‘We owe an apology to our fans.’ – Gattuso after losing to Norway

Final Result:  Italy 1 – 4 Norway on Sunday, 16 November 2025 at San Siro Stadium in Milan, Italy.

After experiencing his first loss as the coach of Italy, Gennaro Gattuso expressed his apologies to the fans, who filled the San Siro / Meazza with 70,000 supporters (setting a record for attendance at a national team match) to support the Azzurri.

Gattuso remarked: “The outcome is quite disappointing. It’s unfortunate because we had a strong first half, but we faced difficulties in the second half. That’s what we regret the most. The match took a turn for the worse after their initial shot; maybe we became apprehensive, which shouldn’t occur.  We owe an apology to our fans and also want to commend them.”

Group I Standings:

Norway, 24 points (eight games played), ITALY, 18 points (eight), Israel, nine points (seven), Estonia, four points (eight), Moldova, one point (seven).

We owe an apology to our fans

World Cup Qualifiers Group I
🇮🇹  Italy 1 – 4 Norway  🇳🇴
Sunday 16 November 2025
San Siro Stadium
Milan, Italy

20:45

Referee: Alejandro José Hernández Hernández ESP.
Assistant Referee 1: José Enrique Naranjo Pérez ESP.
Assistant Referee 2: Diego Sánchez Rojo ESP.
Fourth Official: José María Sánchez Martínez ESP.
Video Assistant Referee: Carlos del Cerro Grande ESP.
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Valentín Pizarro Gómez ESP.
UEFA Referee Observer: Marinus Koopman NED.
UEFA Delegate: Iain Blair SCO.