Bosnia captain Edin Dzeko believes Italy feel the pressure ahead of play-off final

[p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/italy/hlKvieGH/"]Italy[/a] won their semi-final against [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/northern-ireland/lQADNSWu/"]Northern Ireland[/a] on Thursday, ‌and a number of players - including [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/dzeko-edin/zilGmgZq/"]Dzeko[/a]'s former [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/inter/Iw7eKK25/"]Inter Milan[/a] teammate [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/dimarco-federico/W6lypZn3/"]Federico Dimarco[/a] -were shown on Italian TV watching [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/bosnia-herzegovina/fqe7WYTr/"]‌Bosnia[/a]'s [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/bosnia-herzegovina-fqe7WYTr/italy-hlKvieGH/?mid=2B8dzIX9"]penalty shootout win[/a].[/p][p]The Italians appeared jubilant after Bosnia prevailed, and Bosnian fans reacted ‌angrily when the video was shared on social media, saying it showed disrespect towards their team.[/p][p][b]"What ‌happened is something completely normal because we all have our preferences, mine was maybe ‌not to play against Italy," [/b]Dzeko told reporters on Monday ahead of Tuesday's game in Zenica.[/p][p]"But today you have to be careful, with social media everything becomes bigger than it is. Dimarco messaged me and ‌said he didn't want to offend anyone. I told him 'what ⁠are we even talking about? There's absolutely no ‌problem'."[/p][p]Italy risk missing out on World Cup qualification for a third consecutive time.[/p][p][b]"Italy didn't want to ​play in [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/wales/YcUP0Nqp/"]Wales[/a], I don't know why, because we went there without fear and won,"[/b] Dzeko said.[/p][p]"I don't know why Italy should be afraid of Wales or ​Bosnia. Italy is an incredible national team that has won four World Cups.[/p][p][b]"If they're afraid of playing in Wales, it means something isn't working, and maybe we should look ⁠at it this way, they might ​really suffer in this match because they're playing for so much after missing two World Cups. That means they're afraid."[/b][/p][embed guid="1602ac07-64bf-4d6c-a232-f0215a44b819" url="https://x.com/EuropaLeague/status/2037574871144611919" social-type="twitter" /][p]Italy's woes do not just concern the national team. No Italian club reached the last eight of this season's Champions League, and having played for Inter, [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/as-roma/zVqqL0ma/"]AS Roma[/a] ‌and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/fiorentina/Q3A3IbXH/"]Fiorentina[/a], Dzeko is familiar with Italian football's problems.[/p][p]Bosnia, meanwhile, are also aiming to return to the World Cup for the first time since 2014, their one and only appearance to date.[/p][p]"Their media complain all the time that Italian football lacks intensity, that's why Italian clubs haven't been getting good results in Europe lately," Dzeko said.[/p][p][b]"I expect a very tactical match, given what's at stake for both and I believe both teams will be very cautious from the start."[/b][/p][h2]Still scoring after all these years[/h2][p]Dzeko netted the equaliser against Wales, maintaining his record of scoring in every year since making his Bosnia debut in 2007. The ‌40-year-old, his country's all-time top scorer and most capped player, has no intention of stopping ​just yet.[/p][p]"I didn't even realise I had scored those goals for 20 years in ‌a row, it's a sign that a player's career flies by in a second," Dzeko, currently playing with German second-tier side [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/schalke/0Ija0Ej9/"]Schalke 04[/a], said.[/p][p]"As long as I feel good and as long as I can help, I'll be here.[/p][p][b]"Maybe in the past I could have gone somewhere else and earned more money, but I wanted to ⁠play in Europe for as long as ⁠I could. I've reached 40, I'm ‌still here, and I'm happy to be able to keep doing it."[/b][/p][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/bosnia-herzegovina-fqe7WYTr/italy-hlKvieGH/?mid=2B8dzIX9"]Follow Bosnia vs Italy with Flashscore[/a][/b].[/p]