Italy

2.77

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  0

  0

  3.00

  Gianluigi Buffon

  A virtual spectator for the 90 minutes, though the skipper was called into action shortly before the interval to deal with a routine strike from distance from Roderick Briffa.

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  3.00

  Andrea Barzagli

  His passing was a tad erratic at times but while he did not have very much to do, he was always on hand to sweep up when required. Overall, an easy night's work.

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  0

  3.00

  Federico Peluso

  Failed to make any great inroads down the left-hand side and even when he did get into decent positions, his distribution was poor. Was also embarrassed by Bogdanovic early in the second half. Still, he did seal victory for the Azzurri with his late header, though it may yet go down as an own goal.

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  0

  3.00

  Leonardo Bonucci

  Took advantage of the time and space afford to Italy's back four to saunter forward with great regularity and pick out passes. Indeed, he even chanced his arm with a strike from distance shortly before the interval, though the less said about that strike the better.

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  3.00

  Mattia Cassani

  Started promisingly and saw plenty of the ball throughout, but did so very little with it. He was sloppy in possession, his crossing was poor and he was even caught out of position a couple of times.

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  0

  3.00

  Antonio Nocerino

  A surprisingly subdued performance from the dynamic AC Milan midfielder. Played very deep during the first half and one clever ball in behind the Malta defence that released Cassani, he contributed little offensively. Looked far more lively after the restart, putting over a few dangerous crosses, but was nowhere near his best.

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  0

  0

  2.50

  Andrea Pirlo

  As ever, everything went through the veteran playmaker and though he turned the Malta rearguard inside out around the hour mark, his passing wasn't as incisive or as crisp as usual. Even his set-pieces were relatively poor.

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  0

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  3.00

  Claudio Marchisio

  Gave the ball away twice in 20 seconds but then produced a superbly-weighted through-ball for Destro to open the scoring. Nearly repeated the trick with a ball in behind for Osvaldo soon after. The Juve man was caught in possession a few times but he was an industrious and creative presence in midfield.

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  0

  2.00

  Alessandro Diamanti

  A real opportunity missed for the Bologna attacker. He tested Hogg with a decent inswinging free kick early on, but he failed to exert any control over the proceedings and he spent most of the first half complaining about Malta's physicality. Unsurprisingly whipped off at the break.

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  3.00

  Mattia Destro

  It may have been put on a plate for him, but Destro took his goal with impressive poise - and it was just reward for the type of movement that caused the Maltese defence throughout the game. Showed impressive strength and desire from start to finish and was undoubtedly Italy's best attacker on the night.

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  0

  2.00

  Pablo Daniel Osvaldo

  A disappointing display in light of his heroics in Sofia. Impossible to fault his effort and he did go close on a couple of occasions, but he did not hold the ball up particularly well and his layoffs were poor all night.

Substitutions

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  0

  2.00

  Giampaolo Pazzini

  Thrown on in place of Osvaldo midway through the second half and missed a decent chance to get on the scoresheet after getting on the end of a ball from Insigne. Still, he really put himself about.

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  0

  3.50

  Lorenzo Insigne Top of the Match

  With his pace and trickery, he contributed more inside 15 minutes than Diamanti had in the entirety of the first half. Looks like he belongs at this level.

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  0

  0

  Sebastian Giovinco

  Saw just under 10 minutes of action at the end, which was not enough time for the diminutive attacker to make his mark.

Malta

2.21

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  0

  0

  1.00

  Andrew Hogg Flop of the Match

  Having been badly let down by his defenders, he was left with no chance for the opener. Made a number of good saves, as well as one incredibly brave dive at the feet of Destro. However, he looked so vulnerable in the air and made a mess of trying to keep out Peluso's header, which was pretty much straight at him.

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  0

  2.00

  Andrei Agius

  As you would expect, he was pulled out of position a few times but he was a pretty uncompromising presence at the back, dealing swiftly and effectively with loose balls, as well as fronting up physically.

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  0

  2.00

  Alex Muscat

  Very comfortable in possession, he was never reluctant to join the attack whenever the opportunity presented itself. Quite rightly booked for going through the back of Nocerino, but he should be proud of his performance.

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  0

  2.00

  Edward Herrera

  Was lucky to escape a yellow card for dragging down Cassani after being beaten all ends up by the right-back. However, he was solid enough thereafter.

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  0

  2.00

  Luke Dimech

  Stood out, though not always for the right reasons. He lost Destro for the opener and was caught in possession in a very dangerous position soon after. However, he denied Osvaldo with a terrific last-ditch tackle and also threatened at the other end of the field.

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  0

  2.00

  Steve Borg

  Energetic and aggressive throughout, Borg got stuck in and stood up well to Destro whenever the pair locked horns. Tried to get forward whenever he could, too.

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  0

  3.00

  André Schembri

  Ran his socks off but eventually ran out of steam, as evidenced by the way in which he picked up a booking for pulling back Insigne after the livewire attacker looked to race away from him in the final quarter.

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  0

  3.00

  Gareth Sciberras

  Made several wonderfully-timed challenges, the best of which came on Pirlo during the first half. Looked good on the ball and never stopped running.

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  0

  0

  3.00

  Roderick Briffa

  Was really neat and tidy in possession and even went close to scoring with a decent drive from distance not long before half-time. Did not look out of his depth by any stretch of the imagination.

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  2.50

  Daniel Bogdanovic

  Had to put in a serious shift from a defensive perspective but when he did get a chance to attack, he showed off impressive control and impressive skill, most notably when he left Peluso trailing in his wake with a drop of the shoulder. Faded, though, the longer the second half went on.

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  2.00

  Michael Mifsud

  A thankless task for the forward, who was starved of possession all game and never got a clear sight of goal. Very nearly scored a wonder goal, though, with a shot from inside his own half that had Buffon scrambling.

Substitutions

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  0

  0

  Ryan Camilleri

  Only introduced for the final six minutes in place of Muscat.

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  0

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  2.00

  Andrew Cohen

  Came on for Bogdanovic with 21 minutes to go and his most notable contribution was having the final touch on Peluso's game-clinching header.