Only 6 Italy players remain from Mancini EURO 2020 triumph in new squad

LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 11: Giorgio Chiellini, Captain of Italy lifts The Henri Delaunay Trophy following his team's victory in the UEFA Euro 2020 Championship Final between Italy and England at Wembley Stadium on July 11, 2021 in London, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/UEFA via Getty Images)

The highlight of Roberto Mancini’s first Italy tenure was winning the EURO 2020 tournament, but only six players from that side remain in his first squad of the second adventure.

The CT returned to the Nazionale this summer after having walked away in August 2023.

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Although his experience with the Azzurri had some highs, including the world record unbeaten run, his proudest achievement was winning the European Championship.

That was EURO 2020, albeit played in the summer of 2021 due to delays over the pandemic the previous year.

Only six players remain from that adventure and have a place in Mancini’s first squad of 2026 for the Nations League fixtures.

They are goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, defenders Alessandro Bastoni and Giovanni Di Lorenzo, midfielders Nicolò Barella and Bryan Cristante, plus forward Giacomo Raspadori.

Mancini called a massive 34 players for his squad today, including nine new faces who had never previously been welcomed into the senior side.

Italy squad for Nations League games

Goalkeepers: Marco Carnesecchi (Atalanta), Gianluigi Donnarumma (Manchester City), Massimo Pessina (Bologna), Guglielmo Vicario (Juventus);

Defenders: Honest Ahanor (Crystal Palace), Alessandro Bastoni (Inter), Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal), Diego Coppola (Paris FC), Giovanni Di Lorenzo (Napoli), Federico Dimarco (Inter), Daniele Ghilardi (Roma), Michael Kayode (Brentford), Eddy Kouadio (Monza), Gianluca Mancini (Roma), Giorgio Scalvini (Atalanta);

Midfielders: Nicolò Barella (Inter), Bryan Cristante (Roma), Issa Doumbia (Sporting CP), Nicolò Fagioli (Fiorentina), Davide Frattesi (Lazio), Rolando Mandragora (Torino), Alessandro Romano (Cagliari), Sandro Tonali (Tottenham);

Forwards: Nicolò Cambiaghi (Bologna), Francesco Pio Esposito (Inter), Sebastiano Esposito (Sassuolo), Samuele Inacio (Borussia Dortmund), Moise Kean (Como), Daniel Maldini (Cagliari), Giacomo Raspadori (Atalanta), Gianluca Scamacca (Atalanta), Antonio Vergara (Napoli), Nicolò Zaniolo (Udinese), Mohamed Alì Zoma (Nurnberg).