England U21 boss Stuart Pearce is ready to lock horns with Pierluigi Casiraghi's Italy in tonight's European Championships group clash.

The 76th of Pearce's 78 senior caps saw him come up against Casiraghi in the Tournoi de France which England won a decade ago, although the Italians were upset at a challenge by Pearce on Roberto Di Matteo. Pearce was also accused of targeting Gianfranco Zola, who now assists Casiraghi.

The England Under-21 boss did not draw on his previous meetings with Casiraghi, but the former Chelsea striker can recollect his encounters with Pearce.

"I remember and I think he remembers too," said Casiraghi, whose side lost to Serbia in their opener. "For sure, we met on the pitch because he was a defender and I was a forward."

Coming up against Casiraghi as a coach poses a new set of problems after drawing blank against the Czechs, with a later kick-off against Italy possibly helping a quicker tempo to suit England.

"You've got to pick up the signals the game sends out," said Pearce. "There are times you do have to set a high tempo to what you're trying to achieve, at other times you've got to slow that down. That's maybe what we have to be a bit cuter at.

"We're so used to playing at 100 miles per hour in the Premier League. I certainly think there is a time where you have to vary your play."

With the Czechs restricting England's youngsters, Pearce finished the game playing two strikers, which is an option from the start against Italy.

"The tempo we imposed on the game on Monday was not good enough to put the Czechs under any form of pressure," Pearce added. "We feel it will be a slightly different game against the Italians and we have to concentrate on what we are good at."