Italy will take on Northern Ireland in their World Cup play-off without a single AC Milan player in the squad, something that has not gone unnoticed.
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As La Gazzetta dello Sport report, it must be strange for Gennaro Gattuso to not be calling any Milan players, after his era in the 2000s alongside the likes of Pirlo, Gilardino, Nesta, and Inzaghi. Prior to that there were Baresi, Maldini, Costacurta and Tassotti. Now, in March 2026? Not a single one.
Hopes for the future
There is the paradox of a France squad with three or four Milan players (Maignan and Rabiot are regulars, Fofana and Nkunku can compete) and not a single Italian call-up. Who can convince Gattuso? Three names: Matteo Gabbia, Samuele Ricci and Davide Bartesaghi.
Gabbia was called up in the fall and can legitimately expect to win a sprint alongside Coppola and Gatti to be a defensive alternative. He’s performed well in the last two years and has the wisdom needed in a dressing room. Problem: he’s injured and still isn’t well.
Ricci, on the other hand, is always on the verge of being called up. Gattuso has a group of untouchable midfielders (Barella, Tonali, Locatelli, Cristante and even Frattesi) and a few candidates for a spot in the squad: Pisilli, Ricci and Fabbian. Ricci will try, while a few more minutes would help.
The third name is an outsider: Bartesaghi has never been called up to the senior national team (only the U21s) but he’s not completely out of the running. On the left, Dimarco and Spinazzola are firmly in front of him, and Cambiaso has the advantage of playing on both flanks.
If anything goes wrong, the feeling is that Davide would be next: he’s confident, he’s physically fit, he doesn’t shy away from pressure and he can also be useful as a wing-back. Six months ago, no one could have predicted this.
What about the future? Francesco Camarda is still far from that level, but he has plenty of time having just turned 18, he’s very young. Christian Comotto is doing very well in Serie B and could be part of Milan’s squad for next season.
Kevin Zeroli tasted Serie A with Monza and aims to return there next season. It’s too early for each, but in their memory files, they have a match from 20 months ago: Italy against Northern Ireland, with a brace from Camarda and a goal from Zeroli. With that victory, Italy qualified for the World Cup.