Italy coach Giampiero Ventura expects his side to be tested early and often on Friday, as the Azzurri welcome Albania to Palermo in 2018 World Cup qualifying action.
Currently level on points with Spain after four matches, the former Torino boss made it clear his side can’t take it easy against an Albanian side that are ready to impress.
There hasn’t been as much focus on the conditions of the surface since the punters looking to take advantage of the Grand National bonus offers.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GKlvTWgcNs[/youtube]
“The pitch will tell us [whether we are aggressive] but I hope to see a good Italy,” he told reporters on Thursday.
“I want us to be at 100 percent, because playing at 50 or 60 percent won’t be enough. In order to come out on top in such a delicate match, that is what we need.
“We will be taking on an Albania side that, regardless of their technical abilities, will approach these 90 minutes as a chance to make history. It’s clear what this match means to Albania and [coach Gianni] De Biasi.”
Italy sit atop Group G with Spain – who take on Israel on Friday – and Ventura made it clear he hopes La Furia Roja have a tough time.
“I hope Spain encounter some problems against Israel,” he continued. “There are no easy matches.
“Israel’s only loss came against us, and they’ve won the remainder of their matches. That is why a win against Albania would take on even more importance, as we would either stay close to Spain or increase our lead over Israel.”
Ventura took over as Italy coach in July 2016, and has recorded three wins, two draws and a loss in six matches.
His start has generally been promising, with an early friendly defeat against Euro 2016 hosts France followed up with a convincing win at Israel.
It will be only their second home match in their 2018 World Cup Qualifying campaign to date after they secured a 1-1 draw with group favourites Spain thanks to a late Danielle De Rossi penalty.
The Azurri’s other away fixtures in the competition have seen a surprisingly tough 3-2 win at Macedonia, where they had to come from 2-1 down and needed a Ciro Immobile brace (which included a stoppage time winner) to see them through, and a convincing 4-0 demolition of Liechtenstein in which Immobile found the net once again.
Albania will be looking to recover from two losses on the bounce after starting their campaign with a brace of victories.
