Vergara Makes Italy Debut, Mancini Hands Out 64 First Caps
Antonio Vergara received his first cap for the Italy national team during Friday night's 1-1 draw against France in the Nations League. This marks the 64th debutant under Roberto Mancini's tenure as coach.
Mancini has already introduced seven new players in his current spell as manager. Vergara was the latest against France. Earlier, Michael Kayode, Matteo Ruggeri, and Sebastiano Esposito debuted against Turkey. Alessandro Romano, Issa Doumbia, and Mohamed Ali Zoma earned their first Italy caps against Belgium last Friday.
Four more players in the current squad are yet to make their Italy debut. Goalkeepers Marco Carnesecchi and Massimo Pessina may face competition from Gianluigi Donnarumma, while Daniele Ghilardi and Eddy Kouadio will aim to feature against Turkey on Monday night in the Nations League.
Here is the complete list of players who debuted for Italy under Mancini, in chronological order:
All Italy Debutants Under Mancini
(Players in bold were part of the September/October Nations League squad.)
- Matteo Politano (May 2018)
- Domenico Berardi (June 2018)
- Mattia Caldara (June 2018)
- Ronaldo Mandragora (June 2018)
- Daniele Baselli (June 2018)
- Cristiano Biraghi (September 2018)
- Manuel Lazzari (September 2018)
- Emerson Palmieri (September 2018)
- Nicolo Barella (October 2018)
- Cristiano Piccini (October 2018)
- Kevin Lasagna (October 2018)
- Vincenzo Grifo (November 2018)
- Moise Kean (November 2018)
- Stefano Sensi (November 2018)
- Nicolo Zaniolo (March 2019)
- Armando Izzo (March 2019)
- Gianluca Mancini (March 2019)
- Leonardo Pavoletti (March 2019)
- Giovanni Di Lorenzo (October 2019)
- Sandro Tonali (October 2019)
- Gaetano Castrovilli (November 2019)
- Pierluigi Gollini (November 2019)
- Alex Meret (November 2019)
- Riccardo Orsolini (November 2019)
- Manuel Locatelli (September 2020)
- Francesco Caputo (October 2020)
- Alessio Cragno (October 2020)
- Alessandro Bastoni (November 2020)
- Matteo Pessina (November 2020)
- Pietro Pellegri (November 2020)
- Luca Pellegrini (November 2020)
- Davide Calabria (November 2020)
- Rafael Toloi (March 2021)
- Gian Marco Ferrari (May 2021)
- Giacomo Raspadori (June 2021)
- Gianluca Scamacca (September 2021)
- Joao Pedro (March 2022)
- Mattia Zaccagni (March 2022)
- Davide Frattesi (June 2022)
- Wilfried Gnonto (June 2022)
- Tommaso Pobega (June 2022)
- Federico Dimarco (June 2022)
- Samuele Ricci (June 2022)
- Matteo Cancellieri (June 2022)
- Alessio Zerbin (June 2022)
- Federico Gatti (June 2022)
- Salvatore Esposito (June 2022)
- Luiz Felipe (June 2022)
- Gianluca Caprari (June 2022)
- Giorgio Scalvini (June 2022)
- Pasquale Mazzocchi (September 2022)
- Andrea Pinamonti (November 2022)
- Nicolo Fagioli (November 2022)
- Simone Pafundi (November 2022)
- Fabio Miretti (November 2022)
- Mateo Retegui (March 2023)
- Alessandro Buongiorno (June 2023)
- Alessandro Romano (September 2026)
- Issa Doumbia (September 2026)
- Mohamed Ali Zoma (September 2026)
- Michael Kayode (September 2026)
- Sebastiano Esposito (September 2026)
- Matteo Ruggeri (September 2026)
- Antonio Vergara (October 2026)
Fresh materials — Football news

Montella: Unwavering on Team's Potential, Rejects Unjustified Criticism
Vincenzo Montella, ahead of Turkiye's Nations League fixture against Italy, stated he "does not want to think negatively." He also declared, "I cannot accept illogical criticism." The match is scheduled for Monday at the Stadio Dall’Ara in Bologna, with kickoff at 19:45 UK time (20:45 CEST). The

Five Italy outfielders yet to play in this international break
Italy's 2026-27 Nations League campaign is three games deep, yet five outfield players from Roberto Mancini’s 34-man squad have yet to feature. The coach's tenure has seen mixed results, starting with a 2-0 home defeat to Belgium. However, the team has since secured a 4-1 away victory against T

Mancini's Frustration: Italy Aimed for More Than a Draw Against France
Fans have reacted positively to Roberto Mancini's visibly frustrated reaction at the end of Italy's 1-1 draw against France. This reaction is seen as proof that the Azzurri were not satisfied with securing a single point away against one of the world's top teams. In the Nations League mat

Italy's First-Half Performance Against France Breaks 10-Year Stat
Italy secured a commendable 1-1 draw away against France on Friday evening. In the first half of this match, Italy registered more shots against Les Bleues on their home turf than any other national team has managed since the semi-finals of EURO 2016. This result marks a positive step in

Donnarumma: Italy Showed 'Great Team Attitude' in France Draw
Gianluigi Donnarumma believes Italy displayed the characteristics of a strong team in their 1-1 draw with France, stating that "not everyone can come here and put in such a good performance." Following inconsistent results in their opening Nations League matches, Italy's performance again

Italy Secures Impressive 1-1 Draw Against France in Nations League
Italy achieved a notable 1-1 draw in Paris against France. Alessandro Bastoni scored Italy's goal, canceling out Michael Olise's opener. France's Dayot Upamecano was sent off late in the match. Changes were made to the Italian lineup from their previous match. Riccardo Calafiori returned at