Rewind to March and Roberto Mancini was sounding bullish. “The objective is not to go to the World Cup, but to win it,” declared the Euro 2020 winner. Then along came North Macedonia. A play-off semi-final when Italy had 32 shots, failed to score and conceded in injury time meant that if Mancini is to head to the World Cup, it will only be as an observer.
For the first time in their storied history, Italy will sit out consecutive World Cups. For the last, too, perhaps. If their recent underachievement reflects a freakish game against North Macedonia, Jorginho’s crucial missed penalties in a group they were controlling and, four years earlier, Giampiero Ventura’s disastrous reign, there is a bigger picture than just Italy’s capacity to veer between triumph and disaster.
