On March 24, Italy suffered a major blow in its quest for the World Cup after losing 1-0 to North Macedonia.
Italy were the favourites and expected to advance to the next round and play Portugal, but the underdogs proved to be stubborn.
The loss to Macedonia means the Azzurri’s will not be heading to Qatar for the 2022 World Cup.
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Italy’s head coach, Roberto Mancini, expressed disappointment as his team was bundled out after registering success at the Euros.
"The victory in the Euros was the most wonderful moment of my career. What happened this evening is my biggest disappointment.
"There's too much disappointment to talk about the future right now. I really feel for the players. On a human level, my affection for them has grown even more after this evening,” Mancini stated after the match.
Giorgio Chiellini, the Azzurri captain, also expressed disappointment in what he termed as a shocking loss.
"We're hugely disappointed. We played well but a goal was missing. I'm proud of my teammates. We're devastated. I hope that Coach Mancini will remain.
"This isn't the right time to say if I've played my last game for Italy,” Chiellini noted.
Italy have failed to qualify for the World cup in two consecutive times, a first of its kind.
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