Italy coach Gennaro Gattuso expressed his regret that his country will have to face Israel in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
Gattuso led Italy to their first qualifying victory, a 4-0 win over Estonia, and after that match, spoke about the upcoming match against Israel.
“I am a man of peace. It’s sad to see civilians and children go through these things,” the famous Italian coach said.
He added, “We are just unlucky to have Israel in our group, but there’s not much we can do about it. What we see is painful, that’s all I can say.”
There have been calls for FIFA and UEFA to intervene and ban Israel from international football following the genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, but UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin has ruled this out.
Italy needs a win against Israel to take sole possession of the group, after the latter also defeated Moldova 4-0 in the opening round.
