Italy World Cup qualifiers standings take shape waiting for Round 2

Norway and Israel meet on Tuesday, March 25, in the World Cup Qualifying Round 2 after winning their opening matches in Italy’s Group I.

Italy’s defeat to Germany in the Nations League quarter-finals means the Azzurri will face Norway, Estonia, Moldova, and Israel in the World Cup qualifiers Group I, starting on June 6 away at Norway and then hosting Moldova on June 9.

Only the group’s winners qualify for the 2006 World Cup, sending the runners-up to the playoffs.

The opening matches in the group have already been played, with Norway beating Moldova 5-0 away and Israel securing a 2-1 home win against Estonia on Saturday.

Round 2 will be played tomorrow, Tuesday, March 25, and will see Norway travel to Debrecen (neutral turf in Hungary) to face Israel (20:45 CET), while Moldova will host Estonia (18:00 CET).

Italy have not qualified for the last two editions of the World Cup and have not played a knock-out game in the competition for nearly 20 years, since their winning campaign in Germany in 2006.