On Saturday, October 10, the Azerbaijan male national team hosts their Italian counterparts in an Euro 2016 Qualifying match. The game will be played at the Tofiq Bəhramov adına Respublika stadionu in the city of Baku and will kick off at 17:00 BST.
Azerbaijan is 5th in their qualifying group with 6 points from 8 games, while the Italians are top of the qualifying group with 18 points from 8 games.
Azerbaijan are out of the running for the European Championships as they can no longer catch Croatia in the remaining games, while Italy are a win away from securing their place in the show piece event.
The Azerbaijans, managed by Robert Prosinecki are in poor form, with one win, three draws and one defeat in their last five matches. This single win was against Malta in an Euro 2016 qualifying game (2-0 on March 28).
Milli drew three consecutive European Qualifying games against Norway (0-0 on June 12), Croatia (0-0 on September 3), and Malta (2-2 on September 6). They suffered defeat at the hands of Serbia in a friendly game (4-1 on June 7).
The Azurri, managed by Antonio Conte are in decent form, with two wins, two draws and one defeat in their last five games. These wins were in consecutive Euro 2016 qualifying games against Malta (1-0 on September 3), and Bulgaria (1-0 on September 6).
The 2006 world cup winners, drew consecutive games against England in a friendly match (1-1 on March 31), and Croatia in Euro 2016 qualifying (1-1 on June 12). They suffered their only recent defeat in a friendly game against Portugal (0-1 on June 16).
Midfielder Rahid Amirquliyev was the hero in their last qualifying game, scoring a brace in the draw against Malta. He will be looking to pick off where he left off against the Italians. Graziano Pelle is doing well to enhance his global football profile. The Azurri striker has started the season on fire for his club, scoring 5 goals in 8 appearances. He will be looking to continue in this form for his national team.
The Azerbaijan are on paper no might for a team as established as the Italians, especially this Italian team that are undefeated in their last five games away from home. I see the Italians wrapping up qualification with a narrow victory in this game.