Euro 2024: Italy Opens Title Defense Against Albania in Group B 

Italy’s head coach Luciano Spalletti attends a training session at the Hemberg Stadion Nord Halle in Iserlohn, Germany, 12 June 2024. (EPA)
Italy’s head coach Luciano Spalletti attends a training session at the Hemberg Stadion Nord Halle in Iserlohn, Germany, 12 June 2024. (EPA)
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Euro 2024: Italy Opens Title Defense Against Albania in Group B 

Italy’s head coach Luciano Spalletti attends a training session at the Hemberg Stadion Nord Halle in Iserlohn, Germany, 12 June 2024. (EPA)
Italy’s head coach Luciano Spalletti attends a training session at the Hemberg Stadion Nord Halle in Iserlohn, Germany, 12 June 2024. (EPA)

Italy begins the defense of its European Championship title against Albania on Saturday in their first Group B match. The other teams in the group are Spain and Croatia. Kickoff is at 9 p.m. local (1900 GMT) in Dortmund. Here’s what to know about the match:

Match facts:

— Italy is back at a major tournament after failing to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. That was a second straight World Cup that the Azzurri missed, though they won Euro 2020 in between.

— Italy first played at Borussia Dortmund's stadium in 2006 — and it was a classic game in the World Cup. A semifinal match against Germany went to extra time at 0-0 before goals by Fabio Grosso and Alessandro Del Piero sealed a 2-0 win.

— Albania is playing in the Euros for the second time. The first occasion was in 2016 and the team failed to get out of its group.

Team news:

— Davide Frattesi should be available for Italy after returning to training following a minor groin injury. Nicolò Barella and Nicolò Fagioli have both been training separately this week as they recover from muscle issues.

— After finishing the season well with Europa League champion Atalanta, Gianluca Scamacca seems to have won the tussle with Mateo Retegui — born in Argentina but eligible to play for Italy through his maternal grandmother — to be Italy's starting striker. Still to be determined is whether coach Luciano Spalletti goes with a four-man defense or three at the back with wing backs. It'll likely be the latter.

— Albania coach Sylvinho, the former Barcelona, Arsenal and Brazil left back who was sworn in as an Albanian citizen last month, has no reported injuries to worry about ahead of the match. Armando Broja is expected to start up front despite barely featuring for Fulham in a loan spell from Chelsea in the second half of the season.

By the numbers:

— Italy is seeking a third European Championship title — after winning the 1968 and 2020 tournaments. The Italians were also runners-up in 2000 and 2012.

— Italy has won all four of its meetings with Albania. All of them have been played since 2014.

— Albania conceded eight goals on its last appearance at Dortmund's stadium. That was in 1981, when the national team lost 8-0 to West Germany.

— Ten members of Albania's squad play in one of Italy's top two leagues.

What they’re saying “Perhaps this is a slightly younger group, with fewer years on the pitch. But this is a strong group with an equally strong coach." - Italy midfielder Bryan Cristante, comparing Spalletti's current squad with the Euro 2020 winners led by Roberto Mancini.

"If they win, I will not speak to Frattesi for days. And if we win, I think he will not speak to me!” – Albania midfielder Kristjan Asllani, who plays at Inter Milan alongside Frattesi.



Georgian Teenager Salia's Dream Comes True with Newcastle Move 

Vakhtang Salia, a Georgian footballer who plays as a forward for Dinamo Tbilisi and will officially join Newcastle United on his 18th birthday in August 2025, controls the ball during a match against Samgurali Tskaltubo in the Georgian top football league, in Tbilisi, Georgia, March 6, 2025. (Reuters)
Vakhtang Salia, a Georgian footballer who plays as a forward for Dinamo Tbilisi and will officially join Newcastle United on his 18th birthday in August 2025, controls the ball during a match against Samgurali Tskaltubo in the Georgian top football league, in Tbilisi, Georgia, March 6, 2025. (Reuters)
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Georgian Teenager Salia's Dream Comes True with Newcastle Move 

Vakhtang Salia, a Georgian footballer who plays as a forward for Dinamo Tbilisi and will officially join Newcastle United on his 18th birthday in August 2025, controls the ball during a match against Samgurali Tskaltubo in the Georgian top football league, in Tbilisi, Georgia, March 6, 2025. (Reuters)
Vakhtang Salia, a Georgian footballer who plays as a forward for Dinamo Tbilisi and will officially join Newcastle United on his 18th birthday in August 2025, controls the ball during a match against Samgurali Tskaltubo in the Georgian top football league, in Tbilisi, Georgia, March 6, 2025. (Reuters)

Georgian Vakhtang Salia may only be 17-years-old but he will soon be trading Dinamo Tbilisi's training ground for Newcastle United's famous St James' Park stadium.

The striker, known as Vakho, was with his friends when he heard he would be moving to Premier League Newcastle. He will relocate to England near his 18th birthday in August.

For the young prospect, who started playing aged four and debuted for Dinamo Tbilisi in Georgia's top flight only a year ago, signing for a Premier League club is a dream come true.

"I couldn't believe it. But I can't believe it right up until now. It's my dream to play there," he said.

Salia is part of a rising generation of young Georgian players who have given the South Caucasus country of 3.7 million, which gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, a spot on the world football map.

Salia told Reuters that among the players he most admires are Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Georges Mikautadze, who shone during the Euro 2024 campaign, Georgia's first major tournament. They lost to eventual champions Spain in the last 16.

The Euros saw Georgia, the lowest-ranked team in the tournament, win 2-0 against a Portugal side captained by Cristiano Ronaldo, another of Salia's soccer idols, in the group stage with goals from Kvaratskhelia and Mikautadze.

Salia also hopes to play for Georgia one day.

"Football in Georgia now is getting bigger," he said. "It's every Georgian's dream for Georgia to play in the World Cup and the Euros. And I hope that I'll play one day in the national team, too."

Dinamo Tbilisi head coach Vladimer Kakashvili said that Salia has every chance of becoming as good a player as his more established countrymen, even if the Premier League is a step up.

"Undoubtedly, today English football is among the best in Europe, where there are very high speeds, very high physical standards, and Vakho will need a certain period to get used to that," he said.

Salia's career at Dinamo Tbilisi so far leaves him well placed to shine in England, added Kakashvili.

"When a footballer joins the main team at such a young age, it shows that he's undoubtedly talented, that he undoubtedly works on himself, and that he is a professional of the highest level," he said.

"I think with his talent, strong work ethic, and dedication, he can play in any competition. It won't be a problem."