Italy’s World Cup Dreams Dashed for Third Consecutive Time as Bosnia Secures Qualification via Penalties

In the tightly contested and challenging atmosphere of Zenica, the home side had the first opportunity when Erdin Demirović’s strike from the edge of the area was comfortably saved by Gianluigi Donnarumma.

However, it was Italy’s goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj who made a fatal error 15 minutes in, handing the ball directly to Nicolò Barella just outside the penalty area.

The Inter midfielder quickly squared it to Moise Kean, who finished brilliantly, curling it past the keeper first-time to put the Azzurri ahead.

In response, Bosnia did not capitulate and swiftly applied pressure on their rivals. Firstly, Ivan Bašić forced a save from Donnarumma with a shot from distance, before Nikola Katić should have converted a free header.

The pressure was relentless as Demirović directed a header wide from a free-kick.

Already under significant duress despite their lead, Genaro Gattuso’s side received another setback just before half-time as Alessandro Bastoni was sent off for a reckless challenge on Amar Memić as he broke free from the Italian defence.

To further bolster their attack with the numerical advantage, Sergej Barbarez made two substitutions at half-time, one of whom – Kerim Alajbegović – was quick to challenge Donnarumma.

Despite being under significant pressure, Italy nearly doubled their lead when Bosnia lost possession again in midfield, allowing Kean to surge forward. Unfortunately for Italy, the Fiorentina forward failed to convert, shooting over the bar when one-on-one with Vasilj.

If this match were a boxing contest, Bosnia would have been ahead on points. On 70 minutes, Donnarumma had to make a brilliant save, tipping over Benjamin Tahirović’s effort with a low dive to his right, maintaining Italy’s slim advantage.

After another commendable stop from an Edin Džeko header, even Donnarumma could do nothing to deny Haris Tabaković, who managed to force the ball over the line to secure a well-deserved equaliser with just over ten minutes left.

With the match level, at least another 30 minutes would be required to determine the World Cup fate of both teams. The first half of extra time was tense, albeit not devoid of controversy.

Marco Palestra was sent free down the left flank but was brought down on the edge of the box by Tarek Muharemović. While Italy clamoured for a red card similar to Bastoni’s earlier dismissal, referee Clément Turpin opted for yellow.

After recycling the free-kick, Palestra found Sebastiano Esposito at the back post, but Vasilj made a clean save.

The best opportunity of the second half of extra time arose when Tahirović sent a low shot wide of the target, resulting in a penalty shootout to determine who would advance to North America in the summer and who would remain at home.

The charged crowd at the Bilini Polje Stadium clearly impacted Esposito, who missed Italy’s first penalty. Bosnia scored their first three spot kicks effortlessly, while Bryan Cristante would see his attempt hit the crossbar.

This paved the way for Esmir Bajraktarević’s effort, which squirmed under Donnarumma, sending Bosnia back to the World Cup amid jubilant celebrations throughout the stadium.

For a comprehensive look at the match statistics, click here.