Riccardo Cassano Italy national team call-up before France-Italy Nations League match, Digi Mart USA News: Roberto Mancini has announced a 31-player squad for the next two Nations League matchdays. Italy will face France on November 12 at San Siro before travelling to Belgium on November 15 to play at the King Baudouin Stadium.
The biggest surprise is Riccardo Cassano, a midfielder born in 2009 and trained at Inter Milan, who plays for Como without having yet appeared in Serie A. Spotted by Como coach Cesc Fàbregas, who gave him a start in a friendly against Paris FC last summer, the young player is described as someone who “does not feel the pressure,” able to play and shoot like a much more experienced player.
Cassano is joined by three other newcomers: Simone Lontani, a 2008-born midfielder trained at Parma, Alphadjo Cissé, a 2006-born forward at AC Milan, and Mattia Liberali, a 2007-born forward also from Como. Because of their age, Cassano and Lontani will not stay for the entire camp and will instead join the Under-18 and Under-19 teams respectively, which are competing in continental qualifiers.
Mancini also recalled Nicolò Zaniolo and Marco Palestra, who were absent during the previous two international breaks. Guglielmo Vicario is the only Juventus player in the squad, while the Frosinone midmidfielder was not selected.
Following results in the last break, two wins against Turkey and a hard-fought draw against France, Italy sit second in their Nations League group with seven points, one point behind Belgium and three ahead of France.
