A month and a half on from their European Championship triumph, the National Team returns to the pitch to resume their journey in the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, with the aim being to seal passage for Qatar 2022 and extend their run of 34 unbeaten matches, with the current world record held by Spain only 90 minutes away (35 unbeaten games between 2007 and 2009).

Thanks to the wins in the opening three matches played in March, the Azzurri are top of Group C, three points clear of Switzerland who are in second place but have played a game fewer. Indeed, the match with the Swiss (Basel, “St. Jacobs Park” Stadium, 5 September at 8.45 pm) is the one that could well decide the fate of the group, in a round of fixtures that also includes two other matches not to be underestimated: Those against Bulgaria (Florence, Stadio Artemio Franchi, 2 September at 20:45 CEST) and with Lithuania (Reggio Emilia, Stadio del Tricolore, 8 September at 20:45 CEST). For Italy, who then play in the Nations League Final Four in October in what will be a European Championship semi-final replay with Spain, and Belgium taking on France on the other side of the draw, the journey towards Qatar 2022 will end in November, with the return match against Switzerland taking place at the Olimpico in Rome (on the 12th) and a final trip to Belfast to face Northern Ireland (on the 15th).

For the first three matches of the new season Roberto Mancini has called up 34 players: 25 of the 26 Azzurri who became European Champions on 11 July at Wembley are present (the injured Spinazzola being the only absentee), while Nicolò Zaniolo returns to wear the national team jersey one year after his injury picked up last September during the Nations League match against the Netherlands. A first call-up to the senior National Team has also been given to Sassuolo striker Gianluca Scamacca.

The National team will meet on Sunday 29 August in Coverciano, where they will hold their first training session the following day, preceded by a press conference from the Head Coach. After the match with Lithuania, the Azzurri will leave for Basel on 4 September, the eve of the match against Switzerland. On 6 September they will make their last transfer from Basel to Reggio Emilia, where the third and final match with Lithuania is scheduled for 8 September at the ‘Citta del Tricolore’ stadium.

ITALY vs. BULGARIA. In the previous 20 encounters, Italy boast eleven wins (the most recent being a 2-0 win in Sofia in the return match), seven draws (the most recent a 2-2 draw in Sofia on 28 March 2015) and two defeats (the most recent a 2-1 loss in a friendly on 25/09/91). The most significant clash was dated July 13 1994, at the World Cup in the United States: Italy won 2-1 in the semi-finals with a brace from Roberto Baggio; the biggest victory was in 1966: 6-1 in Bologna. The top Azzurri goalscorer from the matches against Bulgaria is Roberto Baggio (four goals, two braces). Two important milestones for Azzurri goalkeepers came against Bulgaria: Zoff made his debut in '68 in Naples, and Buffon celebrated 150 matches with the National Team in 2015.

SWITZERLAND vs. ITALY. Switzerland are the opponents that the Azzurri have faced off against more time than anyone else in their history: 59 matches between 1911 and 2021, with the record clearly in Italy's favour, with 29 wins and 22 draws and only eight defeats. In the detailed comparison of all competitions, Italy are however at a disadvantage in the most important tournament, the World Cup: three games, with two Swiss victories in 1954 and an Italian victory in 1962; Switzerland are also ahead of us in the Olympics (2-1 in Paris 1924). Italy are ahead in other tournaments: 1/0/0 in European Championships, 1/1/0 in World Cup Qualifiers, 3/4/1 in European Championship Qualifiers, 8/4/0 in the European International Cup of Nations, 15/13/4 in friendlies. Italy haven’t lost to Switzerland for 28 years. The most recent meeting was the 3-0 win at Stadio Olimpico in Rome in the group stage of the European Championship.

ITALY vs. LITHUANIA. The balance clearly favours the Azzurri once again with Lithuania: Five wins and two draws. The first success was in April 1996: Zola's goal in Vilnius, then two 4-0 wins, in Reggio Emilia in November 1995 (Del Piero and Zola's hat-trick) and in Trieste in March 2001 (braces from Inzaghi and Del Piero). Then the success dated June 2007: 2-0 in Kaunas with a brace from Quagliarella. Two draws: 0-0 in the World Cup qualifiers in Kaunas on 1 September 2001, then 1-1 in the European Championship qualifiers on 2 September 2006 in Naples (Danilevicius' goal is the only goal conceded by Italy in all six matches). The last encounter ended 0-2 in the first leg in Vilnius.

Squad List

Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint Germain), Pierluigi Gollini (Tottenham), Alex Meret (Napoli), Salvatore Sirigu (Genoa);
Defenders: Francesco Acerbi (Lazio), Alessandro Bastoni (Inter), Cristiano Biraghi (Fiorentina), Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Giovanni Di Lorenzo (Napoli), Emerson Palmieri (Lione), Alessandro Florenzi (AC Milan), Manuel Lazzari (Lazio), Gianluca Mancini (Roma), Rafael Toloi (Atalanta);
Midfielders: Nicolò Barella (Inter), Gaetano Castrovilli (Fiorentina), Bryan Cristante (Roma), Frello Jorge Luiz Jorginho (Chelsea), Manuel Locatelli (Juventus), Lorenzo Pellegrini (Roma), Matteo Pessina (Atalanta), Stefano Sensi (Inter), Marco Verratti (Paris Saint Germain), Nicolò Zaniolo (Roma);
Forwards: Andrea Belotti (Torino), Domenico Berardi (Sassuolo), Federico Bernardeschi (Juventus), Federico Chiesa (Juventus), Ciro Immobile (Lazio), Lorenzo Insigne (Napoli), Moise Kean (Everton), Giacomo Raspadori (Sassuolo), Gianluca Scamacca (Sassuolo).

The schedule (all times CEST)

Sunday 29 August
Meeting around midnight at the Federation’s Technical Centre and carrying out of Covid tests.
Monday 30 August
13.45 –Head Coach’s press conference at Coverciano
17.30 – Training on the 'Vittorio Pozzo' pitch at Coverciano
Tuesday 31 August
13.45 – FIGC-LAPS Foundation press conference at Coverciano
14.00 – Player press conference at Coverciano
17.30 - Training on the 'Vittorio Pozzo' pitch at Coverciano
Wednesday 1 September
17.30 – Italy press conference at Coverciano
18.00 – Team training on the 'Vittorio Pozzo' pitch at Coverciano

19.30 – Bulgaria press conference at the Stadio Artemio Franchi in Florence
20.00 – Bulgaria training at Stadio Artemio Franchi (open for first 15 minutes)
Thursday 2 September
20.45 – ITALY vs. Bulgaria (Stadio Artemio Franchi in Florence). Media duties and return to Coverciano following the game.
Friday 3 September
11.30 – Training on the 'Vittorio Pozzo' pitch at Coverciano
Saturday 4 September
10.00 – Swiss press conference at St. Jacob Park in Basel
11.00 – Swiss training at the St. Jacob Park in Basel (open for first 15 minutes)
11.00 – Transfer Florence - Basel
17.30 – ITALY press conference at St. Jacob Park in Basel
18.00 – ITALY training at St. Jacob Park in Basel (open for first 15 minutes)
Sunday 5 September
20.45 – Switzerland vs. ITALY (St. Jacob Park). Media duties following the game
Monday 6 September
11.30 – Training at the C.S. Basel (closed)
18.00 – Transfer Basel - Reggio Emilia
Tuesday 7 September
16.45 – ITALY press conference at the 'Città del Tricolore' stadium
17.15 – ITALY training at the 'Città del Tricolore' stadium (open for first 15 minutes)
18.15 –Lithuania press conference at the ‘Città del Tricolore’ stadium
18.45 - Lithuania training at the 'Città del Tricolore' stadium (open for first 15 minutes)
Wednesday 8 September
20.45 – ITALY vs. Lithuania ('Città del Tricolore' stadium). Media duties after the match, then the return of players and staff to their respective clubs.

INFO: Access procedures for the Federation Technical Centre in Coverciano and the stadiums

Media access is not allowed to the training sessions in Coverciano. Footage of the first 15 minutes will be produced and distributed live by the FIGC (with technical costs borne by the applicant, info: m.reale@figc.it), to the holder of the audiovisual rights and to the other applicants at the end of the session. Access to the press conference is limited to a small number of journalists (the presence of operators and photographers is not required), with social distancing and masks obligatory; accredited participants will also be sent a link to watch it remotely (Zoom). The footage will in any case be produced and distributed live to the holder of the audiovisual rights and at the end of the event to the other applicants (with technical costs to be borne by the applicant, info: m.reale@figc.it). A selection of training and press conference photos will be made available to the media with a link on the figc.it website. Access to the Technical Centre in Coverciano, as well as to the stadiums in Florence and Reggio Emilia, is only allowed with a green pass or antigen test taken in the last 48 hours.