Overview
- Italy won 2-0 in Bergamo on Thursday, with Sandro Tonali and Moise Kean scoring, to advance to a one-match playoff final on March 31.
- Gattuso set up in a 3-5-2 with Kean and Mateo Retegui leading the line, and Italy broke through after a sluggish first half as Tonali hit from distance before Kean finished the game.
- The final will be away to the winner of Wales vs Bosnia and Herzegovina, with the single game deciding Italy’s 2026 World Cup place.
- Gattuso said the team “complicated” the first half and then raised the tempo, while Tonali admitted early nerves and Kean said he felt the country’s weight after scoring.
- Italy has not played a men’s World Cup since 2014 after playoff exits in 2018 and 2022, raising public pressure and financial stakes reported for the federation.