The reigning world champions head into their Group Eight match knowing a victory would virtually assure them of qualification for South Africa next year.
They lead the Republic of Ireland by one point with a game in hand while Bulgaria are a further five points back. Victory would mean Italy needing to either draw away to Ireland or beat Cyprus at home in their last two matches to ensure they top the group.
“This match is not just important for me but also for the team and for the federation. It’s important because, although it can’t make us mathematically qualified, it can put us in a great position,” Lippi added.
Lippi says he will make changes to the team that struggled to break down Georgia, but insists that it is to do with fatigue rather than poor form. “You have to change players when you have two games in a few days at the beginning of the season,” he said.
“In previous years I’ve always changed several players in September matches. With respect to other teams, our players don’t have 90 minutes in their legs and they aren’t able to recover enough, hence it gives me the chance to change several players.”
