Federico Gatti urged Italy to block out the noise around them and “play for the nation”\u00a0when they walk out for their World Cup play-off final against Bosnia-Herzegovina.<\/p>\n
Italy cruised past Northern Ireland 2-0 in their semi-final to take one step closer to the World Cup finals, with Bosnia now standing between them and a place in the tournament.<\/p>\n
The Azzurri have not played in the World Cup finals since 2014, having failed to make it through the play-offs in both 2018 and 2022.<\/p>\n
Twelve years ago, Italy suffered a group-stage exit, and they have not played a knockout match at the World Cup since they last lifted the trophy by beating France in the 2006 final.<\/p>\n
Since the 2020-21 Nations League, when Italy took four points off Bosnia, the two nations have met just once, when the Azzurri won 1-0 in an international friendly in June 2024.<\/p>\n
Italy have the benefit of only playing 90 minutes in their semi-final, whereas Bosnia required penalties to beat Wales, but Gatti warned they still need to be at their best to book their place in FIFA’s premier competition.<\/p>\n
“The most important thing [in the semi-final] was to win and to get through to the final,” said Gatti in an interview with Rai Sport, as quoted by Football Italia.<\/p>\n
“Now we’ll give everything in this match, on the pitch or off it, we’re preparing as best as we can.<\/p>\n
“There was and still is a certain atmosphere, the weight of a country on your shoulders. But we also need some lightness.<\/p>\n
“We play a lot, but we have to approach this as best as possible without wasting too much energy in the days before.<\/p>\n
“Now we’ve got a fundamental match coming up, and we need to find all the possible energy to put into it. I’m sure that there will be that spirit of wanting to die for our team-mates, and with that, we’ll always get results.<\/p>\n
“Things will speak for themselves on the pitch. It will be a very tough game. I’ve never played in Bosnia before, but they tell me that the pitch is small, the fans are intense, it will be a real man’s challenge.<\/p>\n
“We will look for the energy we need to bring home a result that could change all of our futures, and we will play for the nation.”<\/p>\n
Italy travel to Bosnia for their play-off final on Tuesday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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