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Turkey vs Italy Odds & Prediction – Euro 2020 Group A June 11th

Gary Gowers

by Gary Gowers in Soccer News

Updated Jun 11, 2021 · 8:18 AM PDT

Turkey vs Italy
FILE - In this Tuesday, March 30, 2021 filer, Italy's Giacomo Raspadori scores his side's second goal during the Euro U21 group B soccer match between Italy and Slovenia at Ljudski vrt stadium in Maribor, Slovenia. It has been something of a roller-coaster couple of weeks for Sassuolo striker Giacomo Raspadori. From the joy of getting his first call-up by Italy to the disappointment of the junior Azzurri side losing on penalties in the Under-21 European Championship quarterfinals, to getting included in Roberto Mancini's squad for Euro 2020 and ultimately making his senior debut on Friday — in a 4-0 victory over the Czech Republic. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic, File)
  • It is Turkey vs Italy in the opening game of Euro 2020 on Friday, June 11 at 3:00 pm EST
  • Rome’s Stadio Olimpico will host the tie in front of 16,000 fans
  • We preview the game, look at the odds, and offer a best bet below

Turkey and Italy meet in the opening game of Euro 2020 on Friday, June 11 at 3:00 pm EST in Rome’s Stadio Olimpico. The Azzurri will be looking to make the most of home advantage and get their tournament off to a flyer, while Turkey will be looking to avoid defeat after an excellent qualifying campaign.

We list the odds, preview Turkey vs Italy, and offer below the best bet for this Euro 2020 opener.

Turkey vs Italy Odds

Matchup Spread Moneyline Total
Turkey vs Italy TUR +1 (-113) | ITA -1 (-106) TUR +700| DRAW +280 | ITA -190 Ov 2.5 (+135) | Un 2.5 (-165)

Odds as of June 10 at DraftKings

Italy on a Charge

While Italy has been a four-time winner of the World Cup, they have not won the Euros since back in 1968. It is a record the Azzurri is keen to rectify and they start this tournament as not only favorites to win Group A but also as one of the favorites to lift the Henri Delaunay Trophy on July 11.

They come into the competition in a good place with coach Roberto Mancini having put together a squad that incorporates those traditional Italian values of a solid defense and professionalism with an attacking ethos not always associated with the Azzurri. Under Mancini’s guidance, they have won 21 games out of 30, which includes 10 wins out of 10 in their qualifying group matches. Along the way, they have also put together an unbeaten run of 25 games.

Mancini Relies on Youth

Mancini’s young squad is also full of goals and has scored 70 times since his appointment in 2018 while conceding just 14, and are currently on an eight-game winning streak. In terms of form, no team is better prepared than the Italians, who have home advantage throughout the group stage.

In addition to all of the above, the Italians also have the benefit of stability, with Mancini recently signing a contract that will keep him in post until the 2026 World Cup, This gives him the opportunity to further develop a squad of talented youngsters, that includes goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, winger Federico Chiesa, plus the Inter Milan pairing of Nicolo Barella and Alessandro Bastoni, both fresh from a Scudetto-winning season.

Turkey vs Italy Head-to-Head Stats

Turkey
VS
Italy
10 Matches played in Euro 20 Qualifying 10
7 Games won 10
2 Games drawn 0
1 Games lost 0
18 Goals scored 37
135 Goals attempts 205
4 Goal conceded 3

Turkey’s Super Tight Defense

Turkey manager Şenol Güneş has put together a youthful squad – the youngest in the tournament with an average age of just under 25 – and having qualified comfortably, the Turks will head to Rome with confidence. En route to qualifying for these finals, the Crescent-Stars four points from the World Champions, France, helped by a super-tight defense that conceded just three goals and kept no less than eight clean sheets.

Like Italy, Turkey is also in a rich vein of form and has lost only three of the 26 games in which Güneş has been in charge, and in addition to the win over France in qualifying, they also recorded an outstanding 4-2 win over the Netherlands in qualifying for Qatar 2022.

What the Turks do have to overcome though is a very modest record in the finals of this competition. Their best performance was in 2008 when they made it to the semifinal but, apart from that, their only venture into the knockout stage was a quarterfinal in 2000. In order to either match or better these feats this time, they will also have to overcome Wales and Switzerland, and so will rely heavily on their new-look, youthful defense that includes the Serie A-based pairing Merih Demiral and Kaan Ayhan.

Turkey vs Italy Best Bets

With both teams on an upward curve, this promises to be an excellent game with which to kick off the tournament, but with two very good defenses, and opening games being notoriously cagey, we should not anticipate a goal-fest. While the Italians will want to kick off with a win in front of their own fans, Mancini will also be very wary of the need to not lose their opener.

This brings the draw into play and even though the Azzurri are unsurprisingly odds-on for the win, the real value here is with a low-scoring draw, especially if the Turkish defense can perform as it did in qualifying.

Pick: Turkey and Italy to draw  (+280) / Under 1.5 goals (+188)

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