Report: Donnarumma will lead youthful Italy side into June friendlies under Baldini | OneFootball

Wednesday’s reports claim that Gianluigi Donnarumma has made himself available to interim Italy head coach Silvio Baldini for the upcoming friendly fixtures in June and that the Azzurri captain will lead a youthful side that features a lot of the current U21 squad.

Gazzetta: Donnarumma to captain youthful Italy side into June friendlies

Baldini was called in as the interim replacement for Gennaro Gattuso, who resigned from his position as Italy head coach following the failure to overcome Bosnia and Herzegovina in the World Cup play-off final at the end of March.

The U21s coach will step up to the senior side for Italy’s friendlies against Luxembourg and Greece in June.

With Italy out of the World Cup before it has even begun, there is unsurprisingly little appetite for the friendlies in June, but according to reports from La Gazzetta dello Sport, these are still obligatory due to TV rights deals.

UDINE – OCTOBER 14: Gianluigi Donnarumma looks on during the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifier match against Israel at Stadio Friuli on October 14, 2025 in Udine. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

La Gazzetta dello Sport suggests that many of Italy’s big names, including the likes of Sandro Tonali, Alessandro Bastoni, Manuel Locatelli and Moise Kean are likely to stay at home for the upcoming June friendlies and that Baldini is likely to bring a lot of his current U21 squad with him.

Captain Donnarumma is still expected to lead the team into June’s friendlies, though. La Gazzetta dello Sport claims that he recently spoke to Baldini over the phone and made himself available to play.

The Pink Paper suggests that Baldini will call up some of Italy’s young, established talents, such as Pio Esposito, Marco Palestra and Nicolo Pisilli.

EMPOLI – MARCH 26: Jeff Ekhator of the U21s celebrates after scoring the team’s third goal with Michael Kayode and Luca Kaleosho during the UEFA Under 21 EURO Qualifier match against North Macedonia U21 at Stadio Carlo Castellani on March 26, 2026 in Empoli. (Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images)

There could also be call-ups for a number of Italy’s U21 stars, including the likes of Pietro Comuzzo, Michael Kayode, Fabio Chiarodia, Davide Bartesaghi, Honest Ahanor, Cher Ndour, Luca Lipani, Luka Koleosho and Jeff Ekhator.