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The Italy Under-15 national team made it five wins from five with a convincing 7-2 victory over Hong Kong on Pitch 10A at the Hovsan Competition Complex in Baku. They finished top of Group L in the qualifying phase of the FIFA U-15 World Cup & Festival, which runs until 30 October in Azerbaijan, with a perfect record of 15 points.
After Juventus defender Eric Vian opened the scoring with goals in the sixth and ninth minutes, AC Milan centre-forward Andrea Kostyuk extended Italy’s lead in the tenth minute. Mathias Tong pulled one back for Hong Kong in the 14th minute, but the Azzurrini struck twice more before half-time through Roma midfielder Simone Turrini in the 19th minute and Napoli playmaker Mario Tambaro in the 20th. Enrico Battisti’s side added two more goals after the break, with Genoa defender Alfredo Criscito, the eldest son of Domenico, scoring in the 25th minute and Parma forward Manuel Ferraro finding the net in the 35th. Chun Tam scored Hong Kong’s second in the 37th minute to reduce the deficit.
“I’m very happy because the boys played a really good game,” said the Italy coach. “They had the right attitude, enjoyed themselves and made it enjoyable for us too. I saw the intensity I was looking for, and I liked the desire they showed and the combinations they tried to put together. The result was never in doubt, and 7-2 was a fair reflection of the game.”
The Azzurrini return to action on Wednesday 28 October, when they will face one of the other 31 group winners in the round of 32, scheduled for the morning. “We’ll use tomorrow’s rest day to recover physically and mentally,” Battisti added, “while we wait to find out who we’ll face in the next phase of the tournament.”
THE MATCH. Italy started with Brigante in goal, D’Eletto, Chirico and Vian in defence, Tambaro and Musella in midfield, and Kostyuk and Ferraro up front. Kostyuk took over the captain’s armband from Koite. Hong Kong lined up with Leung in goal; Ling, Oliver Lam and Chuin in defence; Ka Lam, the captain, Ng and Tam in midfield; and Ming as the lone forward.
The Azzurrini came flying out of the blocks and, after a scare from Lam’s effort in the fifth minute, took the lead a minute later through Vian, who finished across goal with his left foot. The Italy number 6 struck again in the ninth minute, heading home from Musella’s right-wing corner. Kostyuk then made it 3-0 in the tenth minute with an impressive run through the middle. Italy continued to press and came close to a fourth when Vian hit the post with a free-kick from the edge of the box in the eleventh minute. Hong Kong responded in the 14th minute, with Tong turning home Ho’s assist from close range. However, the Azzurrini finished the first half strongly. Turrini made it 4-1 in the 19th minute with a left-footed shot across goal after beating an opponent with a superb roulette, before Tambaro added a fifth in stoppage time at the end of the half (20th minute), delicately chipping the goalkeeper after being set up by Turrini.
The second 20-minute period began with Battisti’s side on the front foot once again. Criscito made it 6-1 in the 25th minute, driving a low left-footed shot from distance into the bottom corner. Italy continued to create chances, with Hong Kong goalkeeper Leung producing a good save to deny D’Eletto’s header in the 31st minute. Ferraro then made it 7-1 in the 35th minute, beating the goalkeeper at the near post after Tambaro’s pass. Two minutes later, Tam won the ball from Koite down the left and delivered a precise low cross for Lau, who finished from close range. The score remained unchanged until the final whistle, confirming a 7-2 win for the Azzurrini.
HONG KONG 2-7 ITALY (1-5 HT)
Hong Kong (3-3-1): Leung; Ling, Lam O., Chuin; Lam K. ©, Ng, Tam; Ming | Wong, Chen, Ho, Lau, Guo (GK), Tong. Coach: Takuro Hosaka.
Italy (3-3-1): Brigante; D'Eletto, Chirico, Vian; D'Eletto, Tambaro, Musella; Kostyuk ©, Ferraro | Carpi, Criscito, Turrini, Reguig, Galliera (GK), Koite. Coach: Enrico Battisti.
Goals: 6' Vian (ITA), 9' Vian (ITA), 10' Kostyuk (ITA), 14' Tong (HKG), 19' Turrini (ITA), 20' Tambaro (ITA), 25' Criscito (ITA), 35' Ferraro (ITA), 37' Tam (HKG).
Additional time: 0’, 0’.
FIFA U-15 WORLD CUP & FESTIVAL AZERBAIJAN 2026
Qualifying phase (24–26 October)
Group A: Anguilla, Estonia, France, Kosovo, Maldives, South Africa.
Group B: Algeria, Argentina, Chinese Taipei, Malawi, Oman, Suriname.
Group C: Cambodia, England, Montenegro, Nicaragua, Ireland, Zimbabwe.
Group D: Brazil, Democratic Republic of the Congo, El Salvador, Guinea-Bissau, Nepal, Tunisia.
Group E: Barbados, Chile, Congo, Kuwait, Spain, Tajikistan.
Group F: Belize, Costa Rica, Curaçao, Liberia, Morocco, Philippines.
Group G: Bangladesh, Burundi, Fiji, Indonesia, Portugal, Wales.
Group H: Dominica, Ethiopia, Hungary, Malaysia, Mexico, Syria.
Group I: Bulgaria, Gabon, Latvia, Lesotho, Scotland.
Group J: Angola, Central African Republic, China, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Solomon Islands.
Group K: Bahrain, Cameroon, Grenada, India, Laos, Senegal.
Group L: Benin, Cook Islands, Hong Kong, ITALY, Qatar, Turkmenistan.
Group M: Colombia, Dominican Republic, Eswatini, Samoa, Slovakia, Thailand.
Group N: Aruba, Croatia, Greece, Palestine, Saint Lucia, Yemen.
Group O: Belarus, Botswana, Mali, Mongolia, Papua New Guinea, Peru.
Group P: American Samoa, Canada, Guatemala, Guinea, Honduras, Singapore.
Group Q: Bhutan, South Korea, Lithuania, Luxembourg, St Vincent and the Grenadines, United Arab Emirates.
Group R: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brunei, Guyana, Iran, Mauritius, Vietnam.
Group S: Cayman Islands, Egypt, Iraq, Macau, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Trinidad and Tobago.
Group T: Madagascar, Mozambique, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, Somalia, Venezuela.
Group U: Cape Verde, Ecuador, Equatorial Guinea, Kyrgyzstan, Tonga, Uganda.
Group V: Bolivia, Gibraltar, Paraguay, Seychelles, Tahiti.
Group W: Bahamas, Ghana, Guam, Kazakhstan, Myanmar, Uzbekistan.
Group X: Comoros, Moldova, Montserrat, Tanzania, Uruguay, Zambia.
Group Y: Albania, Ivory Coast, Mauritania, Rwanda, Turks and Caicos Islands, Vanuatu.
Group Z: Chad, Kenya, Malta, Niger, North Macedonia, Panama.
Group AA: Antigua and Barbuda, Burkina Faso, Lebanon, New Caledonia, Northern Ireland.
Group AB: Cuba, Czechia, Jamaica, Sri Lanka, Togo, US Virgin Islands.
Group AC: Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Georgia, Namibia, Poland, São Tomé and Príncipe.
Group AD: Cyprus, Gambia, Jordan, Nigeria, Pakistan, South Sudan.
Group AE: Afghanistan, Djibouti, Russia, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Turkey.
Group AF: Andorra, Australia, Azerbaijan, Haiti, Israel, Timor-Leste.
Group L fixtures
Matchday 1 (Saturday 24 October)
Hong Kong 3-0 Cook Islands
ITALY 5-1 Turkmenistan
Benin 2-3 Qatar
Matchday 2 (Sunday 25 October)
Turkmenistan 2-1 Hong Kong
Cook Islands 0-10 Benin
ITALY 3-0 Qatar
Matchday 3 (Sunday 25 October)
Hong Kon 1-1 -Benin
ITALY 9-0 Cook Islands
Qatar 4-0 Turkmenistan
Matchday 4 (Monday 26 October)
Benin 1-6 ITALY
Turkmenistan 3-1 Cook Islands
Qatar 1-1 Hong Kong
Matchday 5 (Monday 26 October)
Cook Islands 0-4 Qatar
Benin 4-1 Turkmenistan
Hong Kong 2-7 ITALY
Standings: ITALY 15, Qatar 10, Benin 7, Turkmenistan 6, Hong Kong 5, Cook Islands 0.
Tournament phase (28–30 October)
Finals (Friday 30 October)
NB: All kick-off times are in CET (Central European Time).