Two months after losing to Switzerland in the round of 16 of the European Championship, the national team returns to the pitch for the first two matches of the 2024/2025 UEFA Nations League. Coach Luciano Spalletti has called up 23 players for the away matches against France and Israel, scheduled for Friday 6 September at the Parc des Princes in Paris and Monday 9 September at the Bozsik Arena in Budapest respectively.
The new faces are Leicester defender Caleb Okoli, already called up for a couple of training camps in 2022, and Atalanta midfielder Marco Brescianini. Sandro Tonali returns after a year, having finished serving his betting ban, and Moise Kean, who has been absent since November 2023, also returns to the Azzurri shirt.
In agreement with the player and his club, Luciano Spalletti has agreed not to call up Inter midfielder Nicolò Barella to allow him to undergo a scheduled ENT operation in the next few days due to sinusitis problems.
On Sunday the National team will gather at the Federal Technical Center in Coverciano, where the Azzurri will work until Thursday, when they are scheduled to leave for Paris. On Friday, September 6, the challenge with France and the following morning transfer to Budapest from where, at the end of the match with Israel, they will return to Italy (Milan and Rome).
THE LIST OF CALLED UP PARTICIPANTS
Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint Germain), Alex Meret (Napoli), Guglielmo Vicario (Tottenham);
Defenders: Alessandro Bastoni (Inter), Raoul Bellanova (Atalanta), Alessandro Buongiorno (Napoli), Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal), Andrea Cambiaso (Juventus), Giovanni Di Lorenzo (Napoli), Federico Dimarco (Inter), Federico Gatti (Juventus), Caleb Okoli (Leicester), Destiny Udogie (Tottenham);
Midfielders: Marco Brescianini (Atalanta), Nicolò Fagioli (Juventus), Davide Frattesi (Inter), Lorenzo Pellegrini (Roma), Samuele Ricci (Turin), Sandro Tonali (Newcastle);
Attackers: Moise Kean (Fiorentina), Giacomo Raspadori (Napoli), Mateo Retegui (Atalanta), Mattia Zaccagni (Lazio).
THE CALENDAR OF THE AZZURRI
Finalist in the last two editions – both of which ended in third place – Italy will begin its journey in the Nations League with two away matches against France and Israel. In October, the first two home matches will take place: on Thursday 10 October, Italy-Belgium will be played at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, while on Monday 14 October the Azzurri will play against Israel at the Stadio Friuli in Udine. On Thursday 14 November, the National team will then visit Belgium in Brussels and then close the group on Sunday 17 November in Milan against France.
THE NEW FORMULA OF THE NATIONS LEAGUE
From September to November 2024, Italy will be called to play six matches with the three opponents of the group. Compared to the previous edition, which provided direct access to the Final Four for the first-placed team, the top two in the group will advance to the next round, and will play the quarter-finals (home and away) in March 2025. The winners of the quarter-finals will then obtain a pass to the Finals, scheduled for June 2025 at the home of one of the four finalists. The fourth-placed team in the group will be relegated to League B, while – another new feature – the third-placed team will play a play-off to avoid relegation with one of the second-placed teams from League B. The finalist national teams will have a pass to the play-offs of the 2026 World Cup.
The 2024/25 UEFA Nations League League A groups
Group 1: Croatia, Portugal, Poland, Scotland
Group 2: Italy, Belgium, France, Israel
Group 3: Netherlands, Hungary, Germany, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Group 4: Spain, Denmark, Switzerland, Serbia
The races of Italy
September 6, 2024: France-Italy (8.45pm – Parc des Princes, Paris)
9 September 2024: Israel-Italy (8.45pm – Bozsik Arena, Budapest)
October 10, 2024: Italy-Belgium (8.45 pm – Stadio Olimpico, Rome)
October 14, 2024: Italy-Israel (8.45 pm – Stadio Friuli, Udine)
November 14, 2024: Belgium-Italy (8.45pm – King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels)
November 17, 2024: Italy-France (8.45 pm – Giuseppe Meazza Stadium, Milan)
Play-off draw: November 2024
Knockout stage play-offs: 20-25 March 2025
League A Quarter-finals: 20-25 March 2025
Final stage: 4-8 June 2025