Today is the day, Euro 2020 has finally arrived! Hip Hip Hooray!!!

I spent my morning picking my Euro 2020 fantasy team over at UEFA.com and as always you have to research these big decisions.

Italy have been fairly impressive coming into this tournament. The Azzurri have won their last seven on the trot.

They are once again looking like a defensive powerhouse, having kept clean-sheets in all those seven victories.

Up-top they could now have a striker that will threaten the leading scorers chart.

Ciro Immobile has a sensational goalscoring record in Serie A with Lazio. Ciro has bagged himself 123 strikes in 177 league outings for I Biancocelesti.

His goalscoring record for his national team is a bit more modest, with him standing at on 13 goals in 46 caps.

But the thirty-one year old has struck three in his last four games this year for Italy. Those goals came in wins over Northern Ireland, Lithuania and the Czech Republic.

Italian boss Roberto Mancini will have to decide whether he starts with Torino’s Andrea Belotti or go with Immobile. The fact it’s a competition might sway in Ciro’s favour, given previous comments from Mancini:

“Ciro has always done well when playing with us. If we had 38 games in a row together, he’d score 25 goals, but it’s tougher when you only get together every now and then.”

Via Football Italia

His late season form for Lazio was also impressive and that too might give him an edge over rivals. Immobile struck six times in his last nine appearances this term. He also set-up two assists for teammates.

The thirty-one year old is a good all-round attacker. He can get in behind defences, he can make first time finishes and score with his head too. His movement can be sublime and that often allows him to find space inside the box.

It would also make for a good redemption story if Ciro steps up and leads the scoring charts in the summer’s tournament. Quite a lot of Italians blamed him for misses against Sweden in the World Cup play-off loss in 2017.

Italy loves a redemption story, just ask Roberto Baggio!

It would be a very Italian story if they were to miss out in the last World Cup and then go on to win this summer’s Euros and for fall guy Ciro Immobile to go from zero to hero.

Being a romantic, that’s why I have selected Ciro in my fantasy team and backing him to win the golden boot!

Posted on June 11th, 2021 by scott
Filed under: Article