Italy coach Antonio Conte admits they made it difficult for themselves in victory over Euro qualifying opponents Malta.
Southampton striker Graziano Pelle struck the only goal of the game.
"The result was good. We should certainly have done more in attack, but we hit the woodwork four times," Conte told Rai Sport.
"We can do better and I am convinced having nine points in the table should give us confidence.
"The lads put the effort in, it was the second game in three days and some lads felt the fatigue. We won, we could've been more consistent in front of goal and complicated our lives with that Bonucci red card, even though I think it was a bad decision."
