Finalissma Preview: Argentina, Italy to battle it our for glory
Conmebol’s Copa América 2021 winners Argentina will face off with Uefa’s Euro 2020 victors Italy in the 2022 Finalissima on Wednesday, 1 June at the Wembley Stadium, England.
Italy booked their place by claiming the European crown last summer, defeating England on penalties in the Wembley final for their second continental title.
Argentina ended a 28-year wait for a trophy by winning the 2021 Copa América, beating Brazil 1-0 in the decider to clinch a record-equalling 15th Copa América title.
The Finalissima is a one-off fixture played over 90 minutes. There is no extra time, so if the tie is level at the end of regulation time, it will go straight to penalties.
Argentina won their 2021 Copa América semifinal against Colombia on spot kicks, Emiliano Martínez saving three, while Italy became the first team to win two shoot-outs at a single Uefa European Championship when they saw off Spain and England in the semis and final to win Euro 2020.
This will be the third time the Euro holders have met their South American counterparts in a match organised by Uefa and Conmebol. In 1985, France defeated Uruguay 2-0 in Paris, and eight years later Argentina edged out Denmark on penalties on home turf at Mar del Plata.
During the course of Uefa Euro 2020, Italy broke their records for longest winning streak (13) and unbeaten run (34).
Italy became the fourth side to win multiple Euro titles after Germany (three), Spain (three) and France (two). The 53-year gap between their titles is the longest in Euro history.
Italy became the first side to win two penalty shoot-outs at a single Euro finals tournament last summer.
Leonardo Bonucci (34 years and 71 days) set an Italian record by making his 18th Euro finals appearance in the Uefa Euro 2020 final, and became the oldest player to score in the decider.
Chelsea’s Jorghino became only the 10th player to feature on the winning side in the European Cup and Euro in the same year.
Defeat by Spain in the Uefa Nations League semifinals ended Italy’s world-record run of 37 games unbeaten, stretching back to 2018.
Possible line-ups
Italy: Donnarumma; Di Lorenzo, Bonucci, Chiellini, Emerson; Barella, Jorginho, Pessina; Bernardeschi, Belotti, Insigne
Argentina: E. Martínez; Foyth, Romero, Otamendi, Acuña; De Paul, Rodríguez, Lo Celso; Messi, L. Martínez, Di María
What the coaches say
Roberto Mancini, Italy coach
“We are sad not to have [Federico] Chiesa, [Ciro] Immobile, [Domenico] Berardi and [Marco] Verratti, but the players we field will do their best to have a great game. Argentina are strong but so are we. This match will be the end of a cycle. That doesn’t mean that 15-20 players will go back home, but from Wednesday we will field more young people to see whether we can count on them for the future.”
Lionel Scaloni, Argentina coach
“As a player, I enjoyed playing at stadiums like these and against these kinds of opponents. We would prefer [to play against European teams] more often. [Our unbeaten run is] just a number, a mere statistic and it doesn’t really matter to us. The most important thing is knowing what we want, where we want to go. We have to seize the moment and this experience. Whenever you play with the Argentinian shirt, every match matters. And if we can win a trophy, all the better.”
