Shameful failure seals Gattuso's fate? Two well-known names highlighted as his potential successors

"I'll take credit if I manage to achieve my goal, otherwise I'll go and live far away from Italy," said Gennaro Gattuso in a press conference last October via TUTTO Mercato WEB.

Five months later, he failed.

Italy did not qualify for the FIFA World Cup for the third time in a row, becoming only the second national team after New Zealand to lose three consecutive decisive play-off matches (to Sweden in 2018, North Macedonia in 2022, and Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2026).

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Although known as a man of his word, Gattuso has yet to fulfill his promise. Perhaps he truly didn't believe he and his lads would fail, but now, it's time to take responsibility for the shameful defeat to Edin Dzeko and Co.

Even if he didn't give his word, everyone would expect the 48-year-old tactician to leave Italy's bench, as they expect it now. After all, the president of the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), Gabriele Gravina, resigned earlier today, "breaking the ice".

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According to several sources from Italy, such as Sky Sport, La Repubblica, and Gianluca Di Marzio, it's only a matter of time before Gattuso and the head of the national team delegation and another legend, Gianluigi Buffon, step down from their positions.

The public is so certain of this outcome that it has already started looking for the strategist's successor, highlighting two renowned names: Antonio Conte and Massimiliano Allegri.

Even though both are under contract with Napoli and AC Milan, respectively, the Italians consider them the only ones capable of lifting the Azzurri out of the abyss.

Conte has already had the honour of leading the national team between 2014 and 2016. He took over the bench from Cesare Prandelli after Italy's abysmal performance and group-stage exit in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

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Under Conte, the Azzurri qualified for the 2016 European Championship as the table-toppers ahead of Croatia and Norway, advanced from the group stage as the leaders ahead of Belgium, the Republic of Ireland, and Sweden, beat Spain in the Round of 16, and eventually lost to Germany in the quarter-finals on penalties. Following that defeat, Conte resigned.

On the other hand, Allegri has never led a national team in his career, though he's experienced enough to be a fantastic option for the Azzurri.

At the moment, it's hard to believe either of the two would leave their clubs to dedicate solely to Italy, so a dual role would be a most likely solution.

The eventual appointment of Conte or Allegri is still just an idea, but it wouldn't be a surprise if the new FIGC president made concrete steps towards hiring one of them very soon.

The Italian football is experiencing an unprecedented crisis and needs a saviour as soon as possible. The alarm bells are off, and everyone must take part in the "rescue mission" without exception.