Long-Awaited Chiesa Return to Italy Squad Lasts One Day | OneFootball

Federico Chiesa answered Italy’s call-ups for the World Cup playoffs after two years, but he quickly headed back to Liverpool after checking in at the Coverciano training center. The winger is dealing with a lingering injury, and coach Gennaro Gattuso didn’t insist to avoid worse problems.

According to La Repubblica, the former Juventus star beat out more in-form players like Nicolò Zaniolo and Riccardo Orsolini because the Azzurri boss had been in touch consistently since taking over. Plus, he liked that the attacker made the trip to attend a meeting with all the Premier League representatives in London shortly after he was appointed.

On the other hand, Chiesa isn’t 100 percent because of a sore old scar, and he swiftly withdrew. Nicolò Cambiaghi is taking his place. The Azzurri staff is optimistic that all the banged-up players will push through their niggles, Sky reports. Alessandro Bastoni has missed the last two games due to an ankle knock, Gianluca Mancini left early versus Lecce due to a calf ailment, and Riccardo Calafiori isn’t in tip-top shape either. Giorgio Scalvini would fill in if needed. Sandro Tonali will be a late call for the Northern Ireland clash because of a groin problem that sidelined him over the weekend.

Our Take on Chiesa

He’s the most talented of the lot, but it’s time to move on until he departs Liverpool and resumes being a regular, which should have probably happened last summer already and surely in January. Cambiaghi isn’t in his greatest moment, but it appears Gattuso just wanted one more versatile and energetic contributor, while others would have required a large role and some tactical tweaks to be useful.