L'Italy qualifies for World Cup 2026 if: here’s what the Azzurri need

A heartbreaking victory with Israel kept Italy&#8217s hopes of qualifying for World Cup 2026 alive without going through the playoffs. However, the road is still uphill: they need to finish first in Group I, currently led by Norway, on 12 points, with four wins out of four.

Thanks to the success with the Israelis, the Azzurri have moved up to second place in the group with 9 points, the same as Ben Shimon’s national team, which, however, has a goal difference – the first criterion in case of a tied finish – worse: 12 goals scored and 7 conceded by Italy, 15 goals scored and 11 conceded by Israel.

Now Gennaro Gattuso’s men have Norway in their sights, three points away and boasting a goal difference of +11, with as many as 13 goals scored and only 2 goals conceded. Moreover, Erling Haaland and his teammates have a rather easy schedule (Moldova, Israel and Estonia always at home) before the direct clash with Italy (at San Siro) that could prove decisive.

In order to overcome Stale Solbakken’s lineup, the national team is obliged to win all of its upcoming matches (Estonia and Moldova away and Israel at home) hoping for a misstep by the Scandinavians and then play it all in the Nov. 16 direct clash at ‘Meazza’.

In case of a clear path for both teams until the Milan match, at that point the Azzurri will not only need to beat Norway but will also need to have a better goal difference, which at the moment sees the Norwegian national team clearly ahead (+11 against Italy’s +5).