On Tuesday, Italy Under-17s and Poland Under-17s will kick off their European Under-17 Championship campaign at AEK Arena in Cyprus.
Both teams are aiming to finish in the top two of a group that also includes Slovakia and Sweden.
Match Overview
Italy
Italy, who have finished as runners-up three times, are hoping to win the European Under-17 Championship for the first time.
Their last tournament performance saw them exit at the group stage, the first time since 2017.
They secured their eighth consecutive tournament appearance by finishing second in their first qualifying group and topping their group in the elite round.
Poland
Poland has a notable history in the European Under-17 Championship despite only three previous appearances.
They reached the semi-finals in 2012 and again last year, where they were eliminated by eventual winners Germany.
Poland comes into the tournament with strong form, having won five out of six qualifying games.
Recent Form
Italy U17s Form
taly's recent form shows a mix of results:
Win: 2
Loss: 1
Draw: 2
Poland U17s Form
Poland has demonstrated some impressive overall performances recently:
Win: 4
Loss: 2
Team News
Italy Under-17s
Goalkeeper: Alessandro Longoni is expected to start in goal.
Defence: The backline is likely to feature Christian Garofalo and Andrea Natali.
Midfield and Attack: Francesco Camarda, Italy's top scorer in qualifying with four goals, will be a key player.
Possible Lineup: Longoni; Benjamin, Garofalo, Natali, Cama; Coletta, Mantini, Di Nunzio, Ciardi; Liberali, Camarda.
Poland Under-17s
Defence: Rafal Lasocki may opt for a back three with Bartosz Kriegler, Kacper Potulski, and Dawid Szwiec.
Midfield and Attack: Jakub Adkonis, who scored six goals in qualifying, will
be crucial to Poland’s attacking efforts.
Possible Lineup: Pruchniewski; Kriegler, Potulski, Szwiec; Popielec, Sarapata, Dziewiatowski, Adkonis, Mazurek; Pietuszewski, Izunwanne.
Prediction
Based on their form and previous performances, we're predicting that Italy will win this match.
Italy has scored at least two goals in their last four matches and is expected to showcase their attacking strength.
Italy 
Poland 
