Although all of Europe's major leagues - including the Premier League, Bundesliga, Serie A, La Liga, and Ligue 1 - are all on hiatus, many of the players who ply their trades in one of the aforementioned leagues are not due to international commitments, whether it is for qualification purposes or taking part in pre-tournament friendlies.
And some of these international matches will see teams quite familiar with each other square off. This Thursday, Italy will take on Spain for what will be the first of two meetings between these two iconic sides this year. First up on the menu will be a friendly between gli Azzurri and La Furia Roja as both sides hope to fine-tune their squads ahead of the upcoming EURO 2016 tournament.
Italy
Under Antonio Conte - who will be departing after this summer's EURO tournament - Italy have lost just two games so far. Both were friendlies against Portugal and Belgium, but the former Juventus coach will be expecting a better showing from his side as he tries to figure out what will be his best starting XI for the tournament in France.
However, he will have to make do without a slew of first-choice regulars. Traditionally, Conte has relied on quite a few Bianconeri stars to feature in his preferred line-up, but with Andrea Barzagli, Claudio Marchisio, and Giorgio Chiellini all out injured, his defense and midfield will look dramatically different than what fans are used to seeing.
Additional absentees will also include Roma's Daniele De Rossi and PSG's Marco Verratti, and there is no place for Andrea Pirlo - once a mainstay of the Italian national team - in this team. Nor is there room for controversial striker Mario Balotelli, who has yet to feature for his national side since Conte's arrival. Meanwhile, players like Federico Bernadeschi and Stefano Okaka - the former of which has been called up to the senior squad for the first time - have been included in Conte's group, and Stephan El Shaarawy's excellent form for Roma has also earned him a recall to the national team.
Italy will be coming into this game without a win in their last two matches, and will certainly hope to kick off 2016 with a win, but Spain, who were in solid form for the latter part of 2015, will definitely not make things easy.
Spain
Like Italy, Spain had an awful World Cup as they, too, were dumped out at the group stage. However, 2015 was a much kinder year to La Furia Roja. Between March and the end of last year, the reigning EURO champions lost just one match, which was a 2-0 reversal against the Netherlands on March 31st. Since the defeat to the Oranje, Spain have won every single one of their past seven games, and have just conceded one goal.
The visitors also have a good track record against their hosts. Out of their past five meetings (including friendlies), Spain have only lost once, back on August 10, 2011. They famously thrashed Italy 4-0 in the EURO 2012 finals and won their last friendly match, played on March 5, 2014, by a scoreline of 1-0.
Del Bosque, like his tactical opponent, also has made some changes for this game. One notable absentee is Diego Costa, whose antics at Chelsea have not impressed his coach, and so the Brazilian-born striker will play no part in this game. There is also no place in the team for Barcelona star Andres Iniesta, who like his midfield counterpart Pirlo, has been overlooked, but his younger teammate Sergio Roberto has been rewarded with his first call-up to the senior squad.
Another notable addition is Athletic Bilbao's Aritz Aduriz, who despite being 35 years old has just one cap to his name, but his excellent performances for his club certainly have not gone unnoticed by Del Bosque, and he could be tasked with leading the line in Thursday's friendly.
Which channel is broadcasting Italy vs Spain on TV or Online?
The newly refurbished Stadio Friuli - commonly known as the Dacia Arena - will be playing host to gli Azzurri and La Furia Roja in what should be an entertaining friendly clash. However, if you are nowhere near Udine to catch the game in person, no worries. LiveSoccerTV.com has put together plenty of choices for you to view the match via your TV, computer, phone, or tablet.
Here are some options for fans residing in the following countries:
- In the USA at 15.45 EST on: ESPN2, ESPN Deportes TV
- In Italy at 20.45 CET on: RAI Uno
- In Spain at 20.45 CET on: TeleCinco Espana
Live elsewhere? Check out our special Italy vs Spain broadcast page for viewing times and options for wherever you are currently based.
*Note: Live broadcast data is subject to change*
Match details, result and original broadcast info
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