Roberto Mancini is expected to omit nine members of his 34-man Italy squad for Friday evening’s Nations League meeting with France, with Alessandro Romano and Samuele Inacio among those reportedly set to stay behind.
Italy will hold a training session at Coverciano on Thursday before travelling to Paris for the third match of the September-October international break.
Mancini’s second spell in charge began with a 2-0 defeat by Belgium at the Stadio Olimpico, but Italy responded with a 4-1 victory against Turkey in Bursa on Monday.
The manager can name only 23 players in his matchday squad, while two members of the original group have already withdrawn. Nicolo Zaniolo and Giacomo Raspadori left the camp because of injury and were not replaced.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, the other players likely to miss the France match are goalkeeper Massimo Pessina, defenders Diego Coppola, Daniele Ghilardi, Honest Ahanor and Eddy Kouadio, midfielder Rolando Mandragora, and forwards Nicolo Cambiaghi and Samuele Inacio.
Those not selected are expected to train separately at Coverciano on Thursday afternoon. The same arrangement was used before Italy’s victory over Turkey.
If the reported omissions are confirmed, Italy’s 23-man squad for the match will be:
Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Donnarumma (Manchester City), Marco Carnesecchi (Atalanta), Guglielmo Vicario (Juventus).
Defenders: Michael Kayode (Brentford), Matteo Ruggeri (Aston Villa), Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal), Giorgio Scalvini (Atalanta), Alessandro Bastoni (Inter), Giovanni Di Lorenzo (Napoli), Gianluca Mancini (Roma).
Midfielders: Nicolo Fagioli (Fiorentina), Sandro Tonali (Tottenham), Issa Doumbia (Sporting CP), Davide Frattesi (Lazio), Nicolo Barella (Inter), Samuele Ricci (Como).
Forwards: Pio Esposito (Inter), Moise Kean (Como), Gianluca Scamacca (Atalanta), Antonio Vergara (Napoli), Sebastiano Esposito (Sassuolo), Daniel Maldini (Cagliari), Mohamed Ali Zoma (1. FC Nurnberg).
The expected decision has prompted criticism from some supporters, particularly over the possible exclusion of Inacio and Ahanor. One comment questioned why Inacio had not been given an opportunity, saying France would have been “exactly the game to unleash him”, even if only as a substitute.
Another argued that Ahanor being left out while Mancini and Di Lorenzo remain involved was “comedy”, while also claiming the 18-year-old was among the leading under-18 players in the world.
There was also support for Mancini’s approach. One supporter said Inacio was still only 18 and that training with the senior group remained part of his development, adding that he could receive his chance in the final game against Turkey, alongside Kouadio, Ahanor and Ghilardi.