Azzurrini to play England U21 friendly at new Wembley

Italy Under-21's coach Pierluigi Casiraghi will have one final friendly test against England at the new Wembley Stadium before the UEFA Under-21's European Championships begin in the Netherlands in June.

The English Football Association confirmed that the construction firm rebuilding the £757m stadium had finally handed over the keys to them, and the match between the two nations will be one of the 'test events' at the stadium before it can stage the FA Cup Final in May. The completion of the venue is more than a year late, having been scheduled for January 2006, and the cost of the project has increased dramatically.

Casiraghi and Stuart Pearce's sides, who have been grouped together for the Finals this summer, will meet on Saturday 24 March with the kick-off at 12.30pm (UK Time). Tickets will be £10 each and go on sale at midday on Monday 12 March and the capacity will be limited to a maximum of 60,000, rather than the full 90,000.

The Azzurrini have not played a game since winning 2-0 against Luxembourg last December in Vibo Valentia. Their last friendly was set to be a test against their Belgian counterparts in Chieti on February 6, but that was postponed following the death of police officer Filippo Raciti in the Sicilian Derby violence.

Casiraghi will name his squad for the England friendly on Friday 16 March, and the squad will meet up in Rome on Tuesday 20 March before they fly to London on Thursday 22 March.

The Finals will take place between June 10 to 23 and the five-time champions will also face Serbia and the Czech Republic in their Group.