If there's one match that made your wrists tremble and kept you on the edge of your seat until the very last moment, it's this one.
Gattuso's Italy won, but not without suffering, in an incredible match against Israel, ending in a fiery 5-4 victory. It was a rollercoaster of emotions, with the Azzurri having to come from behind twice and only saving themselves in injury time thanks to a Sandro Tonali strike.
The match got off to an uphill start. The tactical approach, with an overly unbalanced 4-3-3, exposed Italy's defensive weaknesses. Israel took advantage in the 16th minute, when a naive deflection by Locatelli led to their first, unexpected, goal.
But Italy responded with pride. After Locatelli hit the crossbar, they equalized with a flash of genius from Moise Kean, who combined with Retegui.
It seemed like the turning point, but the second half began with another cold-blooded strike: Dor Peretz's beautiful goal, which put Israel back in front.
The match heated up at that point, with Italy responding blow for blow. Kean scored again, leveling the scoreline with a brace. Then, Gattuso's team took the lead through Politano , and the fourth goal, which seemed to have sealed the game, arrived thanks to a splendid move between Frattesi and the "elf" Raspadori.
It seemed all over, but the Italian defense continued to display incredible lapses in concentration. An own goal by Bastoni reopened the game, and shortly thereafter, another lapse in concentration allowed Dor Peretz to score a sensational 4-4 equalizer that chilled the fans.
When sporting tragedy seemed inevitable, Sandro Tonali saved the sinking ship. With the clock ticking down to injury time, a sudden cross-shot turned into the final 5-4 goal.
A sigh of relief that allowed Italy to earn three crucial points, keeping alive their hopes of qualifying for the next round. Now the Azzurri are three points behind Norway and preparing for the next decisive matches: the away match in Estonia and the return match against Israel, this time in Udine. With one certainty: winning has never been so thrilling.
