World cup...sigh!

A cloudy mist of sadness and anger covers Milan as Sweden eke out a 0-0 draw to put final nail in the qualifying campaign. Italy have not qualified for Russia 2018!!

A few months back Argentina, Italy and the Netherlands were struggling to keep pace with the other qualifiers and the threat of missing out for a World Cup was looming large. Fast Fast forward to last night and Italy and the Netherlands are not going to board the plane to Russia next year. Argentina miraculously managed to qualify with results elsewhere helping them as well. It will be strange not to see the 2006 Champions and the 2010 runners up missing.

For me, Italy has been THE team that I have always supported with the Dutch and England close behind. And it is going to be strange for me to start a World Cup without plotting the azzurri's path to the finals and who will be their toughest opponents. This is going to be a strange World Cup indeed and time will tell if it was an interesting tournament!