Gattuso: “I will leave Italy if we don’t qualify for the World Cup”
The Italian coach, Gennaro Gattuso, has expressed his concern about the possibility of Italy failing to qualify for the World Cup for the third consecutive time, which could lead him to live in exile. Gattuso, who took over in June, has been key in revitalizing Italy’s aspirations to reach next year’s tournament, which will be held in the United States, Mexico, and Canada. The 3-0 victory over Israel on Tuesday was Italy’s fourth consecutive win under Gattuso, securing a place in the qualifying playoffs for the 2026 World Cup.I’ll take the credit if I achieve the goal, otherwise, I’ll go live far from Italy
Gennaro Gattuso
Italy is three points behind Norway, leader of Group I. The Azzurri will play against Moldova on November 13 and will receive Norway three days later in their last group qualifying match.
Despite the pressure of leading the four-time world champion national team, Gattuso feels honored to be in charge. “I’ve said it before, it’s a dream to be here and it’s true,” Gattuso affirmed. “There were people with more experience than me, and that’s why I accepted this call with great responsibility. I must thank the Federation, its president [Gabriele Gravina] and [the head of the Italian delegation Gianluigi] Buffon. I didn’t think I would lead the team to 16 goals, but the merit belongs to the players. I have little merit.” We need to keep going down this road. Yes, we work very hard and sleep very little, but we also do this because when victories arrive, it feels very good.
