A nightmare for Italy: the match that was supposed to confirm the final standings of the qualifying group—Norway qualifying for the World Cup via direct route, the Azzurri in playoff purgatory—turned into a disgrace for Gattuso's national team, booed by the 70,000 fans at the Meazza. This time, the coach could only apologize for the terrible 1-4 defeat that Haaland and his teammates inflicted on his players.
"We have to apologize to our fans because 4-1 is a tough result. We're licking our wounds. Congratulations to them and apologies to our fans for the four goals," the coach's first words: "We have to start again from the first half. We played well, we were compact, we did the right things. The game changed when they took the first shot after the first 30 seconds and we started to get scared."
The heavy scoreline leaves a gap for the March play-offs, whose opponents will be revealed on Thursday, in addition to the already well-known doubts about the current quality of Italian football. The 4-1 victory with which Norway celebrated their return to the World Cup for 27 years means Italy's place in the play-offs is uncertain.
Under the Milan rain, the Meazza Stadium gathers around the national team, filled to capacity with affection and a large crowd. Numerous Norwegian fans also came here to celebrate their World Cup qualification.
Gattuso fielded the best possible Italy, excluding the injured Kean and Tonali, who was spared for the playoffs due to a suspension. Locatelli and Barella formed the central pairing in front of the defense, with Mancini partnering Bastoni. Politano and Frattesi supported the Retegui-Pio Esposito duo, but they barely managed to score.
In the 10th minute, Italy was rewarded by a defensive error by Ryarson: Dimarco passed to Pio Esposito with his back to goal, who shielded the ball and quickly turned to make it 1-0. The 9-0 scoreline needed to miraculously qualify directly remained a pipe dream, but Italy remained undeterred, and amidst Norway's dense defensive network, they lacked precision in their final pass. The next chance came in the 35th minute, once again headed by Pio Esposito, who sent Dimarco's precise cross wide to the far post. Upon returning, Norway attempted to turn things around, and in the third minute, Sorloth had two good chances on his right foot, first inside the box and then from the edge of the box. In the middle, Locatelli struck a weak shot from outside the area.
