German youth international Matteo Palma has been called up to Italy's senior national team, another talent lost by the DFB.
Italy announced on Saturday that coach Roberto Mancini had called up the Udinese Calcio defender for the Nations League matches against France and Belgium. He replaces injured centre-back Gianluca Mancini (AS Roma), who is not related to Roberto by blood or marriage.
Palma's call-up means he has switched national associations. Even if the 18-year-old makes his debut, he could, in theory, still play for Germany under certain conditions in FIFA's statutes. A player can switch countries if he has made no more than three appearances, whether in competitive matches or friendlies, was under 21 at the time of his last appearance, has not played in a World Cup or European Championship, made his last appearance at least three years ago and already held citizenship of the other country beforehand.
Those conditions could still apply to Palma. Born in Berlin in March 2008, he initially played for Italy's youth teams before representing Germany at under-16, under-17 and under-18 level. Palma developed at Hertha BSC before moving to Udinese in 2022. He made occasional first-team appearances last season, spent the second half of the campaign on loan at second-division side Sampdoria Genoa and is now a regular member of the senior squad.
Matteo Palma is already a regular starter in Serie A
After a muscle injury at the start of the season, Palma has become a regular starter. He has played the full 90 minutes in each of Udinese's past four Serie A matches. With just five points from eleven games, they are bottom of the table.
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Udinese have also conceded 25 goals, giving them the league's second-worst defence. Palma is nevertheless regarded as one of the country's biggest talents. As recently as September, he had left open which national team he wanted to play for. "I'm in contact with both national teams, but I haven't decided yet. It's not yet the right time to accept either of these offers," he told transfer journalist Gianluca Di Marzio.
Getty ImagesWhich talents have already slipped through the DFB's fingers?
Palma's decision has come sooner than expected, marking another setback for the DFB in recent years after players such as Kenan Yildiz, Can Uzun, Paul Wanner and Ibrahim Maza. At the same time, Jürgen Klopp has called up a highly promising talent in Borussia Mönchengladbach's Wael Mohya for the upcoming training camp, though Mohya would also be eligible to play for Morocco.
Striker Nicolo Tresoldi could also play for Italy, but wants to decide only after taking part with Germany in next summer's under-21 European Championship.
At centre-back, there is little room for more players. Behind established choices Jonathan Tah (Bayern Munich), Waldemar Anton and Nico Schlotterbeck (both Borussia Dortmund), Malick Thiaw (Newcastle United) and Finn Jeltsch (VfB Stuttgart) got the nod for the matches against Serbia and the Netherlands. Inter Milan regular Yann-Aurel Bisseck was surprisingly left out.