Italy will be ready for physical Northern Ireland, says manager Gattuso

-Italy manager Gennaro Gattuso is bracing for a bruising battle against Northern Ireland in March when the sides meet in their playoff semi-final for next year's World Cup.

The Italians are seeking to return to the World Cup for the first time since 2014 after missing the last two tournaments in Russia and Qatar, both following playoff defeats.

Should the four-times world champions get past Northern Ireland they would face a potential final against either Wales or Bosnia & Herzegovina to qualify for the soccer showpiece in North America.

"Northern Ireland is a physical team, they never give up," Gattuso told Sky Sports Italia after the playoffs draw on Thursday.

"We have to play it. I've been saying this for three months. We knew we had to go through the playoffs ... We look ahead with confidence."

Italy sacked former manager Luciano Spalletti in June and while Gattuso led the side to two wins over Estonia and Israel as well as a victory against Moldova in his first five matches they were still unable to earn direct qualification.

They lost 4-1 in their final qualifier to group winners Norway.

"Right now, we must work on our fragility because we've proved that when we do things right, we are competitive," Gattuso, 47, said.

"Of course, you can't afford to make mistakes as we did the other night, but this is my priority, improve this aspect."

The World Cup will be held from June 11 to July 19 in Canada, Mexico and the United States.

(Reporting Karan Prashant Saxena in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)