Roberto Mancini has named a 34-man Italy squad for the upcoming UEFA Nations League fixtures. Nine new faces earn a first call-up, and a handful of familiar names make surprise returns.
The 61-year-old took charge of the Azzurri again at the end of last July on a contract running until 2030. Italy face Turkey twice, previously coached by Vincenzo Montella, and travel to both Belgium and France.
Mancini opens his second spell at home to Belgium on Friday 25 September at the Olimpico in Rome. Turkey await on 28 September, then a trip to face Zinedine Zidane's France on Friday 2 October, before the Azzurri host Turkey again on 5 October at the Dall'Ara in Bologna.
Nine players receive a maiden call-up: Massimo Bisina (Bologna goalkeeper), Daniele Ghilardi (Roma defender), Michel Kayode (Brentford full-back), Eddie Kwaidoo (Monza defender), Alessandro Romano (Cagliari midfielder), Issa Doumbia (Sporting Lisbon talent), Sebastiano Esposito (Sassuolo forward), Antonio Vergara (Napoli forward) and Mohamed Ali Zouma (Nürnberg forward).
Honest Ahanor, who moved to Crystal Palace via Atalanta and Chelsea, and Borussia Dortmund playmaker Samuele Inacio also make the cut. Mancini brings back Niccolò Fagioli and Nicolò Zaniolo, neither of whom has worn the Italy shirt since October 2024. Rolando Mandragora returns for the first time since his last call-up in March 2021. Chelsea's Marco Palestra misses out through injury.
Below is the Italy squad for the UEFA Nations League fixtures:
Goalkeepers: Marco Carnesecchi (Atalanta), Gianluigi Donnarumma (Manchester City), Massimo Bisina (Bologna), Guglielmo Vicario (Juventus).
Defence: Honest Ahanor (Crystal Palace), Alessandro Bastoni (Inter), Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal), Diego Coppola (Paris FC), Giovanni Di Lorenzo (Napoli), Federico Dimarco (Inter), Daniele Ghilardi (Roma), Michel Kayode (Brentford), Eddie Kwaidoo (Monza), Gianluca Mancini (Roma), Giorgio Scalvini (Atalanta).
Midfield: Nicolò Barella (Inter), Bryan Cristante (Roma), Issa Doumbia (Sporting Lisbon), Niccolò Fagioli (Fiorentina), Davide Frattesi (Lazio), Rolando Mandragora (Torino), Alessandro Romano (Cagliari), Sandro Tonali (Tottenham).
Attack: Nicolò Cambiaghi (Bologna), Francesco Pio Esposito (Inter), Sebastiano Esposito (Sassuolo), Samuele Inacio (Borussia Dortmund), Moise Kean (Como), Daniel Maldini (Cagliari), Giacomo Raspadori (Atalanta), Gianluca Scamacca (Atalanta), Antonio Vergara (Napoli), Nicolò Zaniolo (Udinese), Mohamed Ali Zouma (Nürnberg).
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