There is only the final round left in Group I of the World European Preliminaries. Italy, the second-placed player, will face the top-placed Norway at home. Norway leads Italy by 3 points and has a goal difference of 17. If Italy wants to advance directly to the 2026 World Cup, it must beat Norway by at least 9 goals in the final round. The Times wrote that Italy national team coach Gennaro Gattuso is facing a severe task. The Azzurri are almost certain to enter the dangerous World Cup play-offs for the third consecutive time.
Gattuso was very dissatisfied with the current situation. He publicly complained about the European qualifying system. He pointed out that Italy, ranked ninth in the world, has to play in the play-offs, while 6.5 of the 10 teams in South America can advance. He also mentioned that Africa's quota has increased from 2 in 1994 to 8 now, while Europe's "best second place" has lost the qualification to directly advance.
This uneasiness stems from recent painful memories, including the 2017 playoff loss to Sweden and the 2022 qualifiers upset by North Macedonia. Donnarumma was also criticized for that save. Since Italy won the championship in 2006 with Gennaro Gattuso as the main force, Italy has not won any World Cup knockout match (main draw and play-offs) in the past two decades.
In the current World Cup qualifiers, the 0-3 loss to Norway in June basically sealed the fate of second place in the group. Although Italy has won all the games since then, due to Norway's huge goal difference of 18 goals, it is almost impossible for Italy to overtake even if they beat Norway in the final round. They need a 9-goal victory.
The team's status is also worrying. In the match against Moldova, Italy did not score until the 88th minute, and Gattuso and his players were even booed by their own fans.
In terms of personnel, Gattuso faces challenges. Liverpool winger Chiesa chose not to participate in the national team's November game due to lack of time at the club. Matteo Retegui, the most prolific forward in the qualifiers, is playing in the Saudi league, and the "gold content" of his goals has been questioned. Meanwhile, some observers have called for the promotion of Brentford's U21 international Michael Kayode, who has strong throw-in skills.
