September 05, (THEWILL) — Italy claimed an emphatic 5-0 victory over Estonia in World Cup qualifying at Bergamo on Friday, giving new head coach Gennaro Gattuso the perfect start to his tenure. The comprehensive win leaves the Azzurri six points behind Group I leaders Norway, though they retain a game in hand in their quest for qualification.
The hosts dominated the opening period with 17 shots to Estonia’s zero, yet failed to convert their superiority into goals. Moise Kean blazed over from 10 yards when well positioned, while Mateo Politano missed with a powerful header and saw his cross nearly converted by Mateo Retegui before Karl Hein tipped the effort onto the crossbar.
Estonia’s resistance finally broke when Kean nodded home after Retegui flicked on Federico Dimarco’s delivery. The Fiorentina striker then struck the post before Mattia Zaccagni was denied by Hein from close range, with the goalkeeper continuing to frustrate Italy’s attacking efforts.
The second half brought a flood of goals as Italy found their clinical touch. Retegui drilled into the bottom corner from inside the penalty area after 69 minutes before Giacomo Raspadori headed home Politano’s cross from the right wing. The striker completed his double by converting Andrea Cambiaso’s centre from the left flank.
Alessandro Bastoni completed the rout with a thunderous header during injury time, capping a dominant performance that will boost confidence under Gattuso’s new management though significant work remains to close the gap on Norway in the qualifying race.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
