Instead, they failed to qualify for the Fifa World Cup for the third consecutive time. Italy, not being able to qualify even for the 48-team Cup is, however, not shocking anymore. Talents like Diego Maradona, Ruud Gullit, Marco van Basten, Frank Rijkaard and Lothar Matthäus were plying their trade in Italy. Germany after their disappointing 1994 World Cup exit, started investing more in the youth system and were blessed with a platoon of highly talented youngsters like Thomas Mueller, Sami Khedira, Mesut Özil, Philipp Lahm and Bastian Schweinsteiger. The 2014 World Cup triumph.

Source: The Telegraph April 02, 2026 05:04 UTC