Italy defeated Israel 3-0 in the eighth round of European qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, thanks to goals from Retegui and Gianluca Mancini. Italian goalkeeper Donnarumma expressed his hope that his players would maintain their resolve and expressed confidence in his team's qualification for the World Cup.

In the 45th minute, Retgui was kicked by an opposing defender while attempting to receive the ball, prompting the referee to award a penalty to Italy. Retgui converted the penalty, giving Italy a 1-0 lead. In the 73rd minute of the second half, Retgui regained possession and fired a long shot from outside the penalty area, extending Italy's lead to 2-0 over Israel.

In the second half stoppage time, Italy's corner kick was cleared, Dimarco received the ball and lobbed it towards the goal, where Gianluca Mancini leaped forward and headed it in. In the end, Italy defeated Israel 3-0 at home.

After winning five consecutive games, Italy is currently ranked second in Group I with 15 points, 3 points behind first-placed Norway. Therefore, Gattuso's team can only participate in the play-offs to qualify for the World Cup.

Donnarumma, 26, said: "Mistakes happen in the game. Fortunately, we were already leading 3-0 at that time. I quickly put the mistake behind me, thanks to the support of my teammates and the coach. I was fully focused in this game and I am satisfied with the team's overall performance. Every game is difficult now, and we have to fight for every point. Israel did cause us trouble, but we were very determined to keep a clean sheet, which made me very happy."

"I saw a great team and the players who came on the bench showed great fighting spirit. I am very satisfied with the work of the coach. He can maintain a good relationship with every player, whether they are in the starting lineup or not, which is very important."

Donnarumma added: "Gattuso has an extremely strong character and can convey his desire, determination and understanding of football to us. He has a close relationship with the whole team and requires the team to take the initiative to attack and control the game. We have just started working with him, so there is still room for improvement, and we are ready for the November game and the subsequent play-offs."

"I've spoken to the team about the 3-0 defeat to Norway in the World Cup qualifiers," Donnarumma said. "In the current situation, we really can't mess up any more games, otherwise we'll have to go straight to the play-offs. Naturally, I also hope to play that game again because we were not in shape at the time."

"But we can only look forward because we have a big opportunity in front of us. I am sure this is a strong team and I have no doubt that we will reach the World Cup."