Tonali: ‘Italy must believe in ourselves more’ | OneFootball

Sandro Tonali felt ‘comfortable’ as Italy beat Estonia 3-1 in their World Cup qualifier, warning they ‘must believe more in ourselves and find that confidence.’

The Nazionale had beaten Estonia 5-0 on Gennaro Gattuso’s debut in Bergamo, and emerged with a 3-1 victory from Tallinn this evening.

Moise Kean scored before spraining his ankle, then Mateo Retegui found the net after having missed a penalty.

Francesco Pio Esposito came off the bench to score his first senior Italy goal, though Gianluigi Donnarumma’s howler gifted Estonia a consolation.

Tonali sees Italy improvement in Estonia

Italy celebrate during the 2026 World Cup qualifier against Estonia in Tallinn (@azzurri)

“This is good for our confidence, which we are slowly getting back, and the way we controlled the ball was one of the few times we’ve really been comfortable, even in the last 10 minutes when they all poured forward,” Tonali told Sky Sport Italia.

“We respected Estonia, but also played our game and showed how much we wanted to bring the points home.”

Check the Football Italia Player Ratings for Estonia 1-3 Italy

Esposito received a round of applause from the senior players in the locker room, having scored his debut goal at the age of 20.

“He deserves it, if a player comes to the Nazionale and gives 100 per cent, scoring a goal, it’s only right he receives that kind of affection. There’s no getting around it, he’s talented and has the right attitude,” noted Tonali.

“Some of the players are just starting out, but they know what they’re doing and don’t need to be led by the hand. We played well for practically the whole 90 minutes today, with confidence and courage.”

Francesco Pio Esposito celebrates his first senior Italy goal against Estonia (@azzurri)

This was a 4-4-2 formation with very attacking wide players, Riccardo Orsolini and Giacomo Raspadori, leaving the keys to the midfield to Tonali and Inter’s Nicolò Barella.

“We get along well and work together, both on and off the field. What one doesn’t cover, the other will. There is no lack of desire to run and work hard here, so it’s all pretty simple.”

Paul Scholes said this month that Tonali is the best player in the Premier League with his performances at Newcastle United, but he too was amongst those struggling for Italy at the start of this World Cup qualifying campaign.

“We’ve all improved many things, that’s for sure. We are not perfect in anything, but we have improved things and will keep doing so,” replied the midfielder.

“It’s therefore right to look at the past and where we were a few months ago, but we must also believe more in ourselves, show more courage and remember we can keep doing better.

“We’re the ones representing Italy on the pitch, so we are the first who should show confidence in ourselves.”