Italy coach Gennaro Gattuso dismissed concerns over pitch conditions and the atmosphere his side would face in Bosnia for their World Cup playoff final, saying he had never conceded a goal to a fan.

Gattuso ​carries the weight of Italian football on his shoulders as his team bids to reach the ‌finals for the first time since 2014. After beating Northern Ireland at home in the semi-final, Italy now take on Bosnia away in Zenica on Tuesday.

Italy were forced into a change of plans after snow and rain led to fears over pitch conditions in Bosnia, and ​trained in Florence on Monday morning before travelling.

“It’s an excuse. If the pitch is bad, it’s bad for ​both teams, the match still has to be played,” Gattuso told reporters.

“If we start thinking ⁠about the pitch, the stands… no, that’s weak. I’ve seen the pitch and it’s fine. Honestly, even if it ​were bad, there’s little we could do.

“The respect we have for Bosnia is enormous, for what they show on ​the pitch. As for the fans, they don’t score goals, that’s never happened to me.”

Gattuso replaced Luciano Spalletti early in the qualification campaign after defeat to Norway had already compromised their ambitions.

LESS PRETTY, MORE SOLID

Despite a far from perfect performance against Northern Ireland, the manager ​has seen plenty of improvements since taking charge.

“Tactically, the other night we got it wrong,” Gattuso said.

“Seven months ago ​we were not this team. We suffered against opponents, they reached our goal easily, they created chances. At the beginning we conceded ‌ridiculous goals, ⁠we were fragile, we struggled to hold our shape.

“Maybe we didn’t play ultra‑offensive football and maybe we were less brilliant, but right now I prefer a team that is solid, that suffers less, even if it means being less pretty.”

Italy last lifted the World Cup in 2006, and Gattuso, who played in that team, wants to see the same ​spirit in this side.

“We will ​go out there with ⁠desire and aggression. That’s the most important aspect of our footballing history,” he said.

“We became champions not because we were the strongest, but because of our competitive edge and ​our ability to suffer.”

“People said there was no pride in this team, that nobody ​cared, but I ⁠see it every day, and I sincerely hope, not for myself, but for these lads, that we reach this objective.

“I’m proud of them, I’m happy with them, even if things go badly. I hope they don’t.”

And if things were to go ⁠badly?

“This isn’t ​the right moment to talk about it,” Gattuso said.

“It would be a ​disappointment, a heavy blow. I would have to take responsibility because I am the coach, but we’ll talk about that afterwards.

“There are people whose ​job it is to decide what will happen. My thoughts, I keep to myself.”

-Reuters

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Poland enter Tuesday’s World Cup playoff final ​against Sweden seeking to end a winless run on Swedish soil that stretches back ‌nearly a century.

The match at the sold-out Strawberry Arena in Solna is a winner-takes-all clash for a place in the tournament finals in North America and for Poland, it offers a chance to end a dismal sequence of results, ​having not won in Sweden since a 3-0 friendly victory in Stockholm in 1930.

Since then, ​Poland have endured eight losses and two draws in Sweden.

“It depends on whether ⁠we look at the statistics,” Poland coach Jan Urban told reporters earlier in the week when ​asked if the winless streak would have an impact on Tuesday’s match. “Apparently, it has been nearly 100 ​years since we won a match in Sweden. This will be a completely different encounter.”

While Sweden hold the historical edge, Poland can draw confidence from more recent events.

The two nations met in the 2022 World Cup playoffs, with Poland ​earning a 2-0 victory at home in Chorzów to secure their spot in Qatar.

SWEDEN HIT FORM

After a ​disappointing qualifying campaign, Sweden are showing signs of improvement under new coach Graham Potter, beating Ukraine 3-1 in their playoff semi-final ‌, while ⁠Poland fought to a 2-1 win over Albania.

“On paper, Sweden are the strongest team in this bracket,” Urban told reporters on Monday. “Potter’s team confirmed their quality against Ukraine, but many unknowns remain. We don’t yet know how they will behave in a more difficult scenario – for example, if they are trailing.”

The match could ​mark the end of an ​era for Poland’s ⁠experienced core.

Captain Robert Lewandowski, 37, has indicated he is approaching the final stage of his career, while midfielder Piotr Zielinski, 31, remains a key figure.

“I’m not ​afraid to end my career because I’m starting to prepare for it, ​to prepare ⁠things I can do after football,” Lewandowski said in January. “I know it’s a very important part of my life, but it’s not everything.

Failure to qualify would likely trigger an immediate overhaul of the national side, signalling ⁠the ​end for a generation that made Poland a fixture at major ​tournaments.

“The World Cup is the most important tournament in every footballer’s career. Tomorrow we’ll play a decisive match to fulfil our ​dreams and write more history,” winger Jakub Kaminski said.

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Four-time world champions Italy national football team will attempt to end a turbulent two-decade spell when they face Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team in a decisive World Cup playoff on Tuesday, with both nations seeking to return to football’s biggest stage after a 12-year absence.

The encounter in Zenica is laden with pressure and history. For Italy, it represents a chance to halt an alarming decline that has seen the former global powerhouse miss the last two editions of the FIFA World Cup in 2018 and 2022—failures that have shaken the foundations of one of football’s most decorated nations. For Bosnia, it is an opportunity to relive the highs of their only appearance at Brazil 2014 and to reassert themselves on the global stage.

Italy’s Long Road Back

Italy’s last World Cup appearance came in 2014—the same tournament that marked Bosnia’s debut—and since then, the Azzurri have endured an uncharacteristic drought. Eliminations at the playoff stage for both Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022 remain painful scars, particularly for a country that boasts four World Cup titles.

Now under the guidance of Gennaro Gattuso, Italy are once again navigating the treacherous playoff route after a difficult qualifying campaign that included heavy defeats to Norway. Although they steadied their campaign with a home victory over Northern Ireland in the semi-final, the trip to Zenica presents another stern examination.

A third consecutive failure to qualify would deepen the crisis around Italian football and extend a decline that stretches back to their last World Cup triumph in 2006.

Bosnia’s Quest for a Second Appearance

Bosnia and Herzegovina, meanwhile, are equally desperate to end their own run of near-misses. Since their historic debut in 2014, the Balkan nation has repeatedly stumbled at the final hurdle—losing in the playoffs for the 2010 World Cup and falling short in qualification for the last four European Championships.

Their current campaign has, however, rekindled belief. After finishing second in their qualifying group behind Austria, Bosnia edged Wales in a tense playoff semi-final decided by penalties, setting up Tuesday’s winner-takes-all clash.

Victory would secure only their second World Cup appearance and mark a significant milestone in their footballing journey.

A Rivalry Rooted in History

Beyond the immediate stakes, the fixture carries deep historical resonance. Bosnia’s first victory as an independent nation came against Italy in a friendly in Sarajevo in November 1996—just months after gaining FIFA recognition following independence in 1992.

That match, played at the Koševo Olympic Stadium before 40,000 fans, symbolised a nation’s re-emergence after the devastation of the Bosnian War. Italy’s willingness to play in Sarajevo—still recovering from a prolonged siege—was widely seen as a gesture of solidarity and a signal that normalcy was returning.

Bosnia’s 2-1 victory that day marked their arrival on the international stage, while the defeat led to the resignation of Italy’s then coach, Arrigo Sacchi.

Nearly three decades later, the two nations meet again under vastly different circumstances—but with similarly high emotional stakes.

Tension Builds in Zenica

Preparations for the playoff have been complicated by adverse weather conditions. Snowfall in Zenica over the weekend, followed by rain, has raised concerns about the playing surface at the Bilino Polje Stadium. Italy have adjusted their plans accordingly, opting to train at their Coverciano base before travelling.

Adding to the tension, the match will be played before a reduced crowd due to FIFA disciplinary sanctions imposed on Bosnia following incidents during their previous home fixture against Romania.

Yet even with limited capacity, a charged atmosphere is expected in Zenica, where passionate home support could play a decisive role.

Winner Takes All

With only one ticket to the World Cup at stake, the playoff offers no margin for error. For Italy, it is a chance to restore pride and reassert their status among football’s elite. For Bosnia, it is an opportunity to write a new chapter and return to the global spotlight after more than a decade in the wilderness.

When the final whistle blows on Tuesday night, one nation will celebrate a long-awaited return to the World Cup, while the other will be left to confront yet another painful chapter in its football history.

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