Paul Ince: 'England must improve immensely'

Former England international Paul Ince has insisted that his county must drastically improve their game against Italy in the Euro 2012 quarter-finals.

The Three Lions advanced to the knockout stages of the tournament as Group D winners after their 1-0 win over Ukraine on Monday.

By winning the group, Roy Hodgson's side avoided meeting Spain in the last eight but Ince believes that England will find the Azzurri no easier a test than the defending champions.

"People say it's great to avoid the Spanish but it's always hard to play against the Italians because defensively they are just as solid as England and attacking wise with [Andrea] Pirlo, [Antonio] Cassano and [Mario] Balotelli - if he plays - they will take their chances," said Ince.

"If you look at the Sweden and Ukraine games there were important mistakes by their keepers which helped England.

"We need to improve immensely, massively, and hopefully that will be the case."

England face Italy in the last eight in Kiev on Sunday.