Italy’s probabilities of defending their European Championship crown suffered a blow on Saturday after a 1-1 away draw at North Macedonia in Euro 2024 qualifying.
Enis Bardhi smashed in a free-kick for the hosts with 9 minutes remaining within the Group C conflict in Skopje on Luciano Spalletti’s debut as Azzurri coach.
Spalletti took cost of the nationwide workforce final month following Roberto Mancini’s shock resignation and his workforce flopped towards the aspect which dumped Italy out of the final World Cup within the play-offs.
Italy, who scored via Ciro Motionless, sit third within the group on 4 factors following the third match of their qualifying marketing campaign.
They’re 9 factors behind leaders England who’ve performed two extra video games and have been held to a 1-1 draw by second-placed Ukraine earlier on Saturday.
Spalletti’s aspect are three factors behind Ukraine with the pair going through off on the San Siro on Tuesday evening, an important fixture for either side’s hopes of claiming one in all two automated spots for subsequent summer season’s match in Germany.
“The workforce performed OK. We did not concede a lot and we acquired into positions the place we might created probabilities,” stated Spalletti to broadcaster RAI.
“Folks watch Italy from everywhere in the world, they’re those who can decide us from what they’ve seen.”
North Macedonia sit fourth and stage on factors with Italy after a rugged efficiency from a workforce which got here into Saturday’s fixture deep in disaster.
Blagoja Milevski’s aspect have gained simply 4 occasions since their beautiful victory in Palermo in March final 12 months, a win which despatched Italy right into a tailspin lower than a 12 months after successful the final European Championship.
Captain Stefan Ristovski refuses to play for Milevski whose place has been referred to as into query after a run of unfavourable outcomes together with a 7-0 hammering by England.
“When issues go this manner all we are able to do is look to Tuesday evening as it is a large recreation for us,” stated Motionless to Rai.
Lacking injured Juventus ahead Federico Chiesa, Italy struggled to play entertaining soccer on a dreadful pitch on the Tose Proeski Area, and whereas they’d a lot of the ball within the first half they created little or no.
One of the best likelihood of the opening 45 minutes fell to Sandro Tonali, who was unfortunate to see his end smash out off the within of the submit after being clipped via one-on-one with Stole Dimitrievski by Motionless.
However Motionless, who has been made captain by Spalletti, put the away aspect forward a minute after the restart when, after Nicolo Barella looped a shot off the crossbar, the Lazio striker nodded in on the rebound.
Nonetheless as an alternative of constructing on that sturdy begin to the half Italy misplaced their manner.
And Bardhi made certain the hosts punished their opponents with a rocket of a shot which flashed previous Gianluigi Donnarumma and left Spalletti with loads of inquiries to reply.
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