Italy: Politano returns, Meret and Lucca in, Buongiorno out? | OneFootball

Matteo Politano is ready to reclaim the blue jersey. The Napoli winger will be called up by the new head coach Rino Gattuso for the upcoming 2026 World Cup qualifying matches: on September 5 against Estonia and on September 8 against Israel. These two matches will also mark the official debut of the new coach on Italy's bench.

Gattuso closely observes the "azzurrabili"

Yesterday, in Reggio Emilia, Gattuso attended the first league match of the Italian champion Napoli to monitor potentially selectable players. Among them, Politano caught attention for his all-around performance on the right wing, showing effectiveness both in offense and in defense.

The return of Politano: last match in blue in March 2025

Politano's last appearance was on March 23, 2025 (Germany-Italy 3-3). With former coach Luciano Spalletti, he had been sidelined, but with Gattuso, the prospects change: the two know each other well from their time at Napoli (2019-2021) and already at Valencia, the coach had expressed the desire to work with the winger again.

Meret and Lucca called up, Buongiorno left out

In addition to Politano, Gattuso has decided to call up Alex Meret, Napoli's goalkeeper, and Lorenzo Lucca, who will be able to take advantage of more playing time in attack given Romelu Lukaku's absence. Alessandro Buongiorno, however, will not be among the call-ups: the defender, who remained on the bench in the last game, is still recovering his condition after groin surgery at the end of last season.

Italy towards World Cup qualifications

The matches against Estonia and Israel will already be decisive for the journey towards the 2026 World Cup. Gattuso's goal is to immediately imprint his tactical approach, enhancing players who are in form and capable of providing immediate assurances.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.