EMPOLI, ITALY – MARCH 26: Italy U21 coach Silvio Baldini watches the UEFA U21 EURO qualifier match between Italy U21 and North Macedonia U21 at Stadio Carlo Castellani in Empoli, Italy on March 26, 2026. (Photo by Gabriele Martinti/Getty Images)
Manager Silvio Baldini held a tactical training session on Tuesday ahead of his first match with the Italian national team on Wednesday night, during which the provisional CT formation and potential starters were revealed.
Baldini will play two international friendlies this week, starting with an away test match against Luxembourg on Wednesday and leading Italy to an away match against Greece on Sunday night.
Baldini has been serving as interim coach of the Italian national team following Gennaro Gattuso’s resignation as coach after the Azzurri missed out on the 2026 World Cup. A new permanent CT will not be appointed until the FIGC chairman election is held on June 22nd.
Baldini is usually the head coach of Italy’s U21 team, so he decided to name the team almost entirely of players he knew from the youth team. Of the 24 players in the current Italian national team, only Gianluigi Donnarumma, Marco Palestra, Niccolò Pisilli and Pio Esposito have ever been capped at the top level.
All four of Italy’s most senior players are expected to start against Luxembourg on Wednesday, according to the latest information from ANSA.
Baldini is expected to deploy his players in a 4-3-3. Captain Donnarumma is expected to start as goalkeeper, Palestra as right-back, Picilli as midfielder and Esposito as centre-forward.
Milan’s Davide Baltessagi is expected to start at full-back against the Palestra. Fiorentina centre-back Pietro Comozzo is uncapped but has been called up to several camps in Italy and is likely to start alongside Borussia Mönchengladbach’s Fabio Chiarodia in the heart of the Azzurri defense.
Pisilli will be joined in central midfield by Sassuolo’s Luca Lipani and Fiorentina’s Cher N’Dour, while Esposito will be joined by Luca Coleoscio and either Sampdoria’s Luigi Cherubini or Frosinone’s Seydou Fini.
Italy representative candidates against Luxembourg
(4-3-3): Donnarumma. Palestra, Comuzzo, Chiarodia, Baltessagi. Lipani, pisilli, ndur. Cherubini, Esposito, Coleosho.
Italian national team in friendly matches in June
Goalkeeper: Gianluigi Donnarumma (Manchester City), Giovanni D’Afara (Avellino), Lorenzo Palmisani (Frosinone).
Defender: Honest Ahanoglu (Atalanta), Davide Baltessagi (Milan), Fabio Chiarodia (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Pietro Comuzzo (Fiorentina), Costantino Favasuli (Catanzaro), Filippo Mane (Borussia Dortmund), Marco Palestra (Atalanta), Luca Reggiani (Borussia Dortmund).
Midfielder: Tommaso Berti (Cesena), Matteo D’Agasso (Venice), Giacomo Faticanti (Juventus), Luca Lipani (Sassuolo), Cher N’Dour (Fiorentina), Niccolo Pisilli (Roma).
forward: Francesco Camarda (Lecce), Luigi Cherubini (Sampdoria), Jeff Hector (Genoa), Pio Esposito (Inter), Seydou Fini (Frosinone), Samuele Inacio (Borussia Dortmund), Luca Coleoscio (Paris FC).
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