This afternoon, the Azzurri will hold their final training session at Coverciano before their departure for Wolverhampton tomorrow morning. Then, on Saturday, Mancini’s men will come up against an England side they beat on penalties at Wembley to become European Champions eleven months ago. No trophy is at stake this time around, but Italy will be looking to add three points to their tally in Group 3 of the Nations League. Following their victory over Hungary, the Azzurri sit top, while Southgate’s side are propping up the group with a solidary point that they earned thanks to Harry Kane’s late penalty in Germany.

With many players having returned home – from Insigne and Jorginho through to Bonucci, Belotti and now Cristiano Biraghi – a young and ambitious Azzurri side are working hard at the Federal Technical Centre, where Gatti, Scalvini, Esposito and Cancellieri all spoke to the press today. The two defenders (Gatti and Scalvini), the midfielder (Esposito) and the striker (Cancellieri) want to repay the faith that has been shown in them by Roberto Mancini and be involved in the senior setup for many years to come. Out of this quartet, the only player to have taken to the field for the National Team is Matteo Cancellieri, who entered the fray late on against Germany last Saturday: “My debut was an astounding feeling,” said the 20-year-old. “I was initially involved in the training camp with more than 50 others and then I found myself out there on the pitch. It was incredible. The Coach has been brave enough to send out youngsters, and I hope that this example leads to change. Doing well here represents a great starting point.”

Cancellieri hasn’t had much playing time at Verona, also because of the Gialloblù’s 3-5-2 system: “The fact that I’ve had to adapt to a role that isn’t my first choice has been helpful: I’ve learnt new things playing in a five-man midfield. However, more experienced players have played more. I’ve just had my first season in Serie A after stepping up from the Primavera. I spent eleven years in Roma’s youth setup before becoming a youth player for Verona and then progressing to the first team. I’m happy with what I’ve managed to achieve. Of course, I hope to play more and more. The aim is to do what I did in the season just gone but get more minutes under my belt.”

After making his Serie A debut in October, Giorgio Scalvini started to become an increasingly important figure for Gasperini’s Atalanta, where he’s also played in midfield when necessary. Born in 2003, he stands at 1.94m and is good with his feet, with some having compared him to Alessandro Bastoni, who also developed at La Dea: “Having had the opportunity to play consistently in the second half of the season was very important: I gained an understanding of the level, pace and intensity of the league. It’s a fantastic feeling to be here. At club level, the coach played me in both defence and midfield, and I feel comfortable in both roles. While I’m more of a defender, I also like playing in the middle of the park.” Gasperini and Mancini both think he’s suited to a midfield role: “They said this to me and pointed to the data, too. The Head Coach isn’t afraid to play young players and give them minutes on the pitch. What has struck me most is that in every training session he’s always involved us, and he told us right from the beginning that we’re the future for the defence but can also play our part now.” Gnonto recently underwent the dreaded ritual of initiation for new players as he was asked to sing ‘Musica leggerissima’, the song sung by Colapesce and Dimartino during last year’s Sanremo music festival: “Willy and I have known each other since we were ten years old, I was so pleased he got his debut.”

He still needs to make a Serie A appearance, but Federico Gatti’s dream right now is to make his debut for the Azzurri, just like Alessio Zerbin, his club teammate, did on Tuesday in Cesena. Bought by Juventus after a scintillating season at Frosinone, he, like Scalvini, has physicality (1.90m tall) and is good on the ball after previously playing in midfield. Gatti isn’t afraid of hard work: only six years ago he was waking up at four in the morning to go and work at the open markets, and he used to work as a bricklayer and joiner, too. If Scalvini is compared to Bastoni, then Gatti, with the Juventus and National Team links, is seemingly the heir to a certain Giorgio Chiellini: “I have made lots of sacrifices to get to this position, and I won’t forget them,” he confirmed. “I have done a bit of everything, and fortunately football has gone well. It was a really important season for me. I’m training here with players who have heaps of international experience, it’s a rather unique feeling. I’ve really needed these weeks of training to get a taste of the quality of Serie A, the speed and intensity changes so much. There’s so much more quality, I’ll do everything to make sure I’m ready.” This is exactly what he wants to prove to Head Coach Mancini: “He’s happy to give young players a chance without thinking too long or hard about it. He’s vital for us.”

Salvatore Esposito has football in his blood. His father, Agostino, played for Juve Stabia; his brother Sebastiano, a player for FC Basel, is with the U21s, and his youngest brother, Francesco Pio, is part of Inter’s youth system. “We were lucky we had a small pitch next to our home and this really helped us. Who is the best between us? The youngest, you always say the youngest, right…..” The 21-year old SPAL midfielder, whose idol has always been Daniele De Rossi, chose to go out and play in Serie C rather than take the Primavera route: “I felt the need to play, learning about the sacrifices and daily work required to be a professional footballer. In the youth teams, you are pampered and looked after more, whilst going out and getting experience builds and develops you in a different way; it’s very formative.” Having reached the first-team squad, he can now study from close quarters the champions he recently admired on TV: “In the first two days, I got to watch Jorginho, who is formidable. There’s also Cristante and the other midfielders. For me, it’s just a really proud moment to be here at Coverciano, and I just want to learn as much as possible from these players. I hope to make my debut, I would be the happiest man on Earth; however, I’m not expecting anything.” Meanwhile, he is grateful to Roberto Mancini: “We’re really fortunate to have a Head Coach like him, he’s the one who has put a focus on youth and this should ring the alarm bells because there aren’t enough youngsters playing in Serie A. The most important thing for a young player is to be given trust, being free to make mistakes is essential.”