Defending champions Italy and World Cup third-place finishers Croatia were holding final preparations on Sunday for their crucial Euro 2024 group match amid elimination fears for either side. While Italy will advance with a draw after a 2-1 win over Albania and a 1-0 defeat against group winners Spain, Croatia must win because they crashed 3-0 against Spain and were held 1-1 by Albania. Should Croatia win and Albania upset Spain in the other game Italy would be ousted in what would be another disaster after the Azzurri failed to qualify for the last two World Cups. “We’ve spoken a lot to try a…