14th June 2000: Euro 2000

Overview

Group B: Italy v Belgium from the King Baudouin stadium in Brussels. As automatic qualifiers, Belgium have had the tricky task of preparing for the tournament without the benefit of competitive matches, but their recent results have included their first-ever victory on Italian soil - a 3-1 win over tonight's opponents - in Lecce last November. Italian coach Dino Zoff will be looking for a significant improvement in his side's patchy form since being eliminated on penalties in the 1998 World Cup quarter-finals by host nation France. Although they should start as favourites tonight, the Italians will be wary of an upset, having not beaten Belgium in four attempts since 1977.