The four-time World Cup winners will face Michael O’Neill’s side in the World Cup Play-Off semi-final.
The mouth-watering clash will take place on March 26 with the winners travelling to take on either Wales or Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Final on March 31.
Northern Ireland will travel to Italy on World Cup Play-Off duty after finishing third in their qualifying group
Stakes are high for the Azzurri who have failed to qualify for the last two World Cups in 2018 and 2022.
Italy were beaten by Sweden and North Macedonia respectively in the Play-Offs.
“It’s a physical team; they never give up,” former Rangers midfielder Gattuso said about Northern Ireland.
“We have to play it. I’ve been saying this for three months. We knew we had to go through the Play-Offs; we knew our path had to improve. We look ahead with confidence.”
For the first time, the 2026 tournament — which will be staged in Canada, Mexico and the United States next June and July — will feature 48 nations but Italy are sweating on making it.
Gattuso’s side won six of their eight qualifiers but finished six points behind Norway, who won all their matches in the group.
Italy’s captain is Manchester City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, while Inter Milan duo Alessandro Bastoni and Nicolo Barella are class acts.
AC Milan legend Gattuso has used different formations so far but insisted that the Azzurri’s main issue is not tactical.
“The problem is not tactical. Every system has pros and cons,” argued the 47-year-old.
“Right now, we must work on our fragility because we’ve proved that when we do things right, we are competitive.
“Of course, you can’t afford to make mistakes as we did the other night (4-1 defeat at home to Norway), but this is my priority: improve this aspect.
“There will be time to think about systems. We’ll study Northern Ireland in the best way. Hopefully, we’ll do as little damage as possible.”
Liverpool ace Federico Chiesa has not represented his country since their European Championship round-of-16 exit against Switzerland back in June 2024.
Asked whether the 28-year-old will return to the national team for the Play-Offs next year, Gattuso replied: “You know it well. You know Chiesa’s problem.
“You always ask me the same thing. I call Chiesa in every call-up; I always talk to him. The problem is not Gattuso or his staff; he has a problem, not us. You know it well. You always ask the same thing, and I always answer the same.”
The Italian tactician said earlier this month that Chiesa had already rejected national team call-ups while he was in charge.
The Reds star, a team-mate of Northern Ireland hero Conor Bradley, declined call-ups ahead of the September, October and November international breaks.
There are rumours that the Italian federation wants to organise a get-together at Coverciano a few weeks before the semi-final, but it might prove to be tricky due to a packed fixture list for clubs.
“It’s not up to me. We have a President, and there are people dealing with these things. Of course, the more days we have to be together, the better,” said Gattuso.
“It’s Round 11 in Serie A, the 12 is about to begin, and we’ll meet again in Round 30. From my perspective, I must think about how to remain in touch with the players, look them in the eyes and talk to them, not just about football, but about other things too. Hopefully, we’ll do things the right way.”