Tonali nets stoppage-time winner as Italy beat Israel 5-4 in Debrecen

DEBRECEN, Hungary — Sandro Tonali struck a stoppage time winner as Italy edged Israel 5-4 in a chaotic World Cup qualifier on Monday at the Nagyerdei Stadion in Debrecen, preserving Italy's hopes of reaching the 2026 World Cup. The match, played on neutral ground because of the security situation in Israel, produced nine goals and late drama before a small crowd.

Italy trailed and led several times in a frantic contest. Moise Kean scored twice, once in each half, to keep Italy level on both occasions. Matteo Politano put Italy ahead in the 59th minute with a finish set up by Mateo Retegui, and Giacomo Raspadori extended the lead to 4-2. Israel then staged a late fightback, with an own goal that brought them back into the game followed by Dor Peretz's second of the night in the 89th minute to level at 4-4. Tonali then curled a speculative shot into the net in the first minute of stoppage time to settle the match.

Reports varied on the attribution of one of the own goals. Some accounts credited Alessandro Bastoni with the deflection that cut Italy's lead, while others suggested the goal stemmed from a different defensive deflection involving Manuel Locatelli. Match summaries and...