Berlin (dpa) – A brief overview of EM partners in Group A:

Italy

Team: Italy have recently successfully campaigned for the national team. Many young players are now part of the regular staff, such as Gianluigi Donarumma, Lorenzo Pellegrini, Nicolo Barella or Federico Chisa. There are also experienced players such as Marco Verratti from Paris Saint-Germain, defenders Giorgio Chiellini, Leonardo Bonucci from Juventus Turin or former Dortmund Ciro Immobile. The team with ten wins from ten games was able to easily qualify for the European Championship, with the final defeat being 0-1 on 10 September 2018 in Portugal.

Coach: Roberto Mancini has taken the squad to the lowest position in recent history. After the disappearance of the 2018 World Cup, the 56-year-old, who had previously won three championships with Inter Milan, did some building work and achieved a successful feat.

Stars: Missing big players from the Italian team. Perhaps the most well-known international player is Verratti, and Barela, Donnerumma and Chisa are also doing well. After all, the Stryker immobile and Naples’ Lorenzo Insane shine aggressively.

Already know? Mancini is the most successful national coach in the history of Italian football. At his suggestion, the team won 70 percent of the first 30 games – the highest rate of all national coaches to date. The team is unbeaten in 25 games, most recently from 2004 to 2006 by Marcelo Lippi.

Switzerland

Team: In the European Championship qualifiers, Switzerland lost just one game (Denmark 0: 1) and won five of eight games. However, the performances were often mixed. “Nati” had to worry for a long time about participating in the tournament. The Confederates finished top of Group D with a 6-1 victory over Gibraltar in the final and a 1-1 draw between Ireland and Denmark.

Coach: Sarajevo-born Vladimir Petkovich has been coaching Switzerland since 2014 – the successor to Ottmar Hitsfeld. The national team has not lost a major tournament since coming to power. At the end of February 2020 – a few months before the originally planned European Championship, it was postponed for a year – the association extended the contract with the 57-year-old Team Boss until December 2022.

Stars: Many national players are active in the German Bundesliga, including Manchengladbachcher Jan Sommer, Nico Elvedi, Denis Zacharia, Briel Embolo, Dortmund’s Manuel Akanji, Frankfurt’s Jibril Zoe, Steven Zuber and Wolf. Also prominent are former Gladbach Granit Shaka (Arsenal FC) and former Frankfurt Harris Seferovic, who plays for Benfica Lisbon.

Already know? Cedric Eaten, who scored three goals in his first two international appearances (against Georgia and Gibraltar), was the most unstable Swiss in the last European Championship qualification. Sports journalists think a lot about the 24-year-old from Glasgow Rangers.

Turkey

Team: In fight and passion, Turkey finished second in Group H behind France for their fifth European Championship. Coach Senol Gens celebrated a 2-0 victory over the world champions in qualifying. The strongest part of the Turkish team is the defense against former Freiburg resident Kagler Sonsi – the Southern Europeans have conceded just three goals in 10 European Championship qualifiers.

Coach: 68-year-old Senol Gens has been coaching Turkey since 2019. This is his second time as national coach, and in the first period from 2000 to 2004 he finished third with Turkey in 2002. Prior to his second engagement, he coached and led Turkish club Besiktas Istanbul for four years. Turkish Club Twice Championship.

Stars: Freiburg Zion, the most valuable professional in the Turkish EM squad, moved to Leicester City in 2018 for 20 million. Former Hakan Calhanoglu from Leverkusen, who now plays for AC Milan, is known internationally. Former Schalke Osan Cabak is under contract with Liverpool FC, and is therefore a top European club. Genghis Ander, 23, from Leicester City, sees many possibilities.

Already know? Zianzi, Kabak and Kal‌noglu have all played in Germany – and have a lot of Bundesliga experience on the Turkish national team. Calhanoglu was even born in Germany, and this applies to Dസെsseldorf Second Division professional Kenan Karamam and former Fortune defender Kan Aihan.

Wales

Team: After a slow start, Wales were able to qualify for the European Championship with a strong final pace. The team that surrounded superstar Gareth Bale finished second in the preliminary round of the European Championship in Hungary with a 2-0 victory over their German opponents. The team already knows the national stadium team in Baku, where Wales will face Turkey and Switzerland: in qualifying, Wales also competed in Azerbaijan – winning 2-0 at the European Championship Stadium.

Coach: Ryan Giggs has been taking care of the team since January 2018. The Welsh football legend played 963 games at Manchester United. However, he will not look at the team in the tournament due to allegations including assault. The 47-year-old denied the allegations. Assistant coach Robert Page (46) will represent him at the European Championships.

Players: Four-time Champions League winner, record scorer in his home country, fears free-kick specialist: Offensive player Gareth Bale surpasses all. His trademark is his trademark celebration, in which he creates a heart with the thumb and forefinger of both hands. After problems at Real Madrid, Bale returned to Tottenham Hotspur in September 2020 at the end of the 2020/21 season for a loan.

Did you know: Wales is one of the wonders of Euro 2016 in France. The team qualified for a European Championship final for the first time – it went straight to the semi-finals. However, in the end the title holder was the final target against Portugal.

© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210601-99-820518 / 4