Mateo Retegui is on the verge of completing a Serie A switch from Genoa to Atalanta, where he will be one of six Italy players hoping to cement themselves as permanent members of Luciano Spalletti’s international squad.
Retegui to become sixth Italy hopeful at Atalanta
Atalanta already had a strong unit of Italy internationals before agreeing a deal for Retegui, including fellow striker Gianluca Scamacca, who is, however, expected to miss at least six months of action following a serious cruciate ligament injury in a pre-season friendly against Parma on Sunday.
Atalanta have also bolstered their attacking ranks with the signing of 19-time Italy international Nicolo Zaniolo, who joined after a season on loan in the Premier League with Aston Villa.
Giorgio Scalvini, who is also nursing an ACL injury, had eight international caps to his name before picking up an injury just before EURO 2024.
There will be two more Italy hopefuls playing in Bergamo next season, in promising yong goalkeeper Marco Carnesecchi, who earned his first call-up to the senior Azzurri squad under Roberto Mancini back in 2022.
Left-wing-back Matteo Ruggeri is also a hopeful for his first senior cap heading into the 2024-25 season. He had reportedly been considered for selection before EURO 2024, but the Europa League winner was ultimately left out by CT Spalletti.