Italy coach Cesare Prandelli has praised goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon for his role in their 2-0 win over Malta on Tuesday.

The Juventus stopper marked his 126th cap for the Azzurri with a penalty save from Michael Mifsud, and Prandelli lauded Buffon after the game.

"Buffon marked this landmark like a captain with a great save at the crucial moment," Prandelli told reporters after the game.

However, the coach admitted that the rest of his side's performance left a lot to be desired.

"When there are no spaces and a team is very organised, we must learn to be quicker in our build-up.

"We knew there would not be spaces and were perhaps a little too slow in construction, so ran into trouble. We still maintained possession throughout the game. We lacked a bit of intensity in the finishing."

The victory took Italy three points clear at the top of Group B in their World Cup qualifying campaign.