BERGAMO, ITALY – SEPTEMBER 5: Italy national team coach Gennaro Gattuso gestures during the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier match between Italy and Estonia at the Stadio di Bergamo on September 5, 2025 in Bergamo, Italy. (Photo by Mattia Ozbot/Getty Images)
Gennaro Gattuso was recently appointed as Italy’s new manager and the former midfielder has already made his first call-up to six up-and-coming talents.
Gattuso was appointed in June 2025 to replace Luciano Spalletti, who lost 3-0 to Norway in the opening World Cup qualifying match.
Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup in 2018 and 2022, and Gattuso is tasked with getting the Azzurri back into football’s most important competition.
6 players making their Italian debut under coach Gattuso
However, the targets are as demanding as ever, as highlighted by casinos other than Gamblestop. Given that Norway are leaders in Group I, with a six-point lead over Italy with a game in hand, and a huge difference in goal difference.
The debate over the development of Italian football has been going on for nearly a decade, but no one seems to have found a solution when it comes to the emergence of fresh attacking talent and the establishment of a stable national team capable of competing with the best countries in the world.
Like many of his predecessors, Gattuso also called up several promising players for the first time. In September, Giovanni Leoni (Liverpool), Giovanni Fabian (Bologna) and Francesco Pio Esposito (Inter) made their debuts for Italy, while in October Hans Nicolosi Cabiria, Roberto Piccoli (Fiorentina) and Nicolo Cambiaghi (Bologna) made their debuts.
Leoni and Fabian ultimately did not make their senior debuts as they were sent to the stands against Estonia and Israel, but Pio Esposito made his debut against Estonia and was called up for the October match.
“Indeed, everything is happening very quickly. I am happy with my first call-up and with my debut at Inter, which was the last step in the journey I started in the academy,” the promising Inter striker said at a press conference in September.
“Balance is essential in football because everything can change quickly.”
New options in attack and midfield
Meanwhile, Piccoli was called up in October to replace Mattia Zaccagni. The Lazio star suffered a muscular injury before the Serie A weekend, which also forced him to leave the Azzurri.
It remains to be seen whether Piccoli, Nicolssi Caviglia and Cambiaghi will make their international debuts in October, but Gattuso has already shown he has great faith in his young players.
Italy has been away from the World Cup for many years and a good mix of experienced and young footballers could be the key to getting back to the top of world football and competing with the best countries on the planet.
post navigation
