Italy finally won a match in the World Cup playoffs. Now the four-time champion needs to win one more to avoid failing to qualify for a third straight time.
The Azzurri beat Northern Ireland 2-0 in the European semifinals on Thursday.
Sandro Tonali broke the deadlock with a half-volley early in the second half for Italy at home in Bergamo and then set up another goal for Moise Kean.
“After taking the lead, we cleared our minds,” Italy coach Gennaro Gattuso said. “We put in a good performance. This should be a confidence boost for Tuesday.
“We have to win. We have no other choice.”
Also advancing to the playoff finals scheduled Tuesday were Poland, Sweden, Türkiye, Kosovo and Denmark in regular time. Czechia beat Ireland on penalties to advance, and Wales lost a shootout to Bosnia and Herzegovina, which will be Italy’s next opponent in the final.
The other finals matchups are: Sweden vs. Poland, Türkiye vs. Kosovo, and Denmark vs. Czechia.
With one more win, Italy would reach the upcoming tournament in North America to avoid missing a third consecutive World Cup.
Italy was eliminated by Sweden over two winless legs in the playoffs for the 2018 World Cup, then was stunned by North Macedonia in the semifinal round in 2022.
Italy’s World Cup struggles date to 2010 and 2014, having failed to advance from its group both times.
The Azzurri’s last World Cup knockout match was when they won the title in 2006 by beating France in a penalty shootout.
Italy produced seven shots on goal while Northern Ireland had none.
For Italy’s second goal, Tonali’s crossfield pass set up Kean, who made an expert control and finish.
“We didn’t have many moments of quality, but we did well to make the most of them when we did,” Tonali said. “We focused on not giving them their strengths and were concentrated on the set plays, so when we do that, it’s unlikely we’ll concede to this kind of team.
“We’ve been feeling positive since the coach arrived, we’ve got to continue like this, there’s no other option but to win,” Tonali said of Gattuso, who replaced the fired Luciano Spalletti in June.
Viktor Gyökeres hit a hat trick to send Sweden past Ukraine 3-1 despite not having scored for his country since 2024. Until Thursday, Gyökeres was scoreless and Sweden winless in a miserable qualifying group campaign.
The game was played in Spain because Ukraine hasn’t hosted international games since the Russian invasion of 2022.
“Viktor Gyökeres made the difference tonight,” Ukraine coach Serhiy Rebrov said. “He showed his quality and proved he’s one of the best strikers in Europe.”
Sweden will face Poland after 37-year-old Robert Lewandowski scored a crucial header in a 2-1 win over Albania, keeping alive the Barcelona striker’s bid to reach a third World Cup.
Albania took the lead through Arbër Hoxha just before halftime after a defensive blunder by Poland. Lewandowski’s header at a corner got his team back into the game before Piotr Zielinski’s goal put Poland in front.
Kosovo is a game away from its first World Cup after twice recovering from a goal down to upset Slovakia 4-3. That sets up a playoff with Türkiye for a World Cup spot.
Gustav Isaksen scored twice in two minutes in Denmark’s 4-0 win over North Macedonia.
Bosnia advanced after 40-year-old Edin Dzeko leveled the score and 18-year-old Kerim Alajbegovic converted the winning spot kick in a 4-2 penalty shootout win over Wales following a 1-1 draw.
Czechia awaits next for Denmark after beating Ireland 4-3 on penalties. Ireland gave up an early 2-0 lead in the game, and was also leading the shootout before failing to convert either of its last two attempts.
Earlier Thursday, Türkiye beat Romania 1-0 and will face Kosovo for a spot at its first World Cup since a third-place run in 2002.
Türkiye took the lead shortly after the break when Ferdi Kadioglu was set up in front of the goal with a long, accurate pass from Arda Güler, a 21-year-old winger for Real Madrid who could become one of the World Cup’s younger standouts.
Romania’s elimination means that 80-year-old Mircea Lucescu won’t get a chance to coach at the World Cup for the first time. Lucescu captained Romania at the 1970 World Cup.
Nicolae Stanciu hit the post for Romania in the second half.
“We knew it would be a tough match. Lucescu knows us well and prepared accordingly,” Türkiye captain Hakan Çalhanoglu said. “In the first half, we could have made better runs in behind. In the second half, Ferdi scored with a ball in behind and it became 1-0. From then, it was ours.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
