Italy call-up comes before Serie A debut: 'What he does, even AI cannot'

Italy coach Mancini has called up 17-year-old Como midfielder Riccardo Cassano for the upcoming international break, before he has made his Serie A debut.

Italy coach Roberto Mancini has selected 17-year-old Riccardo Cassano for the upcoming international fixtures, despite the midfielder not yet having made his professional debut for Como. Cassano will train with Italy's senior squad this week before joining the Under-18 side midway through the international break, meaning he could become an Italy international before playing a Serie A match.

Mancini has a track record of identifying young talent early. In September 2018, he called up Nicolò Zaniolo for matches against Poland and Portugal before the AS Roma player had made his Serie A debut; Zaniolo went on to earn 55 caps. Two months later, Mancini did the same with Brescia midfielder Sandro Tonali, who was 18 at the time.

Cassano, listed among The Guardian's 60 greatest young talents, plays as a deep-lying playmaker. Como manager Cesc Fàbregas has publicly praised him and drawn comparisons to Andrea Pirlo and Sergio Busquets.

Italian media outlets noted his composure, tactical intelligence and ability to read the game, with one outlet describing his decision-making as so sophisticated that "even AI could not make" the same real-time analysis of variables.