🤞What Italy need for the World Cup, Norway in the mix | OneFootball

Gennaro Gattuso’s Italy will face the first of two crucial hurdles for the National Team’s journey towards the 2026 World Cup. Direct qualification is very difficult but not impossible, and to have even a small chance of success, they’ll need to start off strong (and with a landslide win) against Estonia right away.

Watch the entire Serie BKT live with LaB Channel on OneFootball. Click here to purchase LaB Channel for only €79.99 per year and watch it on all your devices.

The Azzurri will play in Tallinn, trying to close the gap on Haaland’s Norway and company. What exactly does Italy need to finish first in the group?

GOAL DIFFERENCE AND HEAD-TO-HEAD: THE MATH

Italy has the chance to go into the head-to-head match against Norway on November 16th just 3 points behind the Northern Europeans. To do this, Gattuso’s team will need to be perfect against Estonia and Israel in this break and against Moldova in November: 9 points, while hoping for a slip-up from Norway.

Goal difference could then be a decisive factor, and from this perspective, Italy needs a sporting miracle. In other words: Italy must win, and win by a landslide.

Norway’s 11-1 win over Moldova has heavily tilted the contest in their favor: +21 for the Norwegians and only +5 for Italy. Italy needs to make up a 16-goal difference in addition to winning all 4 matches. A tough feat that could be made easier if Norway draws against Israel, the most dangerous of their opponents.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.

📸 ANDREAS SOLARO - AFP or licensors