Who is Riccardo Cassano, the 17-year-old from Como called up by Roberto Mancini?

Riccardo Cassano was Roberto Mancini’s most surprising call-up ahead of the final two matches of the Nations League group stage. The head coach decided to call up the promising young player from Como, who has yet to make his first-team debut.

Born in 2009, Cassano is a central midfielder who can also play as a playmaker; he has great vision and excellent ball control. Having come up through the youth ranks of the Como club, the 17-year-old currently plays for the Under-20 team and has not yet made his Serie A debut under Cesc Fàbregas.

He has already caught the attention of scouts abroad, and The Guardian has named him among the top 60 talents born in 2009. Mancini wants to see him in person to assess his potential. Cassano made his debut with Italy’s Under-18 team in September.

For Cassano, however, this will be a high-intensity training camp under the watchful eye of the head coach: his stay in Coverciano will in fact be limited to just a few days before he joins the Under-18 squad, which is set to compete in the World Cup in Qatar starting November 19. Simone Lontani of Parma will follow the same path, joining the Under-19 team as they compete in the European Championship qualifiers scheduled to take place in the Marche region.

The national team will gather Sunday evening at Coverciano to prepare for matches against France (Thursday, November 12, at San Siro) and Belgium (Sunday, November 15, in Brussels). Cassano isn’t the only new face from Como: Mattia Liberali has also been called up for the first time, while Samuele Ricci is among the midfielders already on the 31-man roster. The other two first-time call-ups are Simone Lontani and Alphadjo Cissé of Milan, while Nicolò Zaniolo and Marco Palestra are among those returning to the squad.