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England unchanged, Italy switch three
Posted Monday, June 25, 2012 by Sports.yahoo.com

England manager Roy Hodgson named an unchanged side here Sunday for his team's Euro 2012 quarter-final against Italy.

Hodgson kept faith with the starting line-up from last Tuesday's 1-0 win over Ukraine as England aimed to reach the semi-finals of a major tournament for the first time in 16 years.

England captain Steven Gerrard resumes his partnership with Scott Parker in central midfield while Hodgson once again opted for James Milner and Ashley Young on the flanks. Wayne Rooney was paired with Danny Welbeck in attack.

Italy coach Cesare Prandelli meanwhile made three changes to his side with Riccardo Montolivo replacing Thiago Motta, Leonardo Bonucci coming in for Giorgio Chiellini and Mario Balotelli starting in place of Antonio Di Natale.

Motta and Chiellini had both been suffering from hamstring problems while Balotelli impressed after coming on as a substitute in the 2-0 win over Ireland.

Teams

England (4-4-2)

Joe Hart; Glen Johnson, John Terry, Joleon Lescott, Ashley Cole; James Milner, Scott Parker, Steven Gerrard (capt), Ashley Young; Wayne Rooney, Danny Welbeck
Coach: Roy Hodgson

Italy (4-3-1-2)

Gianluigi Buffon (capt); Ignazio Abate, Andrea Barzagli, Leonadro Bonucci, Federico Balzaretti; Andrea Pirlo, Claudio Marchisio, Daniele De Rossi; Riccardo Montolivo; Mario Balotelli, Antonio Cassano

Coach: Cesare Prandelli

Standings
    Rank Team W/D/L Pts

    Cities & Stadiums

    The Top 3 Teams of Previous Tournaments

    Year Winners Runner-up Third place
    2008SpainGermanyRussia / Turkey
    2004GreecePortugalNetherlands / Czech Republic
    2000FranceItalyNetherlands / Portugal
    1996GermanyCzech RepublicFrance / England
    1992DenmarkGermanyNetherlands / Sweden
    1988NetherlandsSoviet UnionItaly / West Germany
    1984FranceSpainDenmark / Portugal
    1980West GermanyBelgiumCzechoslovakia
    1976CzechoslovakiaWest GermanyNetherlands
    1972West GermanySoviet UnionBelgium
    1968ItalyYugoslaviaEngland
    1964SpainSoviet UnionHungary
    1960Soviet UnionYugoslaviaCzechoslovakia