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The Italy U21 squad will fly to Szczecin this afternoon ahead of tomorrow’s showdown with Poland (Pogon Arena, 16:00 CET), the top-of-the-table clash in Group E of the European Championship qualifiers. After a morning training session at the Olympic Preparation Centre in Tirrenia, head coach Silvio Baldini expressed confidence in his team ahead of the meeting with the group’s other unbeaten side:
“Everything has gone well these past few days, because the boys have put their hearts into it. We know the difficulties we’ll face: Poland are a strong team that play a flexible 4-4-2, with the strikers creating space by pulling defenders out of position. But I’m convinced we’ll put in a big performance. We’ve worked hard on how to deal with that kind of system, and the only danger comes from ourselves. What matters most is that we approach the game the right way.”
COMUZZO AND THE U21 EXPERIENCE
Called up to the U21s several times before, and even to the senior national team under Spalletti, Pietro Comuzzo is now set to make his first full debut for the side, as Baldini confirmed:
“I’m thrilled to finally get the chance to play in this shirt and to train with this group, and I’ll bring my international club experience to help the team. We all share the same desire to keep improving – the atmosphere in the group is great and the work is intense. The coach is a huge asset for us, and he helps us grow both individually and collectively, because in the end it’s about how the team plays, not the individual.”
THE CAPTAIN SPEAKS
On the eve of the match, captain Luca Lipani echoed his coach’s message about the team’s preparation in Tirrenia:
“We’re on the right path. Training has been really intense because the next matches will be tough, so we just need to focus on what we do best.”
The Sassuolo midfielder is the only player to have played every minute so far (360 across four matches) as well as scoring on his debut against Montenegro. He also boasts the most youth caps of the group: 61, ahead of Ndour (56) and Faticanti (53).
“We all know each other well, even the new guys, because we’ve met across the youth national teams. We’re a tight group, and it’s always a pleasure to come together again.”
Lipani also highlighted how closely the squad identifies with Baldini’s approach:
“What struck me most about the coach is his human side and the enthusiasm he transmits. He reminds us why we love this game – what we dreamed of as kids. Sometimes we treat it like a job, but at the core, it’s still our passion.”
SQUAD NUMBERS AND SCHEDULE
The team departs Pisa this afternoon for Szczecin, where they’ll stay just 24 hours before returning to Tirrenia after the game. From Saturday, focus will shift to Montenegro, who the team play in Nikšić on Tuesday in the final match of 2025, before the campaign resumes in March with games against North Macedonia (home) and Sweden (away).
With Niccolò Fortini suspended after his red card in Cremona, the 23-man squad numbers for tomorrow’s game are as follows:
1 Palmisani, 2 Palestra, 3 Idrissi, 4 Comuzzo, 5 Lipani, 6 Mane, 7 Vavassori, 8 Cisse, 9 Camarda, 10 Cherubini, 11 Koleosho, 12 Mascardi, 13 Bartesaghi, 14 Berti, 15 Motta, 16 Faticanti, 17 Fini, 18 Zeroli, 19 Guarino, 20 Dagasso, 21 Pisilli, 22 Moruzzi, 23 Calvani.
SQUAD LIST
Goalkeepers: Diego Mascardi (Spezia), Edoardo Motta (Reggiana), Lorenzo Palmisani (Frosinone).
Defenders: Davide Bartesaghi (Milan), Gabriele Calvani (Frosinone), Pietro Comuzzo (Fiorentina), Niccolò Fortini (Fiorentina), Gabriele Guarino (Empoli), Riyad Idrissi (Cagliari), Filippo Mane (Borussia Dortmund), Brando Moruzzi (Empoli), Marco Palestra (Cagliari).
Midfielders: Tommaso Berti (Cesena), Matteo Dagasso (Pescara), Giacomo Faticanti (Juventus), Luca Lipani (Sassuolo), Niccolò Pisilli (Roma), Kevin Zeroli (Monza).
Forwards: Francesco Camarda (Lecce), Alphadjo Cisse (Catanzaro 1929), Luigi Cherubini (Sampdoria), Jeff Ekhator (Genoa), Seydou Fini (Genoa), Luca Koleosho (Espanyol), Dominic Vavassori (Atalanta).
EURO U21 GROUP E – FIXTURES AND STANDINGS
13 November, 17:00 CET – North Macedonia v Sweden (Bitola)
14 November, 16:00 CET – Poland v ITALY (Szczecin)
14 November, 12:00 CET – Armenia v Montenegro (Armavir)
18 November, 12:00 CET – Armenia v Sweden (Armavir)
18 November, 17:00 CET – North Macedonia v Poland (Bitola)
18 November, 18:30 CET – Montenegro v ITALY (Nikšić)
Standings: Poland, Italy 12 pts; Montenegro 6; Sweden 3; North Macedonia 3; Armenia 0.
SCHEDULE
Friday 14 November (Szczecin, Pogon Arena)
16:00 – Poland v Italy (EURO U21 Qualifiers, Matchday 5)
21:00 – Transfer Szczecin to Tirrenia
Saturday 15 November (Tirrenia Olympic Preparation Centre)
16:00 – Training
Sunday 16 November (Tirrenia)
16:00 – Training
Monday 17 November (Tirrenia)
10:30 – Training
16:20 – Transfer Tirrenia to Podgorica
Tuesday 18 November (Nikšić, City Stadium)
18:30 – Montenegro v Italy (EURO U21 Qualifiers, Matchday 6)
Wednesday 19 November
09:55 – Return flights Podgorica to Milan / Rome