Italy have already been forced into changes before their first Nations League match against Belgium in Rome. Federico Dimarco and Bryan Cristante are both out, and Roberto Mancini has called up Matteo Ruggeri and Samuele Ricci as replacements.
Dimarco's withdrawal
Dimarco was ruled out after a medical examination at the Federal Technical Center in Coverciano. Sky Sport Italia said he had not recovered from the physical problem suffered with his club, and that he will leave the training camp in the next few hours.
The timing is awkward for Italy, because the squad gathered at Coverciano on Sunday evening and began training from the next day ahead of Belgium. Dimarco has made 5 appearances this season, logging 319 minutes and adding 1 goal contribution, so this is not a fringe call getting swapped out.
The replacement call-ups
Mancini moved quickly to fill the gaps. In Dimarco's place, Matteo Ruggeri was called up from Aston Villa, while Ricci came in for Cristante after the Roma midfielder could not respond to the call-up.
Ricci arrives with a different kind of club profile. He has only 3 Serie A appearances this season and a 6.48 league rating, which fits a call-up based on trust and balance rather than a big workload. His 6.35 Champions League rating also points to some European exposure without making him a headline-grabbing selection.
The squad list included 34 call-ups, so Italy had room to move, and the changes still leave the opener against Belgium as the key marker. Italy also have Türkiye away on 28 September 2026 at 20:45, France away on 2 October 2026 at 20:45 and Türkiye at home on 5 October 2026 at 20:45.
The call-ups look settled for the Belgium game, even if the wider squad is still a moving target across the rest of the window.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
