"We are hurt" - Dark night for Italian football as they miss out on third consecutive World Cup

If you had told a proud Italian when they were celebrating their latest World Cup triumph in 2006 that their nation Italy wouldn't make it past the group stages of the competition for at least the next 19 years, they probably wouldn't have believed you. Eight years on, after being knocked out of the 2014 World Cup in the group stages by Uruguay, if you had told an Italian that the Azzurri wouldn't even qualify for the next three tournaments, they might have just laughed. But that's now reality after Gennaro Gattuso's men were defeated on penalties by Bosnia in the playoffs on a dark night for Italian football.

It all started so well for the Italian's when Moise Kean netted after just 16 minutes, but disaster struck when Alessandro Bastoni was sent off just before half-time. That handed Bosnia the vital advantage on home soil with Haris Tabakovic equalising ten minutes before the end and they won 4-1 on penalties. Speaking on the defeat, Gattuso said: "We did not deserve this. We show passion, we played with 10 men since minute 40… we are sad, but this is football. I’m proud of my team. We are hurt”

It's the third consecutive time that Italy have failed to qualify for the World Cup after losing in they play-offs. They lost 1-0 on aggregate to Sweden to miss out on the 2018 World Cup and four years later, they suffered one of their most humiliating defeats, as they were beaten 1-0 at home by North Macedonia to end their hopes of qualifying for the 2022 tournament. It's already been 11 years since they last played a match at the World Cup and the Italy XI looked very different back then in 2014.

The Italy XI at their last World Cup match in 2014

Italy's last World Cup match is most remembered for the infamous 'bite-gate' incident where Uruguay striker Luis Suárez latched onto Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini and subsequently was handed a lengthy ban. But the South American nation won the match itself 1-0, which meant both Italy and England crashed out of group D. That day, the Italian side was comprised of a couple of younger talents but primarily many older legends entering the twilights of their careers. The XI included two of the 2006 World Cup-winning side. In between the sticks was iconic keeper Gianluigi Buffon, with a trio of his Juventus club teammates ahead of him in defence.

Leonardo Bonucci, Andrea Barzagli and Chiellini formed the trident of centre-backs. In front of them was 35-year-old Andrea Pirlo, and 20-year-old Marco Verratti. At right-wing-back stood Matteo Darmian with Mattia De Sciglio on the other side. Juventus' dominance continued with Claudio Marchisio in attacking midfield. Ciro Immobile partnered the characterful Mario Balotelli up top. That XI boasted a market value of €173 million and an average age of 27.8 years-old, but the ageing squad was perhaps a sign of things to come.

What's gone wrong with Italian football?

Stefano Buonfino is one of Transfermarkt's experts in Italy. When asked if he could ever have imagined Italy wouldn't have even qualified for the last two tournaments back in 2014 he said, "No, despite the pessimism surrounding Italy's results and its future, I didn't imagine such a terrible scenario." So how have Italy found themselves in this position? Buonfino explains: "The problem stems from how youth teams are set up. There are many youth coaches who think little about teaching football and care too much about results, even at youth level. It means little is taught about technique, and too much is focused on tactics. The preference is given to physical players who only make a difference at youth level because of their size - they take the place of children less advanced physically, but who are more talented players."

Back in 2006 when Italy beat France in the World Cup final, they had a team bursting with talent. A side that just bleeds nostalgia for fans of that era. "Nowadays, it is difficult to find players like Francesco Totti, Alessandro Del Piero, and Roberto Baggio," explains Buonfino. "The stereotype of Italy as a defensive team is partly true, but at least in the past there were phenomenal players in attack who balanced out the defensive setup. Today, we struggle both in defence and attack. National teams such as Norway are overtaking us or have already overtaken us. Reform is needed, but not of the national team, and it's not about changing the coach. Reform must start with the youth teams and Serie A. We need to start teaching young people technique again, we need to start giving them confidence and not think that at 23 years old they are still too young or immature for the first-team."

However, despite Italy's disastrous runs in World Cups, in the European Championships, it has been a different story. The Azzurri made it to the final of Euro 2012, before winning Euro 2020 after beating England in the final at Wembley. But did this continental victory mask a deeper issue? "Definitely," says Buonfino. "The success was down to the team rather than individual players, but Italy wasn't among the favourites; it was the underdog with great tradition. The management and a great goalkeeper led to a result that exceeded expectations and seems impossible to replicate nowadays with the current side." If Italy do fail to qualify for a World Cup expanded to 48 teams, it would perhaps be even the greatest embarrassment yet. They are still expected to make it, but have not made it easy for themselves.