Italy Also Want to Show Some Magic to Germany - UEFA Semi Final Moments

A semi against Germany would strike fear into the hearts of many, but Richard Aikman says Italy's record against the three-time champions stands them in good stead.

The thought of a semi-final against Germany would strike fear into the hearts of most teams, not least one that were out on their feet after 120 minutes of relentless running on Sunday, but Italy enjoy a good record against their European neighbours.

The first encounter that comes to mind between these two European heavyweights is the classic 4-3 victory for the Azzurri in the 1970 FIFA World Cup semi-final. "It was always the one I referred to as 'that match'," recalled Cesare Prandelli, who was captivated by the seven-goal thriller in Mexico City, aged 13. "I can remember watching it at home with my Dad and I still regard it as the greatest emotion I have ever felt watching a game."

Prandelli was playing for Juventus by the time the two sides met in 1982, which is my own first memory of a World Cup final. I still remember being bewitched by Marco Tardelli and his reaction to his goal, known in Italy as 'the scream', and which remains my favorite goal celebration.

The most recent classic between these sides was played out in Berlin in the 2006 World Cup semi-final and provided similar jubilant scenes for the Azzurri. With the score goalless after 119 minutes and a penalty shoot-out looming, Fabio Grosso curled Andrea Pirlo's reverse pass beyond Jens Lehmann to set up a momentous 2-0 win; his celebration was a tribute to Tardelli's scream.

Any Azzurri fans concerned that Germany are strong favourites for Thursday's match should bear in mind that they were also expected to win in 1970, 1982 and 2006, yet Italy came up trumps each time. Although Prandelli's charges have had significantly less recovery time than Joachim Löw's side, they are also unbeaten in their last five meetings with their trans-Alpine neighbours.

Not since 1995 has the Tricolore been lowered by Germany, who still have Pirlo to contend with. And as Alessandro Diamanti said the other day, "even a tired Pirlo is still the best player in the world".

Italy Also Want to Show Some Magic to Germany - UEFA Semi Final Moments

Italy Facing Pronounced Germany Threat - UEFA Threats 2012

Germany will go into Thursday's game with Italy as UEFA EURO 2012's nine-goal top scorers – despite registering the fewest on-target attempts among the semi-finalists.

Something must give in Warsaw on Thursday when Germany meet Italy for a place in the UEFA EURO 2012 final.

With the Azzurri unbeaten in 14 qualifying and final tournament matches under Cesare Prandelli and Germany having won a world record 15 competitive games dating back to the last FIFA World Cup, each side offers a compelling case for making Sunday's Kyiv showpiece. 

The Nationalmannschaft's greater clinical edge, certainly when compared with their opponents', could be decisive, however. Joachim Löw's team have registered more goals than any of their fellow semi-finalists, nine, yet have done so from the joint fewest (along with Portugal) attempts on target, 33. With Italy though, the statistics are reversed – 50 on-target efforts have brought just four goals.

Each nation's respective quarter-final provided a case in point. While the Azzurri struggled to finish off England despite fashioning a plethora of openings, Germany recovered from the shock of conceding an equaliser to Greece by scoring three times in 13 minutes – this having rotated their entire front three.

In Andrea Pirlo, though, Prandelli has one of the championship's classiest performers. The Juventus midfielder controlled the tempo from the outset against England in Kyiv, completing a EURO record 117 passes. That over one third of them were in extra time, when the 33-year-old might have been expected to succumb to fatigue, gives a sound indication of the 2006 World Cup winner's energy levels.

The deep-lying playmaker's duel with Mesut Özil – ten years his junior and the purveyor of as many assists, three, as the whole of the Italy squad at these finals – could be key in determining the outcome of the sides' third meeting in UEFA European Championship history.

Complementing Pirlo's guile has been the graft of Claudio Marchisio. Deployed in a more advanced midfield position than his club-mate, Marchisio, on average, covered 11.177km per game in the group stage, far in excess of the 10.649km mean figure.

Italy Facing Pronounced Germany Threat - UEFA Threats 2012

Proceedings Opened Against RFEF and RFS

Disciplinary proceedings have been opened against the Royal Spanish Football Federation and the Russian Football Union over spectator conduct at UEFA EURO 2012.

UEFA has opened disciplinary proceedings against the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) for the improper conduct of its supporters (racist behaviour, racist chanting) at the UEFA EURO 2012 Group C match against Italy in Gdansk on Sunday 10 June.

Disciplinary proceedings have also been initiated against the Russian Football Union (RFS) for the improper conduct of its fans (racist behaviour, racist chanting) at the UEFA EURO 2012 Group A game against the Czech Republic in Wroclaw on Friday 8 June.

The UEFA Control and Disciplinary Body will deal with these cases on Thursday 28 June.

Proceedings Opened Against RFEF and RFS

Hugo Almeida - Once Again in Full Farm Energetically

The inclusion of the powerful yet nimble Hugo Almeida, set to deputise for the injured Hélder Postiga, means Spain have more to worry about than simply Cristiano Ronaldo.

There was only one absentee from Portugal's training sessions in Opalenica this week, but it was a significant one. Hélder Postiga is not a globally worshipped star like Cristiano Ronaldo, yet nobody in Paulo Bento's camp needs any convincing of his value.

The Real Zaragoza man is, in many ways, the ideal centre-forward for this side. His mobility and industry suits the amorphous shape of Portugal's front three under their coach. Perhaps most importantly, his incorporation also allows Ronaldo to play in his preferred position wide on the left.

Yet as soon as 'Postigol' pulled up clutching his right thigh in the first half of Thursday's UEFA EURO 2012 quarter-final against the Czech Republic, it seemed highly likely that Bento would have to change his starting XI for the first time in seven competitive matches should Portugal reach the last four.

His replacement on the night was Hugo Almeida, and the 28-year-old is likely to reprise that role from the start against Spain. Standing at 1.91m, he is a completely different proposition to Postiga. Within seconds of entering the pitch in Warsaw, Almeida had a deep cross launched towards him early by Nani, outlining the options he can give the side.

Yet the Beşiktaş JK man is no one-trick pony. As well as having an absolute hammer of a left foot – he scored what must be one of the fiercest free-kicks in UEFA Champions League history in FC Porto's November 2005 loss at FC Internazionale Milano – Almeida can get behind a defence more nimbly than one might expect. In fact, that's exactly what he did in the dying embers of Portugal's 4-0 defeat of Spain in November 2010, bursting clear of a static back line to confidently slot in goal number four.

Almeida's experience and record [15 goals in 44 internationals] mean he is likely to get the nod ahead of Nélson Oliveira, who will again be an impact substitute. Even if the change has been forced, Almeida's inclusion gives holders Spain something more than Ronaldo to think about in defense.

Hugo Almeida - Once Again in Full Farm Energetically