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Mission accomplished. A 1-1 draw at the Franchi, combined with last Friday’s 2-0 victory in Tbilisi, saw Italy progress past Belarus in Round 1 of the play-offs. Finland now stand between the Azzurre and the World Cup in Brazil, the final hurdle in their bid to qualify for a third consecutive edition of the tournament. The Finns secured their place in the second and decisive play-off round with a 3-1 victory away to Serbia this afternoon, matching their first-leg result. The two-legged tie for a place at next summer’s finals in South America will take place in early December, with the first leg in Finland on Tuesday 1 December and the return fixture in Italy on Saturday 5 December.
“Congratulations to the Azzurre on reaching the final play-off round,” said FIGC Commissioner Giovanni Malagò. “Finland now await us in a decisive two-legged tie in which we will need to show all our quality and determination to achieve a fundamental objective: qualification for the 2027 World Cup. We must support these players and make sure they know we are behind them.”
After completely controlling the first half and opening the scoring after just nine minutes, the Azzurre conceded an equaliser after the break, paying the price for a few defensive lapses and less effective attacking play in the second 45 minutes. Despite the disappointment of not winning, the most important thing remained qualification for the decisive play-off round.
“We achieved our objective, which was what we wanted,” said head coach Andrea Soncin immediately after the final whistle. “Of course, there were certain areas in which we could have done better, but we are determined to return in better shape when we meet up again in November. There was a wonderful atmosphere at the Franchi tonight, and we are disappointed not to have won. However, the message we received was extremely positive. We want to go to Brazil because it is a dream we all share, and achieving it could help bring even more young girls closer to the sport.”
Finland will be the next opponents. “We will face a very well-organised side who will approach the game differently, but we will have time to study them. For now, we have cleared the first hurdle.”
The match. With a 2-0 advantage from the first leg, Soncin selected captain Girelli in attack alongside Bonansea and Cantore, with the No.7 celebrating her 50th appearance for Italy. Rachele Baldi returned between the posts to earn her second senior cap, having made her debut at the 2023 Arnold Clark Cup.
The pattern of the game was largely unchanged from the meeting in Tbilisi four days earlier, with Soncin’s side camped inside the Belarus half. However, whereas it had taken the Azzurre 66 minutes to break the deadlock on Friday, this time they needed only nine. Bonansea was alert to capitalise with her right foot after an attempted clearance turned into the perfect assist. In the 14th minute, Bonansea got a touch to Cantore’s low cross, but the ball brushed the post and went wide. The visitors rarely ventured beyond the halfway line, while Italy focused much of their attacking play down the left, repeatedly looking for Bonansea to take on her opponent. Greggi brought dynamism and quality, but after briefly losing their shape following the goal, Belarus regrouped and defended in an organised manner, leaving little space at the back. The Azzurre therefore went into the interval with a narrow 1-0 lead.
The visitors showed greater ambition after the restart and created a good opportunity around the hour mark, although nobody could apply the finishing touch from close range to Pratasiuk’s dangerous cross-shot. Soncin then made three substitutions, with Cambiaghi and Polli adding height and greater attacking presence inside the opposition penalty area. However, it was Pratasiuk who threatened again in the 65th minute, racing towards the Italy goal following an error from Lenzini before sending her angled effort wide after carrying the ball for 60 metres. The substitutions gave Hryharau’s side renewed energy and, in the 67th minute, half-time substitute Alkhovik struck the post with a sliding effort. Polli responded by hitting the woodwork at the other end just seconds later after being played in by Severini.
Despite Italy continuing to enjoy greater territorial dominance, the second half was a much more even affair. Belarus equalised in the 75th minute, perhaps not entirely unexpectedly given the chances they had created after the break. Following a corner, the ball ricocheted into the path of Alkhovik, whose precise low angled drive left Baldi with no chance. There was little further action of note, and the match finished 1-1. Attention now turns to December and the decisive two-legged tie against Finland, with a coveted place at the World Cup in Brazil at stake.
ITALY 1-1 BELARUS (HT: 1-0)
ITALY: Baldi; Di Guglielmo, Lenzini, Soffia (Rosucci 82’), Boattin; Severini, Caruso, Greggi (Dragoni 61’); Cantore (Glionna 76’), Girelli (Polli 61’), Bonansea (Cambiaghi 61’). Substitutes: Gilardi, Durante, Schatzer, D’Aurica, Giugliano, Piemonte, Oliviero. Head coach: Soncin
BELARUS: Voskobovich; Selsarchik, Sitnikava (Harshkova 70’), Kazakevich, Bohdan (Kapustina 90+5’); Kozyupa; Kavaliova (Alkhovik 46’), Linnik, Belaya, Shlapakova (Siniauskaya 82’); Surovtseva (Pratasiuk 46’). Substitutes: Seuko, Svidunovich, Tsikhavodava, Maniukova, Valiuk, Charlionak, Voskobovich. Head coach: Hryharau
Referee: Byrne (ENG). Assistants: Voloshchuk (ENG) and Harland (ENG). Fourth official: Gobjila (MDA)
Goals: Bonansea 9’, Alkhovik 75’
Notes: Attendance: approximately 3,400. Added time: 1 minute in the first half, 6 minutes in the second half.
