Italy continued their gradual rebuilding process with an important 3-1 victory over Turkey at the Renato Dall’Ara Stadium in Bologna, producing another encouraging performance as the Azzurri look to rediscover the consistency and confidence that once made them one of Europe’s most difficult teams to beat.
The victory was not entirely straightforward, with Turkey recovering from a first-half deficit to level shortly after the break. But Italy responded almost immediately, regained control and eventually sealed the points through a late goal from young forward Francesco Pio Esposito.
The result moved Italy to seven points in Group A1, strengthening their position in second place behind France and extending their unbeaten run to three matches. Turkey, meanwhile, remained without a point after four games.
Italy made the brighter start and eventually found the breakthrough in the 26th minute.
Gianluca Scamacca opened the scoring in spectacular fashion, finishing a close-range opportunity with a right-footed volley that struck the underside of the crossbar before crossing the goal line. It was a goal that required little doubt once the ball came back into play, giving Italy a deserved advantage and immediately lifting the atmosphere inside the stadium.
Turkey refused to collapse, however, and began to create problems for the Italian defence. Gianluigi Donnarumma was called upon several times during the first half, making important saves to preserve Italy’s advantage before the interval.
Italy therefore entered half-time 1-0 ahead, but the second half brought an immediate change in momentum.
Turkey found their equaliser in the 61st minute through Aral Şimşir. The move began when Eren Elmalı played a clever ball inside the Italian full-back, allowing the attack to develop quickly. Çelik then delivered a low cross across the area, while another Turkish player drew Donnarumma away from the danger zone. Şimşir reacted quickest at the far post, tapping into an unguarded net for his first international goal.
The equaliser could have unsettled Italy, but the Azzurri responded with exactly the reaction they needed.
Just three minutes later, Italy restored their lead.
Nicolò Barella delivered a dangerous free-kick into the penalty area, where Riccardo Calafiori rose above the Turkish defence and produced a superb looping header. His effort sailed over goalkeeper Uğurcan Çakır and into the far side of the net to make it 2-1. It was Calafiori’s first goal for the Italian national team and came at a crucial moment in the contest.
That goal changed the mood of the match. Italy regained confidence while Turkey were forced to chase another equaliser.
The hosts continued to find openings as the game entered its final stages, and their pressure eventually produced a third goal in the 87th minute.
Alessandro Romano played a decisive role, sending the ball into the danger area after Issa Doumbia had done excellent work down the right. Romano’s effort appeared to be heading wide, but Pio Esposito reacted quickly and stretched out a boot to redirect the ball into the bottom-left corner from close range.
The finish gave Esposito his first goal of the night and completed a memorable 3-1 victory for Italy.
Italy’s victory was particularly significant because it showed a team continuing to develop rather than simply relying on the reputation of previous generations.
Roberto Mancini’s side were not perfect. Turkey enjoyed periods of possession and created enough pressure to make the contest uncomfortable, while Italy’s 45 percent possession was actually lower than Turkey’s 55 percent. However, the Azzurri were more clinical when the decisive moments arrived, finishing with six shots on target from 15 attempts compared with Turkey’s five from 14.
The match also saw four yellow cards for Italy and Turkey combined. Scamacca was booked for Italy in the first half, while Matteo Ruggeri also received a yellow shortly after the restart. Turkey’s Zeki Çelik and Abdülkerim Bardakcı were later cautioned.
For Italy, though, the bigger story was the response.
After years of inconsistency and disappointment, the Azzurri are still searching for the identity and reliability associated with their strongest teams. This victory did not suddenly solve every problem, but it provided another important step in the rebuilding process.
Scamacca supplied the spectacular beginning, Calafiori delivered the crucial response after Turkey’s equaliser, and Esposito provided the finishing touch.
Italy now have seven points and sit second in Group A1, giving the rebuilding project another positive chapter. The real test will come against stronger opposition, but for now, the Azzurri can take confidence from a team that showed resilience, attacking quality and, most importantly, the ability to respond when the pressure increased.
