Italy etched an undesirable chapter with further World Cup disappointment.
For a third consecutive time, Italy missed out on a World Cup spot, creating a regrettable precedent as the initial past champion to be absent from three successive tournaments. Their elimination came after a 1-1 stalemate in Zenica during their play-off final against Bosnia-Herzegovina, where they were ultimately defeated in a penalty shootout.
After overcoming Northern Ireland in the semi-finals, the Azzurri were widely expected to triumph and conclude their twelve-year hiatus from the finals. Moise Kean’s initial goal in the 15th minute appeared to set their trajectory for a journey to North America this summer.
However, realistically, Italy found themselves outplayed for extended durations. Their challenge escalated significantly when Alessandro Bastoni received a red card in the 41st minute.
Bosnia capitalized on the situation when Haris Tabaković equalized with merely 11 minutes left in regular play. Although Italy managed to force extra time and subsequently dominated the additional thirty minutes, it was the home team that remained composed during the penalty shootout.
Pio Esposito sent the initial penalty soaring high over the bar. Subsequently, Bryan Cristante struck the crossbar forcefully with Italy’s third attempt. Esmir Bajraktarevic then slipped Bosnia’s fourth penalty beneath Gianluigi Donnarumma, thereby propelling Bosnia into their second World Cup as an autonomous nation.
Bosnia will be placed in Group B alongside Canada, Qatar, and Switzerland. Meanwhile, Italy must now confront the repercussions of an undesirable historical milestone; their non-participation in an enlarged 48-team tournament signifies a fresh nadir for the four-time champions.
Kean Astonishes Bosnia Prior to Bastoni’s Dismissal
Following their successful withstanding of Bosnia’s initial offensive, Italy was awarded the opening goal. This came about when Nicolo Barella seized Nikola Vasilj’s errant clear-out, which had been executed under Mateo Retegui’s pressure.
Possessing keen acumen, the Inter midfielder located Kean, who then curved an irresistible one-touch strike into the top-right corner of the net.
Bosnia reacted strongly, with Ivan Basic forcing a save from Donnarumma. Subsequently, Nikola Katic, despite an unmarked header at the far post, could not genuinely challenge the Italy goalkeeper.
Ermedin Demirovic squandered a golden chance, sending a header narrowly past the left-hand post following Bajraktarevic’s curling delivery.
Nevertheless, the impetus decisively shifted in Bosnia’s favour when Bastoni was shown a red card. He had fouled Amar Memic as the last defender, occurring after a misplaced Donnarumma goal-kick was promptly redirected back towards the Italian penalty area.
Disgrace for Italy Following Shootout Misfortune
For the second half, Bosnia introduced two substitutions, aiming to exploit their player superiority. Six minutes after joining the match, 18-year-old Kerim Alajbegovic challenged Donnarumma with a curving shot.
Italy, however, possessed an excellent chance to seize control of the contest. Kean raced clear towards goal, demonstrating a remarkable display of speed as he accelerated away from inside his own half, only for his subsequent shot to sail narrowly over the crossbar.
Donnarumma excelled, diverting Benjamin Tahirovic’s powerful shot behind. Despite this, Italy appeared to have endured the most intense pressure and subsequently created additional opportunities to extend their advantage through Esposito and Federico Dimarco.
They suffered the consequences for failing to convert these opportunities, as Amar Dedic’s superb right-wing cross created chaos in the Italy penalty area. Edin Dzeko’s first attempt was superbly repelled by Donnarumma, but Tabakovic then tapped the follow-up across the goal-line.
Demirovic almost sealed the comeback with merely three minutes remaining in normal time, but witnessed his header expertly parried away by Donnarumma.
Italy secured the superior opportunities during extra time, with Esposito being thwarted by a near-post save from Vasilj. Controversy then arose as Marco Palestra received an excellent delivery from Sandro Tonali and was subsequently fouled by the final defender, Tarik Muharemovic. Muharemovic, however, was shown a yellow card instead of a red, a decision by referee Clement Turpin that incited outrage from the visiting side.
Nonetheless, Italy would have harbored grounds for optimism, given that Donnarumma, the key figure in their previous penalty triumph during the Euro 2020 final against England, was guarding the goal once more.
However, the sole penalty Donnarumma came near to saving was Bajraktarevic’s, whose effort possessed sufficient force to ignite widespread jubilation among spectators, thereby guaranteeing Bosnia’s participation in the World Cup for the first time since 2014. Italy now faces an extended hiatus until the qualification process for the centennial iteration of the tournament in 2030.