Roberto Mancini's Bold Squad for Italy's UEFA Nations League Campaign
Roberto Mancini has wasted no time in stamping his mark on Italy – again.
Back in charge after Gennaro Gattuso’s brief and bruising spell, the 61-year-old has named a bold 34-man squad for the upcoming UEFA Nations League campaign, his first major act since the FIGC confirmed his return at the end of July. The backdrop is unforgiving: Italy have missed a third straight World Cup. The reset had to be real.
Old era, new edge
The most striking detail? Only six survivors from Mancini’s Euro 2020-winning group remain. Gianluigi Donnarumma, Alessandro Bastoni, Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Nicolo Barella, Bryan Cristante and Giacomo Raspadori are the last links to that Wembley night, now tasked with guiding a squad that looks and feels very different.
Around them, the coach has ripped up the old lists and started again. Established names are out, teenagers are in, and reputations no longer guarantee a seat on the plane.
Big calls: Palestra, Udogie, Chiesa miss out
The omissions jump off the page. Chelsea defender Marco Palestra, recently sidelined by injury and capped twice after debuting in March, is left at home. So is Tottenham Hotspur’s Destiny Udogie, who has not featured for Italy since June 2025. Federico Chiesa, still a reference point for many fans when they picture the Azzurri attack, is also missing; he was called up earlier this year but has not played for the national team since Euro 2024.
They are not alone. Juventus trio Manuel Locatelli, Federico Gatti and Andrea Cambiaso are absent. Napoli pair Leonardo Spinazzola and Alessandro Buongiorno miss out as well, along with Mateo Retegui, now at Al-Qadsiah. This is a cull with a clear message: past service is no shield.
Nine fresh faces
In their place comes a wave of newcomers. Mancini has handed first call-ups to nine players, underlining just how aggressively he intends to refresh the group.
- Brentford right-back Michael Kayode gets the nod, as does 18-year-old Bologna goalkeeper Massimo Pessina.
- Roma’s Daniele Ghilardi, Monza’s Eddy Kouadio and Cagliari’s Alessandro Romano all step into the senior setup for the first time.
- The net has spread beyond Serie A too. Sporting Lisbon’s Issa Doumbia, Sassuolo’s Sebastiano Esposito, Napoli midfielder Antonio Vergara and Nurnberg’s Mohamed Ali Zoma complete the list of debutants.
For each of them, Coverciano now becomes a proving ground, not a sightseeing trip.
Youth retained, leaders trusted
Amid the upheaval, some of Mancini’s newer jewels keep their place. Borussia Dortmund forward Samuele Inacio, born in Italy to a Brazilian father and committed to the Azzurri, stays in the squad. So does fellow 18-year-old Honest Ahanor, currently on loan at Crystal Palace from Chelsea. Both represent the modern face of Italy: young, mobile, and forged in different leagues.
Around them, the spine still carries familiar weight. Arsenal’s Riccardo Calafiori, Inter Milan duo Federico Dimarco and Nicolo Barella, Tottenham midfielder Sandro Tonali and Como forward Moise Kean are all included. This is not a youth experiment for its own sake; it’s a blend, with clear responsibility on the senior core to drag the next generation up to standard.
A brutal schedule for a new cycle
There will be no gentle introduction. Italy open their Nations League League A Group 1 campaign at home to Belgium at the Stadio Olimpico on September 25, a fixture that rarely allows for half-measures.
Three days later, the Azzurri head to Bursa to face Turkey, the first of two meetings with Vincenzo Montella’s side in this window. Then comes a trip to Saint-Denis on October 2 to take on 2026 World Cup semi-finalists France – a test of temperament as much as talent.
The international block closes back on Italian soil on October 5, when Turkey visit the Stadio Renato Dall’Ara. By then, the picture around Mancini’s second project will be far clearer.
Italy’s first training session at Coverciano is scheduled for next Monday. The names are on paper now. The real question is whether this mix of hardened champions and fearless rookies can drag the Azzurri out of their World Cup wilderness and into something resembling a new era.
