2026 WCQ: Retegui double take Italy to the playoffs

Italy are in the driving seat in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers as they aim to secure a playoff spot after a 3-0 victory against Israel in Udine on Tuesday night.

Mateo Retegui stepped up with a brace, with Gianluca Mancini’s header being his first Italy goal. 

Although the Azzurri secured an important win in a strange atmosphere to lock down that World Cup play-off place, it was far from a convincing performance.

The Azzurri made it a double over the visitors, having won their last meeting 5-4 last month in a chaotic match.

The victory made this tie a head-to-head clash for second place behind runaway leaders Norway. 

The Azzurri went into the tie on the back of a 3-1 win over Estonia.

Genarro Gatusso gave Gianluca Mancini and Manuel Locatelli the starting shirts, and moved Giacomo Raspadori to a centre-forward role in a switch to 3-5-2 at Studio Fruili.

The hosts had the first chance through Andrea Cambiaso and Raspadori, but they scuffed their finishes after some quick passes, while Oscar Gloukh drilled inches past the post after Anan Khalaili got away from Riccardo Calafiori down the right.

Gianluigi Donnarumma was called into action, making a fantastic fingertip save to push the Manor Solomon strike over the bar on a rapid counter started after the referee didn’t rule a clear foul on Raspadori.

Italy was awarded the spot kick after Retegui was felled after he got in front of Matan Baltaxa, who caught him in the back of the ankle.

After missing his spot kick against Estonia, the former Atalanta striker insisted on stepping up again and scored.

His finish in Tallinn was weak after a stuttering run-up, but the striker smashed the finish into the roof of the net.

Francesco Pio Esposito, who came in for Raspadori in the second half, helped lay off the ball for Nicolò Barella’s volley just over the bar.

After Tai Baribo wasted a promising counter-attack by firing high, Donnarumma made his second big save, getting down low to parry the Gloukh daisy-cutter with one glove after a poor Giovanni Di Lorenzo pass sparked the counter-attack.

Cambiaso thought he had made it two for the Azzurri when he scored in the 66th minute, but was visibly offside on the Pio Esposito assist.

Retegui eventually got his second with a solo goal, as he robbed substitute Stav Toriel in the final third and immediately bent a fantastic right-foot curler into the far top corner from the edge of the area, giving the goalkeeper no chance. Retegui has now scored five goals from six games, and it was his fifth goal in the last four games for the Nazionale.

Solomon almost had a one-on-one with Donnarumma, who covered the post. As he dribbled the goalie away from the post, he could only hit the side-netting from a tight angle after the goalie and Calafiori collided. 

Italy had another chance to make it three when Retegui intercepted a Glazer pass and tried to roll across for Esposito, but the goalkeeper and a teammate made the desperate block.

They eventually got the third through Mancini, who headed in from another corner kick.