Ukraine vs Italy Expert Football Betting Tips: Value Bets, Team News and Stats

Below you’ll find expert football betting tips for Ukraine vs Italy from bettingexpert author, Daniele Fisichella, as well as match stats, facts, value bets, and everything in between for the Euro 2024 Qualifiers crunch match in Group G.

Ukraine vs Italy: Expert Football Betting Tips

• Bettingexpert’s Value Bet: BTTS: Yes
• Longshot Expert Bet Tip: Ukraine To Score First

Odds via Bet365 as at 10am, November 16th, 2023. Odds may now differ.

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Bettingexpert’s Value Bet Tip: BTTS: Yes

Euro 2024 Qualifiers, Group C, Monday, November 21st, 19:45 (UK)

If Italy beat North Macedonia on Friday, 17th November, they will have to avoid defeat in Leverkusen to qualify for the tournament.

If they don’t, they’ll be relegated to the play-offs next March, a scenario that sends shivers down their spines after the two recent World Cup heartbreaks. A win for Ukraine will see them qualify for Euros for the third time in a row.

The last Italy’s away game was a defeat (3-1 against England), but the Azzurri have shown they’re perhaps ahead in their re-building process of what many might expect.

At Wembley, Italy controlled the game for large spells in the first half and played with the right intensity. England, of course, have a deeper and stronger squad, and the lack of international experience of some Italian players (for example, Scalvini, Frattesi and Bastoni) was evident in the second half. The encouraging aspect is that Luciano Spalletti, who’s only in charge at the sixth game, seems to have already restored cohesion, pride, and a sense of belonging to the national side.

All those attributes should be a given for players who are selected for Italy. However, the desire to fight and pull in the same direction appeared to be somehow lost in the last months of Roberto Mancini’s tenure.

After a cautious approach in their first game as a coach (1-1 draw in North Macedonia), Spalletti was bolder with his team selection, and it was not long before results started to come, including the 2-1 win against Ukraine in Milan.

Despite Italy’s excellent record against the Ukrainians (no defeats in nine games), this will be an extremely tough match to negotiate.

Ukrainian football, both at club and national levels, has defied the odds for the last 19 months, and for its players, this will be one of the most important matches of their whole careers.

• Bettingexpert’s Value Bet: BTTS – Yes (TRACKED BET)
• Best Odds: Awaiting Markets to Open
• Bookmaker: N/A

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Bettingexpert’s Longshot Expert Bet Tip: Ukraine To Score First

The BayArena in Leverkusen will be sold out, and despite a significant presence of Italians living in Germany, the support will be all for Ukraine. Qualifying for a major tournament would be one of the greatest sporting achievements ever for a country that has been involved in a conflict with Russia since 2022.

The national side hasn’t played a home match for more than two years (November 2021, 1-1 draw against Bulgaria). Ukraine’s biggest club, Shakhtar Donetsk, who are represented by nine players in the squad, have had to migrate to Poland first and Germany this season to play their European games. The Ukrainian Premier League was forcefully interrupted in April 2022. Since last season, teams whose areas are affected by the conflict are relocated to western regions of the country.

Yet Shakhtar held Real Madrid in the Champions League last year and beat Barcelona recently, whereas Ukraine has only lost two out of their previous eight games and managed to stop England in Hamburg in September.

Ukraine are a young and fit side with players who have impressed this season across Europe: from Atem Dovbyk, seven goals so far with La Liga leaders Girona, to the large Premier League contingent made of Oleksandr Zinchenko, Mykhailo Mudryk, Illya Zabarnyi and Vitalii Mykolenko.

The Azzurri, who have kept clean sheets only against Malta in the qualifiers, could be in for a long and tough night.

• Bettingexpert’s Longshot Expert Bet Tip: Ukraine To Score First (TRACKED BET)
• Best Odds: Awaiting Markets to Open
• Bookmaker: N/A

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Ukraine vs Italy Team News: Important returns for the Azzurri

Luciano Spalletti will count on Federico Chiesa and Nicolò Zaniolo, who both missed the last two qualifiers, and Arsenal midfielder Jorginho, who has been recalled thanks to his good performances with the North London club.

The new names in the Azzurri squad are Andrea Colpani (six goals already with Monza) and Juventus’ wing-back Andrea Cambiaso. But Meret, Toloi, Calabria, Bastoni and Locatelli have all returned to their clubs due to last-minute injuries.

Ukraine’s coach Serhiy Rebrov will have to do without Real Madrid goalkeeper Andriy Lunin as well as captain Andriy Yarmolenko as they’re both injured. Mykola Shaparenko and Yevhen Konoplyanka are also not in the squad.

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Ukraine vs Italy Match Stats and Facts: the hosts are set for the game of their life

• Italy have won only two of their last five away matches, including friendlies and Nations League games.
• Since losing the World Cup play-off semi-final against North Macedonia in March 2022, Italy have only kept three away clean sheets (against England, Hungary and Malta) in 11 away games.
• Italy are unbeaten in nine games against Ukraine, collecting seven wins and two draws.
• Ukraine are ​​unbeaten in 14 home matches: since October 2020 when they were defeated 2-1 by Germany in the Nations League
• Ukraine lost their last home qualifier match in October 2017, 2-0 against Croatia.

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NOVEMBER 13-19 IS SAFER GAMBLING WEEK 2023

November 13-19 marks an important date in the calendar. Safer Gambling Week is a significant industry-wide event that aims to shed more light on responsible betting. For more information and advice, head to the bettingexpert Safer Gambling hub or our brief explainer below.

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