Spalletti ‘not worried’ by Calafiori’s absence and names Italy midfield replacement | OneFootball

Italy coach Luciano Spalletti says Manuel Locatelli will replace the injured Samuele Ricci for Nations League games against Belgium and France and insists he is ‘not worried’ by Riccardo Calafiori’s absence in the next two matches.

Torino midfielder Ricci won’t be available for Italy’s next two Nations League games against Belgium and France.

The talented midfielder suffered an injury during the latest derby della Mole between his Torino side and Juventus.

Spalletti said Ricci would have struggled to recover for the first match against Belgium, so the midfielder has returned to his club, something that had already happened with other players in the past.

Spalletti ‘not worried’ by Calafiori’s absence and names Italy midfield replacement

Luciano Spalletti Italy (Photo by Claudio Villa/Getty Images)

The Azzurri coach initially seemed reluctant to announce Ricci’s replacement but then named Locatelli.

“I see Locatelli doing things he didn’t do before,” said Spalletti.

“I have nothing against him. Rovella deserved to come here for what he’s doing. We’ll see after the game if they are on the same level as the others. They deserve this chance.”

Rovella was already part of the 23-man squad announced by Spalletti last week.

Ricci and Calafiori were crucial players in Italy’s games after the Euros, so Spalletti was asked how he’d cope without the injured pair.

“When Bastoni plays for Inter, he shows he can be an added striker, as Calafiori has done in that role,” noted Spalletti.

“I appreciated Buongiorno’s strength yesterday against two strikers like Thuram and Lautaro. I’m not worried. Buongiorno is a great defender, and Bastoni knows how to build up and replicate what Calafiori has done. Gatti is improving because we questioned his quality in the build-up, but now he does it well. We are pretty calm.”

Football Italia was among the accredited media at Coverciano and followed Spalletti’s press conference live. You can read every word he said here.