Denmark face a must-win game against Italy as they sit one point adrift of third-placed Bulgaria, and the hosts are hoping their opponents will not be at their best having already secured their place at the 2014 World Cup. Nevertheless, the Azzurri will be looking to continue the rich vein of form and finish the qualifying campaign without a single defeat.

Bendtner is back

Denmark did pretty well at the Euro 2012, having battled bravely in the group of death and narrowly missed out on a place in the knockout stages, so everybody expected them to challenge Italy for the first place in their 2014 World Cup qualifying group. Nevertheless, the team had a pretty disappointing start to the new campaign, sharing spoils with Czech Republic and Bulgaria before losing 3-1 at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza. The Scandinavians then impressed to beat the Czechs 3-0 away, but home draw with Bulgaria and shocking 4-0 defeat to Armenia looked to have ended their qualifying hopes. However, Denmark again rose from the ashes as victories over Malta and Armenia gave them a good chance of winning the second place in the group. Morten Olsen’s side may be one point behind Bulgaria at the moment, but with their rivals facing two very difficult games, chances are victories over Italy and Malta would see the Danes clinch the second place in the group. Even with the Azzurri lacking motives at the moment, Denmark will have to give their best if they want to claim maximum points, but chances are they will be adopting attack-minded approach.

Nicklas Bendtner could start his first game after a year-long absence, while Andreas Bjelland and Simon Kjaer are vying for a place alongside captain Daniel Agger in the heart of defence.

Italy continue to impress

Even though many doubted Cesare Prandelli was the right man for the job, the former Fiorentina coach has so far been exceeding expectations on Italy bench. He first led the Azzurri to the Euro 2012, where his side played some attractive attacking football to reach the final and not even the heavy defeat to Spain could mar the amazing achievement. Italy then experienced small problems in the 2014 World Cup qualifiers, but the fact they have secured the first place in a pretty strong group with two games to go speaks volumes about their performances. Cesare Prandelli is one of just a handful of national team bosses who continues to select his squads mostly based on current form, but such an approach has been producing excellent results of late. Given that his side have already qualified for the tournament finals, the manager is likely to make some changes to the starting line-up, but seeing as how all the players in the squad play important roles in their respective clubs, the Azzurri remain the favourites to win in Denmark. With the visitors arriving in Kobenhavn without any pressure, we should definitely see an open encounter.

Mario Balotelli, Marco Verratti and Lorenzo Insigne are all doubtful, whereas Daniele De Rossi is out through injury.

Verdict

Denmark have been largely struggling in most high-profile games during this qualifying campaign, and with some of their key players completely out of form, I doubt they can record a much needed win. Meanwhile, Italy are playing with a lot of confidence and without pressure, so another good result looks on the cards for the Azzurri.

Top pick: Over 2.5 goals   2.25 (5/4) @ William Hill

Alternative pick 1: Italy with +0.25   1.82 (41/50) @ bet365

Alternative pick 2: Both teams to score   1.95 (19/20) @ Ladbrokes