Italian football is known for its dramatic overhauls rather than quiet transitions. Each rebuilding phase is marked by significant events – resignations, penalty shootouts, or national humiliations that shift the public mood.
This summer is no exception. The Azzurri currently lack a permanent coach and a place in the World Cup. More critically, they haven’t found a clear answer to the question that has plagued the national team for nearly a decade: where is the next generation of talent?
It appears the answer might be emerging from a club known for its distinctive black and yellow kit.
Baldini’s Gamble: A Squad Focused on the Future
Interim coach Silvio Baldini, who stepped in from the Under-21 team after Gennaro Gattuso resigned following the play-off loss to Bosnia and Herzegovina that eliminated Italy from the 2026 World Cup, has selected a remarkably young and intentionally developing squad for upcoming friendlies against Luxembourg and Greece.
The average age of this squad is just 20 years and six months. Baldini was clear about his strategy: he felt there was “no point” in recalling the established core of the Azzurri. This current international window is dedicated to the next developmental cycle.
Three of the most notable new inclusions represent Borussia Dortmund. Samuele Inacio, an 18-year-old forward, recently made his Bundesliga debut and scored against Eintracht Frankfurt. He has since signed a contract extension with BVB until 2029, indicating the club’s high regard for him.
Inacio, whose father is former Serie A striker Inacio Pià, has played for Italy at various youth levels but has not yet featured for the Under-21s. Baldini has chosen to fast-track him directly to the senior national team.
Joining Inacio from Dortmund’s Signal Iduna Park are centre-back Filippo Mane – a player selected based on potential despite an injury-affected season – and midfielder Luca Reggiani, a key figure in Dortmund’s youth academy rather than their senior squad.
These three promising Dortmund players have been rapidly promoted to the senior Italian national team.
The Italian FA’s Blueprint: Nurturing Young Talent at Any Cost
Baldini has been given a clear directive: the June fixtures against Luxembourg (June 3) and Greece (June 7) are not about securing results.
Instead, they are opportunities for player identification, a deliberate effort to integrate young talent into the senior setup before a permanent coach is appointed and establishes their own hierarchy.
The approach of prioritizing youth in international fixtures is not new for Italy, but Baldini’s complete embrace of this doctrine, rather than seeing it as a temporary necessity, is a significant shift.
Gianluigi Donnarumma, the experienced Manchester City goalkeeper and Italy’s captain, is the only veteran included, serving more as a mentor than a primary performer.
Surrounding him are players with limited recent senior international experience, such as Pietro Comuzzo, Niccolò Pisilli, Marco Palestra, and Francesco Pio Esposito. The squad also features several debutants, including Davide Bartesaghi from Milan, Atalanta’s Honest Ahanor, and Francesco Camarda, currently on loan at Lecce.
The breadth of this youth selection is remarkable, as is the inherent risk: whether these June appearances will influence the decisions of the permanent coach when they must determine if Baldini’s experiment becomes a precedent or is simply overlooked.
It’s also noteworthy that many of these young players are based outside of Italy. In addition to the Dortmund trio, Fabio Chiarodia plays for Borussia Mönchengladbach, and Luca Koleosho is with Paris FC.
Italian media have openly interpreted this as an implicit acknowledgment that Serie A clubs have been slower to provide first-team opportunities to teenagers, and that academies in Germany and France are currently contributing significantly to Italy’s player development.
Dortmund’s Interest and Italy’s Risks
The call-up of Inacio is particularly significant. European media have portrayed this not just as a standard promotion but as a strategic move by Italy to secure the allegiance of a player whose entire footballing education has been in Germany.
Dortmund’s decision to extend his contract to 2029 and give him a Bundesliga debut in the same month as his senior international call-up is unlikely to be a coincidence.
With the Italian head coach position still vacant, the question of who will shape the identity of this new generation – the Italian football federation or the German club’s development system – remains open.
Mane and Reggiani represent a different scenario. Neither has accumulated extensive senior playing time.
Their selections are based on future potential, betting on their physical and technical attributes that have impressed at youth levels but are yet to be proven at the highest professional stage.
This squad reflects a focus on future prospects rather than immediate proven strength.
The success of Italy’s efforts to retain the loyalty of these dual-eligible talents will depend on subsequent decisions.
If a permanent coach opts to abandon this experiment and revert to familiar names, Italy risks losing these players altogether.
Inacio, established at Dortmund, with a new contract and a debut goal in the Bundesliga, doesn’t need external validation. Italy needs him to commit his future to them.
This tension lies at the core of Baldini’s squad selection. The underlying philosophy is sound, and the urgency is understandable.
After two consecutive World Cup absences, the Azzurri can no longer afford to passively wait for talent to emerge.
They must actively pursue it. The pipeline from Dortmund suggests they know where to look; the challenge lies in retaining the talent they discover.
