Italy failed to qualify for the second consecutive FIFA World Cup after losing 1-0 to North Macedonia in the semi-final play-offs at Renzo Barbera on Thursday.
Italy head coach Roberto Mancini feels there are no favourites in the World Cup play-offs involving North Macedonia, Portugal, Turkey and his team, the Azzurri.
Napoli full-back Giovanni Di Lorenzo will be sidelined for about a month with a knee injury.
Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski won the FIFA Best Men’s Player award for 2021 ahead of Lionel Messi and Mohamed Salah at Monday’s ceremony in Dubai.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar is sure to be without Italy or Portugal as both teams were drawn in the same bracket on Friday.
Italy defeated Belgium 2-1 on Sunday at Juventus stadium to claim third spot in the UEFA Nations League.
The Azzurri lost 2-1 to Spain in the semi-final encounter whereas Belgium conceded a two-goal lead to lose 3-2 against France.
Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini believes that the defeat to Spain will help them ‘grow’ as a team.
Italy’s incredible unbeaten run finally came to an end as Spain beat them 2-1 at San Siro on Wednesday to enter the Nations League final.
Moise Kean scored twice in Italy's 5-0 over Lithuania as Pablo Fornals and Ferran Torres scored in either half to earn a 2-0 win for Spain in Kosovo.