Italy vs Norway prediction 16.11.2025 | World Cup 2026 qualifiers

Italy maintained their remote hopes of automatic qualification with a nervy 2:0 win against Moldova on Thursday. Late goals from Gianluca Mancini (88) and Francesco Esposito (92) secured a less than impressive win for Gennaro Gattuso's side. 

Gli Azzurri have been in good form though, with Thursday's victory marking a sixth successive win since a 3:0 defeat in Norway last June. The Italians scored 20 goals in those successes, including a remarkable 5:4 win against Israel.

High-scoring outcomes have been frequent in this section. Italy have seen over 2.5 goals scored in all but two of their last ten international fixtures, including five of seven games played in Group I.

Head coach Gattuso is likely to make some changes to his side on Sunday. Mateo Retegui and Francesco Esposito are among those who could earn recalls to the first XI.

A buoyant Norway makes the trip to Milan with qualification all but secured following a confident 4:1 win against Estonia on Thursday. Goal machine Erling Haaland added two more goals to his remarkable tally of 53 in just 47 international appearances.

The Norwegians have enjoyed a superb campaign, winning all seven games, with 33 goals scored, and only four conceded. Ståle Solbakken's free-scoring side bagged three goals or more in six of those games, including a stunning 11:1 win against Moldova.

Like the Italians, high-scoring outcomes have been predictably reliable considering the attack-minded nature of Red, White and Blue). Eleven of their 14 previous international matches finished with over 2.5 goals scored.

Head coach Solbakken is likely to stick with the same side that breezed past Estonia earlier this week. Martin Ødegaard is a notable injury absentee for the in-form visitors.