Why Italy’s disastrous qualification campaign hurts more this time
The Azzurri’s World Cup dreams were shattered for a third time in a row after a penalty loss to Bosnia and Herzegovina in the playoff final.
Italy saw their hopes of not scoring a hat-trick of World Cup misses dashed as they lost on penalties to Bosnia and Herzegovina in the UEFA playoff final.
Not since 2014 have the Italians played in the biggest tournament in the world’s most popular sport, marking the first time ever it has happened for a former world champion.
However, this loss hurt even more, after footage emerged which appeared to show Italian players celebrate Bosnia and Herzegovina’s semi-final win over Wales, who were seen as the weaker team on paper. That video now serves to haunt them forever and remind everyone to be careful what you wish for.
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