Italy wins after coming from behind and secures its place in 2014.
With goals from Chiellini and Balotelli in the second half, the Italians secured their place in the World Cup in Brazil with two rounds to spare.
From the World Cup Portal - Italy secured their place in their 18th World Cup by beating the Czech Republic 2-1 in Turin. The Italians needed only a home win to guarantee early qualification for the 2014 World Cup, but they started with a scare when Czech player Libor Kozak opened the scoring in the 19th minute.
The Italian fans had to wait until the start of the second half to see defender Giorgio Chiellini equalize in the sixth minute, and striker Mario Balotelli turn the score around with a penalty in the ninth minute.
With this result, Italy reached twenty points in Group B of the European Qualifiers and can no longer be overtaken by its competitors in the group, with two rounds remaining in this phase.
The Czech Republic will have to fight with Bulgaria, Denmark, and Armenia for second place in the group, which grants access to the European play-offs. Italy will still have a meaningless match against Denmark away from home and will host Armenia in the final round.
The Italians, who missed out on only two World Cups (1930 and 1958), will have the chance to seek their fifth title (having won in 1934, 1938, 1982 and 2006) in Brazil in 2014.