Ten-man Italy earned a hard-fought 3-1 win away to Israel in their opening Group G World Cup qualifier on Monday after Giorgio Chiellini was sent off early in the second half. Israel got themselves back into the match in the 35th when forward Tal Ben Chaim lofted a ball over goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, who was caught off his line, and the momentum shifted. Italy coach Giampiero Ventura was delighted with the win from his first qualifying fixture in charge following a 3-1 defeat by France in a friendly last week. The visitors doubled their lead with Candreva's spot kick after defender Nir Bitton brought down Marco Verratti. Israel coach Elisha Levy was encouraged by the performance despite the defeat in his first competitive match in charge.

Source: dna September 06, 2016 07:52 UTC