One of the world's greatest football countries is now at a historic low. The Italian National Football Team will miss out on their third straight FIFA World Cup appearance as they lost via a penalty shootout to the Bosnia-Herzegovina National Football Team in the UEFA playoffs on Tuesday.
The four-time world champions appeared to be on course early when Moise Kean fired them ahead, but the game quickly went against them. A red card shown to defender Alessandro Bastoni before halftime reduced Italy to 10 men, swinging momentum back in Bosnia’s favour. The hosts took advantage late when substitute Haris Tabakovic equalised in the 79th minute to send the match into extra time.
Shootout heartbreak deepens Italy’s crisis
After the match remained level at 1-1 through extra time, the tie was settled on penalties, where Italy’s problems persisted. Bosnia kept their cool to take the shootout 4-1, as misses from Pio Esposito and Bryan Cristante were costly. Esmir Bajraktarevic scored the final kick, clinching a historic qualification for Bosnia, only its second World Cup after 2014.
For Italy, the defeat is another worrying chapter in a decline. Having missed both the 2018 and 2022 World Cups after playoff defeats to Sweden and North Macedonia, respectively, the Azzurri will have to contend with a four-year deal look block from football’s major stage. Their most recent World Cup knockout game is still the 2006 final, when they beat France to win the trophy.
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Yet Gennaro Gattuso, the head coach, did not shrink away from the gravity of the moment. “We are not doing so well in trying to reach our targets, both nationally and at club level,” he confessed. Elsewhere, defender Leonardo Spinazzola talked about the effect on Italy’s fans and an entire generation of supporters who have never seen their country play at a World Cup.
The crisis runs deep. Italy have failed to make it out of the group stage since 2006 and fell at that hurdle early in both 2010 and 2014. Despite their success at UEFA Euro 2021, World Cup cycles have brought inconsistency. The president of the federation, Gabriele Gravina, did not question the scale of the problem and called a time at a huge crisis phase.
Bosnia’s victory, meanwhile, shows its resilience and is a real moment for the nation. For Italy, though, the questions only mount louder about leadership, development and a fading legacy that once defined global soccer excellence.
