Group C remains wide open following the opening round of fixtures, but an opening success has Croatia setting their sights on the quarter-finals.
Azzurri looking to bring Bilic's boys back down to earth
Group C remains wide open following the opening round of fixtures, but an opening success has Croatia setting their sights on the quarter-finals.
Slaven Bilic's side made the perfect start to their Euro 2012 campaign on Sunday as they swept past the Republic of Ireland 3-1.
That results means Croatia, who made the knockout stage in 2008, know victory over Italy would see them progress out of a strong group.
They are, however, aware that their next two games pitch them against the World Cup winners from 2006 and 2010 - starting with Italy on Thursday.
"For me Italy is - they're not better than Spain, right - but you can't analyse them, they play with more options," said Croatia coach Slaven Bilic.
"You know how Spain are going to play but Italy are so unpredictable. They can pass the ball. They can play the short balls. They can play through the middle. They can play counter attack, with long ball from (Andrea) Pirlo to the strikers. They can play down the flanks. They are for me one of the biggest favourites in this tournament."
Match points
National skipper Darijo Srna, who is setting his sights on the last eight, added: "We will try to keep our feet on the ground, we don't want to raise expectations now, but we are well aware of what is ahead of us. We now have two 'match points' and I hope we can take one."
Italy are determined to ensure that Croatia leave Poznan empty-handed.
The Azzurri's mixed pre-tournament form made it difficult to predict what they would bring to Euro 2012, but their opening display suggests they remain a force to be reckoned with.
They held reigning European and world champions Spain to a 1-1 draw, after taking the lead, and will feel that they are capable of taking maximum points off Croatia and Ireland - despite the Croats currently sitting four places above them in FIFA's world rankings.
Coach Cesare Prandelli is taking nothing for granted though, saying: "It's going to be the decisive match of the group.
"I've been saying for a while that Croatia is the most dangerous squad because it's the most unpredictable one. They change the way they play all the time, sometimes even from one half to another."
Team news
Having seen Croatia impress against the Irish, Bilic is expected to stick with the same starting XI.
That means Tottenham playmaker Luka Modric will continue to pull the strings in midfield and Nikica Jelavic and Mario Mandzukic will provide the attacking firepower - with both men having opened their tournament goal accounts against Ireland.
Antonio Cassano is tipped to retain his place in Prandelli's starting XI, but Mario Balotelli may drop to the bench.
The Manchester City striker started against Spain, but was withdrawn in the second half and saw his replacement, Antonio Di Natale, break the deadlock.
