Azzurri lost on penalties to Poland to mark the third consecutive time they will miss out on football’s biggest competition
Manchester City’s Gianluigi Donnarumma and Newcastle’s Sandro Tonali will not be featuring in the World Cup after Italy collapsed in the race to the tournament with a loss to Bosnia and Herzegovina on penalties in Zenica.
Italy, four-time world champions, become the first former winners to fail to qualify for three straight tournaments. None of the current squad has played at a World Cup, including top-class Premier League duo Donnarumma and Tonali.
The Azzurri had cause for celebration early in the playoff final after Moise Kean gave them an early lead, but the match turned before half-time when Alessandro Bastoni was sent off. Bosnia equalised late through substitute Haris Tabakovic in the 79th minute.
The game finished 1-1 after extra time, Italy playing all that time with 10 men, before Bosnia prevailed in the shootout. Inter Milan’s Pio Esposito and Roma’s Bryan Cristante both missed their penalties, while Esmir Bajraktarevic converted the decisive kick for Bosnia.
The defeat continues a prolonged decline for Italy at World Cup level. After winning the World Cup in 2006, they exited in the group stage in 2010 and 2014, the last time they made an appearance at the tournament.
They were eliminated in playoff campaigns by Sweden and North Macedonia in 2018 and 2022 respectively. The last time Italy had missed the World Cup before 2018 was in 1958.
The result means the Azzurri will have been absent from the World Cup for at least 16 years by the time the next tournament begins.
