After a 1:4 defeat against Norway, can the Italian team still enter the World Cup?

I just watched the match between Italy and Norway. The score of 1:4 reflects the strength of the two teams. In this game, Italy started high and went low. They played very well in the first half and, with plenty of energy, they played against the Norwegian team.

Maybe the goal difference advantage is too great, and the Norwegian team adopts a defensive counterattack mode. Play leisurely in the first half and then counterattack in the second half when your energy is exhausted.

Looking at the ball possession rate alone, Italy still has 58% and has a lot of shots, but it just can't create more threats to its opponents.

Italy's offensive is usually initiated by Dimarco on the left. The connection between him and Bastoni is the team's regular weapon. Insert forward to the ribs, and then connect with Esposito, Retegui and others, using crosses and pivot points to create opportunities.

The playing style is still very clear.

However, after watching the game, you can also find that the Italian team has quite a few problems.

First of all, the players' personal abilities and confrontation were insufficient. It was okay when they were physically fit, but not good after sixty or seventy minutes in the second half.

The shot above can represent the normal decline of the Italian team. Faced with the impact of Sorlot, Nousa and Haaland, Italian players suffered a lot in confrontation. They were often knocked around by their opponents, and their body hardness and speed were not at the same level.

After his physical fitness declined, he couldn't help but the tall Norwegians took turns attacking him.

In terms of players' personal abilities, the Italian team also lacks players like Bob who can break through and dribble.

There was a goal in the game. Harland received a pass from teammate Bob and scored with a volley. This ball is connected by Manchester City. The two are teammates in Manchester City and the national team, and they cooperate very well.

This ball reflects the gap between Premier League players and Serie A players in all aspects.

After playing in Serie A for a long time, many Italian players' competition intensity and confrontation are no longer as good as those in the Premier League, and their physical abilities and skills are much worse.

Bob is basically not the absolute main force under Guardiola. But even this kind of player, facing the Italian defense, was still invincible in the penalty area, turning the opponent's defense upside down.

Watching the last 20 minutes of the game, I was not disappointed with Italy's performance. What I felt was "helplessness", the feeling of not being as good as others, being lagging behind in all-round technology and being unable to catch up with the opponent.

This is a crushing battle of strength. Skills are inferior to others. There is no way to evaluate them using techniques and tactics. It is meaningless.

You have to admit that the current Italian team is a second-rate team in Europe, not up to the first-rate, and far from the traditional powerful team we had in mind.

The era of Maldini, Vieri, Inzaghi, Del Piero, Cannavaro, Pirlo, and Buffon has gone far, and the Italian team at its peak can no longer come back to us.

After losing to Norway in two consecutive World Cup qualifiers, we must have a clear-headed and objective evaluation of the Italian team, that is, they are not yet a strong team. Regardless of the quality and level of the players, they are not as good as opponents such as Spain and England.

There is also a long way to go compared to teams like Norway.

Even if the World Cup can participate in the play-offs and still retains the hope of qualifying for the World Cup, everyone should not have too much expectations for the Italian team. It is normal for the Italian team to lose in the play-offs and not be able to qualify for the World Cup. It does not count as a sinking.

This is their current strength.

In my opinion, the only top players who can compete on the World Cup stage are Donnarumma, Tonali and others. They play in the Premier League and their quality is still good.

To expand a little further, Bastoni and Di Marco can barely be counted. They often play in the Champions League for Inter Milan, and their competition intensity and experience are enough to get a seat in the national team.

Forget about other players, including Locatelli, Frattesi, Mancini and others. It’s not that they are not good enough. It's good, but it's much worse than Haaland and others.

Just like a child who usually scores 70 or 80 points on the test, you think the score is good, but if you compare it with Harland's 95 or 100 points, you will find a big gap.

is not a level.

Why did Italian football become like this and decline so drastically? It turns out that when I was talking about Italian football, I talked about their problems. From the system, youth training to talent training, there are problems.

In terms of institutions, Italy has been in turmoil since the Calciopoli scandal. There are big problems in club management and Serie A stadium operations. From time to time, match-fixing and illegal club operations occur. The economic downturn has also led to the bankruptcy of old-school teams such as Brescia. The situation is very bad.

The economy is poor, and the development of Italian football is deteriorating. The gap with the Premier League is getting further and further away.

At the same time, the players' abilities cannot grow. After playing in a low-level league for a long time, the intensity and confrontation of players cannot keep up with other players. When other players go to the Premier League to kill everyone and achieve results, players who play in Serie A are struggling.

We won’t talk about examples that are too far away. We will only talk about the two players Zirkzee and Hoylen. Although these two players are not native Italian players, they can also reflect the level of Serie A.

In Serie A, they were killing everyone, but after coming to the Premier League, they couldn't adapt to the climate, and they could only play a handful of games.

These failed transfers can show that players who have performed well in the Italian arena do not have "hard power" and may not be able to prove themselves on a higher-level stage.

The gold content of the league needs to be discounted.

It can also be said that no matter how good the statistics of Italian players who develop in Serie A are, they cannot prove that they are top players. Unless you go to the Premier League and perform well, we can say that you have this ability.

So for Italian football, the problems they have to face now are very complex. Youth training needs to be improved, and the competitiveness of the league must also be raised. In addition, young players must be encouraged to go out more, play in the Premier League, and train on a high-level stage.

If we want to rise, I think it will take about ten years to pick ourselves up.

Give them some more time and be more patient. I believe Italian football can be reborn.