AC Milan saw 12 players jet off around Europe and the world during the last international break, called up to represent their countries.
At the beginning of the month, club action paused to give way to 2026 World Cup qualifiers, U21 Euro qualifiers and some friendlies too. As mentioned, Milan had a dozen players pack their things and temporarily depart Milanello.
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Global calls
Speaking of the World Cup next year, fans are already budgeting for 2026 – see how much are world cup tickets 2026 before you plan your trip.
Milan’s quite diverse squad means that players were jetting off to various parts of the continent but also the world. Mike Maignan and Adrien Rabiot were on France duty, while Strahinja Pavlovic answered the call from Serbia, and Ruben Loftus-Cheek was back in the England fold after a long absence.
Alexis Saelemaekers and Koni De Winter participated in back-to-back 6-0 wins for Belgium, with the former playing a starring role. Luka Modric celebrated his 40th birthday with Croatia and continued his excellent start to the season.
Outside of Europe, Christian Pulisic went to play for the United States, Santiago Gimenez went halfway across the world too to be with the Mexican national team, and Pervis Estupinan was summoned by Ecuador. It’s safe to say those three are racking up some serious air miles.
Then there are the youth internationals. Zachary Athekame was on Switzerland U21 duty, and Davide Bartesaghi was called up by Italy for U21 Euro Qualifiers.
Azzurri absence
What has been a worry for Milan fans in recent seasons is the lack of representation in the Italian national team, given how long it has been since there was anyone in the squad, let alone starting.
The candidates at present are Samuele Ricci and Matteo Gabbia. The former actually dropped out of the squad, perhaps a surprise given Gennaro Gattuso is in charge, while the latter hasn’t been fancied despite his impressive form over the past 18 months.
Fabio Capello spoke to Rai Radio 1 on the program ‘Radio anch’io Sport’ to talk about the situation with the Italian national team, and he made it clear that – in his eyes – the clubs must also take some responsibility.
“In our league they [Italian players] play very little or they don’t play at all. We prefer to sign foreigners, maybe not even that good, than to let our players play,” he said (via MilanPress).
“The teams that won the championship, Napoli, and the teams that came in second with a Champions League final, Inter, are the teams that have the most Italian players. Milan have one, Juve two or three.
“We don’t have the courage to let Italian players play and let them grow. Not to mention the game systems: dribbling is now forbidden. We don’t skip past the man anymore. All this needs to be rethought in football schools, in the Federation, at Coverciano.”
