Finalissima 2022, Italy – Argentina, the teams

UEFA EURO 2020 winners Italy take on Argentina, holders of the Copa América since 2021, at Wembley Stadium, London on Wednesday 1^er June 2022.

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UEFA.com takes a look back at the history of the two nations, how they secured their place in the Finalissima, their star players and key game stats.

ITALY

FIFA Ranking : 6^and
Best World Cup result : winner (1934, 1938, 1982, 2006)
Best EURO result : winner (1968, 2020)

Italy’s journey to the EURO

Group A, winner
11/06: Turkey 0-3 Italy (Demiral 53^and csc, Immobile 66^andBadge 79^and)
16/06: Italy 3-0 Switzerland (Locatelli 26^and 52^andMotionless 89^and)
20/06: Italy 1-0 Wales (Pessina 39^and)

eighths
26/06: Italy 2-1 Austria (aet) (Chiesa 95^andPessina 105^and; Kalajdzic 114^and)

Quarter-finals
02/07: Belgium 1-2 Italy (Lukaku 45^and+2sp; Barella 31^andBadge 44^and)

Semi-finals
06/07: Italy 1-1 Spain (aet, 4-2 pens) (Chiesa 60^and; Morata 80^and)

Final
11/07: Italy 1-1 England (aet, 3-2 pens) (Bonucci 67^and; Shaw 2^and)

Series

Since EURO 2020 (most recent first): xNNVDVNN

Coach: Roberto Mancini

One of the best strikers of his generation, despite having never won an international title, Mancini established himself as a national coach after winning club trophies in Italy, England and Turkey. He took charge of the Nazionale after the trauma of not qualifying for the 2018 World Cup; three years later, his team were European champions.

The star: Jorginho

Radio Jorginho, nickname given to him for the frequent instructions he gives on the pitch during matches, is the team’s strategist. The Chelsea midfielder has won the 2020/21 UEFA Men’s Player of the Year award.

Youngster to watch: Nicolò Zaniolo

The 22-year-old attacking midfielder got off to a strong start, making his Squadra Azzurra debut aged 19 and scoring his first international goals in the final UEFA EURO 2020 qualifier – a 9-1 win against Armenia. Two cruciate ligament injuries in his knee have hampered his progress, but he appears to have found the rhythm at Roma this season.

In stats

• During UEFA EURO 2020, Italy broke their records for longest winning streak (13) and unbeaten streak (34).
• Italy became the fourth team to win the EURO multiple times after Germany (three), Spain (three) and France (two).
• Italy became the first team to win two penalty shootouts in a single EURO finals last summer.
• Leonardo Bonucci (34 years and 71 days) set a national record by making his 18th EURO finals appearance in the UEFA EURO 2020 final, and became the oldest player to score in the final.
• Jorginho, with Chelsea, became only the tenth player to win the C1 final and the EURO in the same season.
• Loss to Spain in the UEFA Nations League semi-finals ended Italy’s record 37-match unbeaten streak that began in 2018.

ARGENTINA

FIFA Ranking : 4^and
Best World Cup result : winner (1978, 1986)
Best result in Copa America : winner (15 times)

Argentina’s journey to the Copa America

Group A, winner
14/06: Argentina 1-1 Chile (Messi 33^and; Vargas 57^and)
18/06: Argentina 1-0 Uruguay (Rodriguez 13^and)
21/06: Argentina 1-0 Paraguay (Gómez 10^and)
28/06: Bolivia 1-4 Argentina (Saavedra 60^and; Gomez 6^andMessi 33^and sp 42^andLa. Martinez 65^and)

Quarter-finals
03/07: Argentina 3-0 Ecuador (De Paul 40^andLa. Martinez 84^andMessi 90^and+3)

Semi-finals
06/07: Argentina 1-1 Colombia (ap 3-2 pens) (La. Martínez 7^and; Diaz 61^and)

Final
10/07: Argentina 1-0 Brazil (Di María 22^and)

Series

Since Copa América 2021 (most recent first): xxVVNVVVNVV

Coach: Lionel Scaloni

Scaloni, who was capped just seven times but made the 2006 World Cup finals, was a mainstay at Deportivo La Coruña before spending several years in Italy with Lazio and Atalanta. Appointed assistant coach by Jorge Sampaoli at Sevilla in 2016, he took on the same role under him with the national team a year later. Scaloni took over the reins in 2018 and ended Argentina’s 28-year trophy drought at the 2021 Copa America.

Star player: Lionel Messi

The Parisian striker, former icon of FC Barcelona, ​​hardly needs an introduction. Messi holds the records for most caps and goals for Argentina and eventually won his first major with his country last summer. The 34-year-old has won four Champions Leagues and finished top scorer in six seasons of the competition.

Youngster to watch: Julián Álvarez

A great prospect of Argentine football, Álvarez made his international debut in June 2021. The 22-year-old was top scorer in the Argentine Primera División with River Plate in 2021, the year he was also voted South American player of the year. He joined Manchester City in January but immediately returned on loan to River Plate.

In stats

• Argentina’s 2021 Copa América triumph was their 15^and in the competition, a mark that equals Uruguay’s record. The Argentinians have won more matches (127) and scored more goals (474) in the finals than any other nation.
• Messi’s appearance in the Copa América final last summer was his 34th finals appearance, equaling Chilean Sergio Livingstone’s record. Messi finished co-top scorer at the 2021 Copa América, the first Argentine player to do so since Gabriel Batistuta in 1995.
• Messi was voted Copa America Player of the Tournament for the second time last summer, having received the award in 2015. We have to go back to 1993 to find another Argentinian voted best player of the finals (Sergio Goycochea).
• Emiliano Martínez received the 2021 Copa América Best Goalkeeper award after four clean sheets and three saved penalties in the semi-final win over Colombia. He is the only Argentinian goalkeeper to have won this award.
• Argentina have won their last four meetings against Italy. The last three were friendlies, the first of the series being a 4-3 penalty shootout success in the 1990 World Cup semi-final. The Albiceleste have not lost to the Azzurri since 1987.

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