Goals: Italy—Chiellini 42', 81'; Azerbaijan—Chiellini (own-goal) 75'
Recap: Ninety minutes of frustrating football saw Italy defeat Azerbaijan 2-1 on Friday.
Boasting a lion's share of the possession, the Azzurri struggled mightily to open the affair in the first half. A set-piece header from Giorgio Chiellini, however, ensured the hosts entered the break with a 1-0 lead. His contributions wouldn't end there. Another corner-kick situation saw the 30-year-old impact the scoreline. Unfortunately for Italy, it was for the other side.
Chiellini's own-goal would be neutralized with yet another header of his own just six minutes later, sealing the 2-1 victory for Italy.
Key Moment: Chiellini making amends for a previous mistake will be the narrative in Palermo for the next three days. His ability to dominate in the air in the 81st minute ultimately decided the contest.
Man of the Match: Three goals, albeit one for the visitors, but it's still enough to see Chiellini be gifted the award. The center-back won all four of his aerial duels and two tackles.
Lesson Learned: Italy still need the footballing talents of Mario Balotelli. The 24-year-old was left of the qualifying roster due to poor form and a lack of fitness since joining Liverpool from AC Milan. The strike partnership Ciro Immobile and Zaza did little impress, missing a combined eight shots. Balotelli isn't the answer to Italy's scoring form, but he should remain an option moving forward.
Up Next: Italy travel to Malta on Oct. 12 for another Group H qualifier, while Azerbaijan visit Croatia on the same date.
Note: Credit all statistics to officially licensed data from Opta Sports (via WhoScored).
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