Can Italy really miss out? another World Championship?
By next summer World Cup It will be 12 years since Italy last played in the tournament, which it has won more times (four) than any other country except Brazil (five) and Germany (also four). The way things are going AzzurriThe 12-year wait for World Cup qualification could turn into at least 16 years.
Italy is still in the race for qualification. In Group I, Gennaro Gattuso's team trails Norway by just two points. Azzurri Erling Haaland and company have yet to be accepted. in their last group game. It could be a penalty shootout in a single game that will decide which team goes directly to the World Cup.
That Italy missed the last two World Cups is somewhat anomalous, given Azzurri won Euro 2020, but their qualifying drought has left a lot to think about. The mass players of Italian football were studied. Where once the country produced superstars simply out of habit, it now fights for those who make a difference at the elite level.
Moise Kean recently became one of these innovators. The Fiorentina striker has scored four goals in his last three international appearances, while Mateo Retegui also scored nine goals in wins over Estonia and Israel. Gattuso, who replaced Luciano Spalletti in June, has at least breathed life into Italy's attack.
During Italy's last World Cup triumph two decades ago, they had more icons than a Florentine gallery: Gianluigi Buffon, Fabio Cannavaro, Alessandro Del Piero, Andrea Pirlo, Francesco Totti and many more. Italy are currently nowhere near that level, no matter how their 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign ends.
Why isn't this happening to Wirtz right now?
Liverpool paid $155m (£116m) for Florian Wirtz this summer because they considered him a sure bet. The 22-year-old was considered a generational talent and the Premier League champions saw an opportunity to add to their squad from a position of strength, beating Bayern Munich, Manchester City and Real Madrid with the signing of Wirtz.
However, so far the $155 million man has been disappointing. Wirtz has yet to score or provide an assist in seven Premier League games and has even been benched by Arne Slot in some matches. Slot says Wirtz is “adjusting” and Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann is also defending his player.
According to Nagelsmann, “it’s not his fault if his teammates don’t capitalize” on Wirtz’s chances, and he may be right. Only Cody Gakpo (14) and Mohamed Salah (12) have created more chances than Wirtz (11) for Liverpool this season. His expected assists (xA) also rank highly.
In Liverpool's last match before the international break away to Chelsea, Wirtz provided Salah with a golden opportunity, pirouetteing and brilliantly setting up the Egyptian for a shot into the box only for him to be denied. In the previous game against Galatasaray, Wirtz had the most shots of any Liverpool player and was second in key passes.
However, anyone who has watched Wirtz for Liverpool this season has not seen the same player who lit up the Bundesliga for Bayer Leverkusen. Wirtz may have contributed more than many realize, but that contribution has not yet totaled $155 million.
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Did he finally get through to the USMNT?
When US Soccer hired Mauricio Pochettino as the most expensive head coach in US men's national team history, few could have imagined that his process would take a full year to bear fruit. Fruits (maybe lemons), however, is undoubtedly beginning to appear. The USMNT is finally starting to resemble Pochettino's team.
The performance in the 1-1 draw against Ecuador was their best to date under the guidance of the former Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Tottenham Hotspur coach. The USA played hard. They treated the opposition press well. There was movement and quick decision-making in the final third, as well as some eye-catching individual play from Folarin Balogun at number nine, the most problematic of the US problem positions. Haji Wright also presented arguments in his favor. wear braces in a 2-1 win over Australia.
For a long time it was not clear whether Pochettino would be able to reach his players. March defeats by Panama and Canada left such a strong smell that Pochettino spent the next few months clearing it out. He has publicly questioned the attitude of his players, including his best player, after Christian Pulisic missed the Gold Cup to rest this summer. The performances were bad. Some were even worse.
Just last month, Alexi Lalas suggested that US Soccer should fire Pochettino. Of course, Lalas was Lalas, but few would argue that the Argentine justified his $6 million annual salary at that point. However, a few things have changed since then, and the USMNT finally has something to build on. Fears of the 2026 World Cup have subsided at home. A little.
