In anticipation of March’s World Cup qualifying playoffs against North Macedonia and then potentially Portugal or Turkey, Mancini has named a squad of thirty-five for a special coaching camp at their Coverciano base.
Adana Demirspor forward Balotelli, who has thirty-six Italy caps, has not played for his national side since September 2018. Mancini, in his first match as manager in May 2018, had called Balotelli up for his first cap in over four years.
The 31-year-old has appeared for Italy at 2 major tournaments. At Euro 2012, his two goals attained a 2-1 triumph over Germany in the semifinal, whereas he was part of the Italy side that crashed out at the group stage of the 2014 World Cup.
Alongside Balotelli, Mancini has called up uncapped Lazio defender Luiz Felipe and Cagliari forward Joao Pedro, who are naturalised Brazilians.
Reigning European champions Italy are without star player Federico Chiesa for their crucial World Cup qualifiers after he was ruled out for the rest of the campaign following knee surgery.
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#Nazionale 🇮🇹
📋 Il Ct #Mancini convoca 35 #Azzurri per lo stage in programma dal 26 al 28 gennaio a #Coverciano
I dettagli 👉🏻 https://t.co/vD9kBSC5vT#VivoAzzurro pic.twitter.com/T3DbIK0PUi
— Nazionale Italiana ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (@Azzurri) January 24, 2022
