Tonali and Kean end Northern Ireland World Cup hopes to send Italy into playoff final

Game seven of Gennaro Gattuso’s Italy tenure eventually delivered comfort. In number eight, he will look to end the painful wait of a nation by returning his country to the World Cup for the first time since 2014. Northern Ireland’s future, a bright one with this young squad, means looking towards Euro 2028. This was a campaign too soon.

Gattuso has a stated aim of making World Cup impact, not simply qualifying. There were long spells in this playoff when the coach’s aspirations felt ludicrous. Perhaps Italy laboured, especially in the first half, under expectation. Yet it is an undoubted truism that they will require a huge uplift in performance level to feature prominently in the summer. Italy edged rather than swaggered towards their meeting with Bosnia and Herzegovina. Only the brave will call the outcome of that. “We have to win, we have no other choice,” said Gattuso. “We are playing a team full of experienced players. It will be another hugely challenging match.”