Fans were surprised to see the Italian lineup: we don't recognize the players

2026-05-26 23:36 © AP

The interim coach of the Italian national team, Silvio Baldini, decided to experiment with the player roster.

Before friendly matches against Luxembourg and Greece, the strategist thought to call not the stars, but almost unknown footballers.

The specialist's choice surprised even the Italian fans, who laid comments online about S. Baldini's decision to significantly rejuvenate the squad – now the team's average age will be just 20.6 years.

The only player better known to the fans is goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Italy's squad:

Goalkeepers: Giovanni Daffara (Avellino), Gianluigi Donnarumma (Manchester City), Lorenzo Palmisani (Frosinone);

Defenders: Honest Ahanor (Atalanta), Davide Bartesaghi (Milan), Fabio Chiarodia (Borussia Monchengladbach), Pietro Comuzzo (Fiorentina), Costantino Favasuli (Catanzaro), Filippo Mane (Borussia Dortmund), Marco Palestra (Cagliari), Luca Reggiani (Borussia Dortmund);

Midfielders: Matteo Dagasso (Venezia), Giacomo Faticanti (Juventus), Luca Lipani (Sassuolo), Cher Ndour (Fiorentina), Niccolo Pisilli (Roma), Lorenzo Venturino (Roma);

Forwards: Francesco Camarda (Lecce), Luigi Cherubini (Sampdoria), Jeff Ekhator (Genoa), Francesco Pio Esposito (Inter), Seydou Fini (Frosinone), Samuele Inacio (Borussia Dortmund), Luca Koleosho (Paris FC).