Targeting the Final Four. The final two games in the 2022 UEFA Nations League for the first team are fast approaching, with England (San Siro, Milan, 23 September - 20.45 CEST) and Hungary (Puskas Arena, Budapest, 26 September - 20.45 CEST) in the way in attempting to finish top of Group 3 in the A League, allowing access to the Final Four; something which was achieved in the last edition of the tournament. In third with 5 points after the first four games, the Azzurri are trailing Hungary (7) and Germany (6) and will have to watch out for the English (2), who currently occupy the final place in the group, which would condemn them to relegation to League B if they stayed there.

Head Caoch Roberto Mancini – who will join Valcareggi and Vicini in terms of number of games managed for the Azzurri after the England game (54, Lippi and Prandelli are at 56) – has called up 29 players, who will meet on Sunday 18 September at the Coverciano Federal Technical Centre. There are first call-ups to the national team for Lazio and Empoli goalkeepers Ivan Provedel and Guglielmo Vicario, the latter already being called up last May, asa reserve, and for Salernitana defender Pasquale Mazzocchi. Vincenzo Grifo, who was last called up for the friendly against San Marino in May 2021, will also return.

The group will leave for Milan on Thursday 22 September, where they will stay the day after the match against England, before travelling to Budapest on Sunday 25. They will eventually return to Italy during the night after the match against Hungary.

With the 2022 Political Elections, scheduled for Sunday 25 September, taking place at the same time as the camp, the procedure for allowing players and staff to vote will be evaluated in the coming days, while guaranteeing their participation in the match on 26 September against Hungary.

The current regulations do not allow votes to be made outside of the place of residence for people who are temporarily in another location, with the exception for strictly limited categories of people. The team programme, therefore, may be subject to change between Saturday 24 and Sunday 25, which will be clarified shortly.

ITALY vs. ENGLAND. There have been 29 previous matches between Italy and England, with the balance tipped in the Azzurri's favour: ten wins, eight losses and eleven draws, the last of which was the 0-0 in the first Nations League match. The team will play for the 60th time in Milan (only Rome has hosted more matches for the Azzurri, 62), where they have collected 37 wins, 19 draws and 3 defeats. The last one was against Spain in October 2021, the first defeat for the national team in San Siro, which ended an incredible unbeaten run spanning 93 years (the other two defeats in Milan date back to 1911 and 1925 in matches played at the Arena Civica and Velodromo Sempione). Only once has Italy vs. England been played in Milan, 83 years ago: it was on 13 May 1939, ending 2-2. For Italy, the victory drought at the Meazza has lasted 10 years: the last one came on October 16, 2012, 3-1 against Denmark, with five draws (with Germany twice, Croatia, Sweden and Portugal) and one defeat since.

HUNGARY vs. ITALY. It will be the 16th away match in Hungary for Italy and the 36th meeting with the Magyars: the head-to-head sees 17 victories (the last one in Cesena in the first match), nine draws and nine defeats. Considering only matches in Budapest, there is perfect parity: five wins for each side and five draws. In 1924, in the Hungarian capital, Italy suffered their worst-ever defeat: 7-1. With Marco Rossi in the Hungarian dugout, this will be Italy's 17th meeting against a team led by an Italian coach: Varrella and Leoni (San Marino), De Biasi (two) and Panucci (Albania), Zaccheroni (Japan), Ghedin (Malta, four times), Foni (Switzerland), and Trapattoni (Ireland, four times).

Squad list:

Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint Germain), Alex Meret (Napoli), Ivan Provedel (Lazio), Guglielmo Vicario (Empoli);

Defenders: Francesco Acerbi (Inter), Alessandro Bastoni (Inter), Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus), Giovanni Di Lorenzo (Napoli), Federico Dimarco (Inter), Emerson Palmieri (West Ham), Federico Gatti (Juventus), Luiz Felipe (Real Betis), Pasquale Mazzocchi (Salernitana), Rafael Toloi (Atalanta);

Midfielders: Nicolò Barella (Inter), Bryan Cristante (Roma), Jorginho (Chelsea), Lorenzo Pellegrini (Roma), Tommaso Pobega (Milan), Sandro Tonali (Milan), Marco Verratti (Paris Saint Germain);

Attackers: Matteo Cancellieri (Lazio), Wilfried Gnonto (Leeds), Vincenzo Grifo (Freiburg), Ciro Immobile (Lazio), Matteo Politano (Napoli), Giacomo Raspadori (Napoli), Gianluca Scamacca (West Ham), Alessio Zerbin (Napoli).