Flawless. It was a perfect friendly tournament for Italy U19s, who finished with maximum points. After opening with a 2-1 win over France last Friday and recording an emphatic 3-0 victory against Türkiye three days ago, the Azzurrini edged hosts Croatia 1-0 in Dunjkovec. The result took Massimiliano Favo’s side to nine points and secured first place, with the tournament’s final fixture between Croatia and Türkiye scheduled for Sunday at 12:00 CEST. Torino midfielder Andrea Luongo scored the only goal of the match (58’).

“I am satisfied because we managed to give every available player a start,” said the Italy Head Coach. “We selected two more players than usual for this camp because our aim was to use the tournament to assess everyone we believe could help us in the second round of European qualifying (Italy will face Israel, Romania and Ukraine in Group A6, ed.). Our next camp will only last a few days, so it was very important to assess the players over these three matches. Winning all three is pleasing, but the objective was to evaluate a group that, to our great pride, has already seen several players move up to older age groups.”

THE MATCH. The Azzurrini lined up in their usual 4-3-1-2 formation, a hallmark of Italy’s youth teams. Cereser started in goal; Mambuku, Natali, De Paoli and Marini formed the defence; Steffanoni, Baralla and Luongo played in midfield; and Lo Monaco operated behind Carrara and 2009-born Elimoghale in attack. Hosts Croatia responded with a 4-2-3-1. Kovač started in goal; Parma defender Pajsar joined Mijatović, Čupić and Kostelac in the back four; Kablar and Radoš formed the midfield pairing; Matić, Smiljanić and Soldo played behind lone striker Kusanović.

The Azzurrini started strongly and almost took the lead when Lo Monaco cut inside and tested Kovač with a right-footed effort that the goalkeeper tipped over the bar (5’). The Italy attacking midfielder tried again soon afterwards but fired over (12’). Favo’s side remained on the front foot, with a deflection off a Croatian defender taking the sting out of Luongo’s right-footed shot and allowing Kovač to gather comfortably around the quarter-hour mark. Italy created another promising opening when Marini advanced down the left and delivered an inviting ball for Lo Monaco, who arrived at the near post but failed to hit the target (18’). Croatia attempted to respond without troubling Cereser, before Kovač gathered Luongo’s long-range effort (30’). The hosts increased the pressure towards the end of the half and created their first real chance when Kusanović held off a recovering defender and shot from the edge of the area, forcing Cereser to dive to his left and parry (39’). Italy had the final opportunity before the break: Mambuku crossed from the right and Luongo headed the ball into the path of Elimoghale, whose left-footed effort was turned behind by Kovač (44’). The sides therefore went into half-time level at 0-0.

Italy began the second half with their usual intensity and took a deserved lead. Luongo read Kovač’s low pass, intercepted the ball and found the net with his right foot (58’). The Azzurrini then controlled possession for long spells, leaving Croatia chasing shadows. The hosts’ only opportunity of the second half came when Horvat collected a partial Italy clearance and struck with his left foot, but Cereser remained alert and made the save (84’). Little else happened in the closing stages, and the final whistle arrived after three minutes of added time. The 1-0 victory confirmed first place and a perfect nine points for Favo’s side.

 

Friendly tournament

Round-robin group: Croatia, France, ITALY, Türkiye

Friday 25 September
France 1-2 ITALY

Monday 28 September
Croatia 1-2 France
Türkiye 0-3 ITALY

Thursday 1 October
France 2-1 Türkiye
Croatia 0-1 ITALY

Standings: ITALY 9, France 6, Croatia 0 (-2), Türkiye 0 (-4).

Sunday 4 October
12:00 CEST: Croatia vs. Türkiye, Stadion Hrašćica, Dunjkovec