Italy will be looking to get back on track in the Nations League when they face Israel at the Stadio Friuli on Monday night.
Luciano Spalletti’s side kicked off their Nations League campaign in impressive fashion with back-to-back wins over France and Israel.
However, the Azzurri were unable to preserve their perfect start when drawing 2-2 with Belgium on Thursday, on a night where I delivered a clean sweep of winners at the Stadio Olimpico.
Seeking to rebound at the first time of asking, Italy will be expected to overcome Israel in Udine on Monday.
Ran Ben Shimon’s side secured promotion to League A of the Nations League after defeating Albania 2-1 in their final game of the previous edition of the competition.
However, they have endured a baptism of fire thus far, losing each of their opening three contests of the campaign.
How the bookies view it: Italian job expected
Unsurprisingly, Italy are short-priced 1/6 favourites on Betano to bank all three points on Monday night.
As already mentioned, Israel are winless in three matches, and the bookies odds suggest that run will continue, with an away win trading at 12/1 (Betnao) while the draw is an unfancied 5/1 (Betano).
Head to head: Azzurri rule the roost
Israel have failed to defeat Italy in six previous attempts, losing on five occasions and drawing once.
The most recent of those six meetings saw Italy run out 2-1 winners in Budapest last month. The same scoreline and outcome on Monday night can be backed at a best price of 17/2 with Betfred.
Players to watch: Retegui on a roll?
Mateo Retegui snapped his nine-game scoring drought for Italy by making the net bulge against Belgium on Thursday. The Atalanta attacker is 21/20 on Bet 365 to strike for the second game running on Monday night.
Omri Gandelman grabbed a goal for Israel in their 4-1 defeat to France last time out and he is 10/1 (Bet 365) to repeat the trick on matchday four.
Predicted line-ups
Italy will be forced into at least one change after Lorenzo Pellegrini was shown a straight red card during Thursday night’s 2-2 draw with Belgium.
Israel will again be without injured duo Eli Dasa and Dor Turgeman. Following Friday night's 4-1 thumping at the hands of France, manager Ben Shimon may well decide to shuffle his pack at the Stadio Friuli.
Italy: Donnarumma; Di Lorenzo, Bastoni, Calafiori; Bellanova, Barella, Ricci, Tonali, Dimarco; Raspadori; Retegui
Israel: Gerafi; Feingold, Nachimas, Shlomo, Leidner; Abu Fani, Kanichowsky; Abada, Peretz, Gandelman; Baribo
Anything else catch the eye?
With Italy too short to support at the above-mentioned odds, I’ll head to the Bet Builder market with a view to getting a bigger price.
Coupling up a home win alongside over one Israel card will bring about an attractive 20/21 shot with Bet 365.
This combination clicked during the reverse fixture between the two sides last month and I see no reason to oppose the same selection on Monday night.
This UEFA Nations League match between Italy and Israel will be played on Oct 14, 2024 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Italy vs Israel prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
