Nicolo Zaniolo responded to rumours in the Italian press that he would not receive an Azzurri call-up for the upcoming friendlies against Albania and Austria.
Corriere dello Sport reported this morning that Roberto Mancini was unlikely to include the Roma forward in his squad for the two scheduled friendlies against Albania and Austria, which kick off on November 16 and November 20 respectively. Zaniolo has not made an appearance for Italy since their 3-2 win over Turkey back in March.
Writing on his Instagram story, Zaniolo responded to the media reports regarding his exclusion from the Azzurri squad.
“In recent weeks, I’ve had to deal with a blow suffered in Verona and a consequent haematoma that did not allow me to be 100% fit.
“Despite this, I’ve always tried to grit my teeth and make myself available to the coach and my teammates. In the meantime, I was sorry to read that I would not be available for the national team.
“As always, I will respect coach Mancini’s choices, but I never thought of saving myself and not responding to a possible call-up. A hug.”
The 23-year-old Zaniolo has not had the best of seasons in the Italian capital under Jose Mourinho, only scoring one goal in 10 Serie A appearances. The Portuguese coach has defended the Italian forward when speaking to the media but it’s clear that the player is frustrated on the pitch, struggling to show his best.
he;s right, he needs to be called up to italy, hes been playing fine, cant wait his to play with chiesa
playing for italy with the two and even with old lady 🙂
He only scored once in a blue moon. Grifo or Zaccagni, or even Kean, is miles better than him. At least they can play as a team.
Come to Milan
Zaniolo is an outstanding who needs encouragement and the opportunity to play. He is destined to become Italy’s best player.
Far too much negativity around him. His Roma coach admires him, its a pity other coaches are not as intelligent.