. He is a lifelong Huddersfield Town fan but when he isn't reminiscing about their Premier League days he is also a junior cricket coach and enjoys cycling.