U21 Euro 2007: 4 Days to go...

Italy coach Pierluigi Casiraghi is concentrating on "technical and tactical preparation" as he works with his squad at the national training base of Coverciano before departing for the Netherlands on Friday afternoon.

By then, the Azzurrini will have been together a week as they aim to arrive at the European Under-21 Championship in peak condition having failed to negotiate the group stage as holders in Portugal last summer.

"We have to consider the condition and age of the players as it's the end of a long season and I don't want to ask too much of them," said Casiraghi, who replaced Claudio Gentile after the 2006 finals. "That said, we'll work hard on a day-to-day basis to ensure we're in shape for our opening match against Serbia."

Italy's first game will be played in Nijmegen on Monday before further Group B assignments against England and the Czech Republic in Arnhem.

"We're focusing on technical and tactical preparation," Casiraghi continued. "We always try to play good football, and usually we do, but sometimes we should be more solid. However, the fact the players are very confident they can achieve something in these finals is a positive. Confidence is key at tournaments like this, although I'll remind them not to be complacent and to be ready to make sacrifices."

[U21 Euro 2007 Championship Finals Schedule]