Italy head coach Roberto Mancini has said it's "pretty unfair" that Azzuri and Spain fans will not be able to travel for Tuesday's Euro 2020 semi-final at Wembley.
More than 60,000 fans are currently permitted at the Euro 2020 semi-finals and final at Wembley Stadium following an announcement by the UK government, increasing attendance to 75 percent of capacity for each game, UEFA announced last week. But the COVID-19 travel restrictions mean supporters of Spain and Italy won't be able to fly to England for the game.
Speaking about the situation, Goal.com quoted Mancini: "I think it's pretty unfair if I'm perfectly honest."
"We're better off playing in front of any crowd as opposed to playing in front of a small number of people; that's what's great about football and entertainment in general. But I do think it's very unfair that we don't have half the stadium full of Italian fans and half the stadium full of Spaniards," he added.
It means the only supporters of either side will be those who are already based in the UK, with the majority likely to be neutrals.
The last time when both teams met in Euros, Italy eliminated La Roja with a 2-0 win in the 2016 round of 16. Azzuri has won each of their last 13 international matches. Their dizzying pace and killer finishing proved too much for a talented Belgium team last time out.
Both teams have scored 23 goals between them in getting this far in European Championships as they clash in the opening UEFA EURO 2020 semi-final at the historic Wembley Stadium.
( With inputs from ANI )
Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor