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| ReutersYonhap News |
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| AFP Yonhap News |
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This is the sad reality of Italian soccer that has become the 'European version of China'.
Italy is on the verge of failing again to advance to the 2026 North Korea-China World Cup finals. Italy lost 1-4 in the final Group I match of the North-China World Cup European qualifying round against Norway at the Giuseppe Meacha Stadium in Milan on the 17th (Korea time). 11 minutes into the match, Francesco Pio Esposito (Inter Milan) scored the first goal, but allowed Antonio Nusa (Lefich) to equalize in the 18th minute of the second half and gave up consecutive goals to Elling Holan (Manchester City) in the 33rd and 34th minutes of the second half. Just before the end of the second half, he suffered a crushing defeat in his home turf when he was beaten by Jürgen Strand Larsen (Wolverhampton).
It is Italy, where only a great victory was the way to live. He won six games in seven qualifying matches, but it was painful to lose 0-3 in his first showdown with Norway. Norway, which was leading the group with seven wins out of seven, is far ahead of Italy (+12) not only in points (21, Italy 18) but also in goal difference (+29). Italy was in a position to go straight to the finals only if it won by nine goals on the day. It looked like he was going to use a miracle when he got the first goal 11 minutes into the game, but it was a crushing defeat to return. At the end of the second half, when Italy's defeat grew stronger, angry local fans rushed out of the stadium.
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| APYonhap News |
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| ReutersYonhap News |
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Italy, a four-time World Cup champion (1934, 1938, 1982, 2006), has not made it to the finals for the last two consecutive tournaments. In the 2018 Russia tournament, he entered the playoffs as the second place in the group behind Spain, but failed to make it to the finals for the first time in 60 years since the 1958 Swiss tournament, with only one draw and one loss against Sweden. At the 2022 Qatar Games, he also suffered the humiliation of being eliminated after being caught by North Macedonia in the playoffs.
Italy, which seemed to be showing signs of revival by winning Euro 2020. However, when he failed to catch a clue in the European qualifying round for the North-China World Cup and the Nations League under Luciano Spaletti, he tried to change to coach Zennaro Gattuso, who was called the "fighting chicken" during his active days. However, this time, he was pushed back by Norway and headed to the playoffs without going straight to the finals.
It is unclear whether Italy will succeed in rebounding in the North Korea-China World Cup playoffs. Sweden, which caused the pain of elimination from the Russian tournament, advanced to the playoffs, as well as Ukraine, Ireland, and Turkiye, are waiting for formidable opponents. Considering the previous two playoff slumps, we cannot rule out the possibility that Italy will face an unprecedented situation of being eliminated from the finals for the third consecutive time.
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| AFP Yonhap News |
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| AFP Yonhap News |
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FIFA has significantly increased the number of countries participating in the finals from 32 to 48 from the North Korea-China World Cup. The prevailing analysis was that it was a paving stone for China, a huge market. Italy, which had not crossed the playoff threshold twice, is also expected to benefit. However, China wasted no time in failing to pass the third qualifying round and suffered a bitter cup of elimination. Italy also faced an awkward situation where it would go to the playoffs again.
Norway, which made Italy cry, is back on the stage for the first time in 28 years since the 1998 French competition. Holan, who made his professional debut in 2015 and established himself as Norway's hope, will enjoy his first career advance to the finals. Norway's team ran out to the ground when the victory over Italy was confirmed, hugging and enjoying the joy.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
