Andrea Soncin, Italy women – Photo Lisa Guglielmi/IPA Sport
Two home games to usher in the new year and the start of the second edition of the Nations League femminile together with their fans, ready to gather around the Italian national team led by coach Andrea Soncin. After the draw carried out last Thursday in Nyon, the calendar for the group stage of the UEFA competition was made official this morning. The Azzurre, placed in Group 4 of League A, will begin their journey on 21 and 25 February by hosting Wales and Denmark. On 4 and 8 April we will start again with the double Scandinavian trip, the first in Sweden and the second in Denmark. Between the end of May and the beginning of June the new challenge with the Nordic selection and the final commitment in Wales.
Two of the three Group 4 rivals are ahead ofItalia in the FIFA Rankings. On the one hand, Sweden, fifth in the world rankings, on the other, Denmark, which climbed back to twelfth place after a brief period of tarnishment which coincided with the unfortunate adventure in the 2023 World Cup. The Azzurre have already challenged the yellow-blues in the first edition of the Nations League, losing the first leg 1-0 and drawing 1-1 the second leg played in Malmö. The precedents smile on Sweden, which has prevailed in 17 of the 27 matches (the last Italian success dates back to 2018). There have also been 27 matches played against Denmark, beaten on six occasions, including the last match two years ago in the Algarve Cup. The opposite is true for Wales, 29th in the FIFA Rankings, who lost the three matches in in which he faced Italy.