Preparations reaching their conclusion with Italy test looming large
With Saturday’s crucial UEFA Euro 2020 qualifier against Italy fast approaching, the final preparations are now being put in place by the Greek national team.
Since returning from a friendly in Turkey, players of the Greek national team have been training as normal in Athens, but Anastasios Donis left Wednesday’s session early as a preventative measure after feeling pain in his calf. He did not participate in training on Thursday and his availability for the match against Italy on Saturday remains up in the air.
All players who were summoned to the squad are training with the team in Agios Kosmas:
Greece will host Italy on Saturday at the Olympic Stadium, before playing Armenia at the same venue three days later. The Ethniki Omada boast four points from the opening two European Championship qualifiers against Liechtenstein (2:0) and Bosnia (2:2) on the road.
When speaking with the media at a recent press briefing, head coach Angelos Anastasiadis shed some light on his decision to leave experienced right-back Vasilis Torosidis out of the squad: “We need players which are 100% ready. Ever since he recovered from his injury, Vasilis hasn’t played in any matches. We have very important matches approaching. In the future, I hope Vasilis will avoid injuries so that he can be here with us again. He is a part of this team.”
“Will I be happy with four points from the two games? God will decide our fate,” continued Anastasiadis. “We always play to win, this is our philosophy. We have to play with a positive mentality.”
The Hellenic Football Federation released this following video ahead of the two games with Italy and Armenia at the OAKA:
25-year-old Italian winger Matteo Politano will miss his country’s two matches against Greece and Bosnia after receiving an ankle injury. In the 2018/2019 season, Politano made 36 appearances in Serie A for Internazionale, contributing with five goals and seven assists. He has played in three matches and scored one goal for the senior Italian national team.
