Italy World Cup 2026 squad: Gennaro Gattuso’s latest selection ahead of the World Cup qualifying play-offs

Gennaro Gattuso has made his squad selection as Italy aim to secure a spot at the World Cup in this month’s play-off games.

Italy are fighting for their spot at World Cup 2026, with the tournament squads starting to take shape – and the Azzurri are up against Northern Ireland, then, if victorious, will face either Wales or Bosnia and Herzegovina to secure qualification.

Gattuso’s side are looking to land one of just four spots from the 16 teams involved in this month’s World Cup play-off matches.

Italy finished second in their World Cup qualification group with 18 points, behind leaders Norway, who secured eight wins in eight.

In their head-to-head clashes, Norway first beat Italy 3-0 in Oslo, then prevailed again with a 4-1 victory in Milan.

Italy, winners of Euro 2021 after a closely fought penalty shoot-out against England in the final, have failed to qualify for the World Cup since 2014.

In their last appearance at the tournament, they exited in the group stage following two close losses to Costa Rica and Uruguay, and a 2-1 win against England.

Squad

Italy World Cup 2026 squad: The March selection

• GK: Elia Caprile (Cagliari)
• GK: Marco Carnesecchi (Atalanta)
• GK: Gianluigi Donnarumma (Manchester City)
• GK: Alex Meret (Napoli)
• DF: Alessandro Bastoni (Inter Milan)
• DF: Alessandro Buongiorno (Napoli)
• DF: Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal)
• DF: Andrea Cambiaso (Juventus)
• DF: Diego Coppola (Paris FC)
• DF: Federico Dimarco (Inter Milan)
• DF: Federico Gatti (Juventus)
• DF: Gianluca Mancini (Roma)
• DF: Marco Palestra (Cagliari)
• DF: Giorgio Scalvini (Atalanta)
• DF: Leonardo Spinazzola (Napoli)
• MF: Nicolo Barella (Inter Milan)
• MF: Bryan Cristante (Roma)
• MF: Davide Frattesi (Inter Milan)
• MF: Manuel Locatelli (Juventus)
• MF: Niccolo Pisilli (Roma)
• MF: Sandro Tonali (Newcastle)
• FW: Nicolo Cambiaghi (Bologna)
• FW: Pio Esposito (Inter Milan)
• FW: Moise Kean (Fiorentina)
• FW: Matteo Politano (Napoli)
• FW: Giacomo Raspadori (Atalanta)
• FW: Mateo Retegui (Al-Qadsiah)
• FW: Gianluca Scamacca (Atalanta)

Fixtures and results

Fixtures

• March 26: Italy vs Northern Ireland, New Balance Arena, Bergamo, Italy

Recent results

• November 16, 2025: Italy 1-4 Norway, San Siro, Milan, Italy
• November 11, 2025: Moldova 0-2 Italy, Stadionul Zimbru, Chisinau, Moldova,
• October 14, 2025: Italy 3-0 Israel, Bluenergy Stadium, Udine, Italy
• October 11, 2025: Estonia 1-3 Italy, A Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia
• September 8, 2025: Israel 4-5 Italy, Nagyerdei Stadion, Debrecen, Hungary
• September 5, 2025: Italy 5-0 Estonia, New Balance Arena, Bergamo, Italy
• June 9, 2025: Italy 2-0 Moldova, Mapei Stadiun, Reggio Emilia, Italy
• June 6, 2025: Norway 3-0 Italy, Ullevaal, Oslo Norway

Manager

Who is Italy's manager?

Gennaro Gattuso has managed the likes of Napoli, Fiorentina and Milan - recording 335 appearances for the latter during his playing career, where he won two Serie A titles and two Champions League trophies.

During his time as manager of the Rossoneri, he led the Italian giants to sixth and fifth-place finishes before departing the club by mutual consent.

After similarly short and disappointing stints with Fiorentina, Valencia, Marseille and Hajduk Split, Gattuso took the job as head coach of Italy in June 2025, replacing Luciano Spalletti.

Italy's Star Player

Who is Italy's star player?

It’s rare for a goalkeeper to be considered the star of any team, but Gianluigi Donnarumma is ranked at no.1 in FourFourTwo's list of the best goalkeepers in the world right now.

The 27-year-old won the Yashin Trophy in 2025, after a treble with PSG, before departing for Manchester City.

Donnarumma won the Player of the Tournament award at Euro 2020 when Italy emerged victorious, a first for a goalkeeper, proving he’s the crucial difference maker on the international stage for his country.

Best XI