Italy suffered a couple of injury setbacks as Lorenzo Pellegrini and Matteo Politano left the camp on Tuesday ahead of the European champions' Nations League match with England.
Midfielder Pellegrini played on with thigh pain during Roma's 1-0 home defeat to Atalanta at the weekend and he was sent home after tests at Italy's Coverciano training centre.
Politano was substituted with a sprained ankle shortly after scoring in Napoli's win over title rivals AC Milan on Sunday and manager Roberto Mancini decided not to risk further aggravating the injury. The pair drop out a day after Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Marco Verratti was ruled out with a calf injury.
Mancini has called up Sassuolo's Davide Frattesi, Sampdoria forward Manolo Gabbiadini and youngster Salvatore Esposito, who plays for SPAL in Serie B.
Italy host England at the San Siro on Friday and then travel to Hungary three days later with a chance of qualifying for the finals in March. Italy sit third on five points, two behind Hungary and three ahead of winless England with two matches remaining. Whoever wins the group makes it through to the final four, while the bottom team will be relegated to League B.
Meanwhile, England midfielder Kalvin Phillips withdrew from the national squad on Tuesday because of a shoulder injury. As a result, Liverpool midfielder Jordan Henderson was added to the England squad for their Nations League matches against Italy and Germany. Henderson was not part of manager Gareth Southgate's initial squad after missing the Reds' last three games in all competitions due to a hamstring injury but the club said he was recovering well.
"Henderson has made good progress in his recovery from a hamstring problem and is set to return to full training this week," Liverpool said in a statement.
The 32-year-old has made one international appearance this year in a 2-1 friendly win over Switzerland in March. After the match against Italy, England host Germany at Wembley three days later.
-
England's Jack Grealish during training for the Nations League on Tuesday, September 20, 2022. Reuters -
England's Jordan Henderson during training for the Nations League. Reuters -
England's Jack Grealish during training at St. George's Park. Reuters -
Ivan Toney during England's training session at St George's Park. England will play Italy in the Nations League on Friday. Getty -
Declan Rice during England's training session at St George's Park. Getty -
Ivan Toney is seen with a black armband as a mark of respect to Queen Elizabeth during a training session at St George's Park on Tuesday. Getty -
Reece James and Tammy Abraham during training. Reuters -
Harry Kane during training at St. George's Park. PA -
England's Conor Coady at a training session on Tuesday. PA -
Eric Dier and Reece James during training. PA -
Jordan Henderson upon joining the England team. PA -
England's Ivan Toney during a training session at St. George's Park. PA -
Kyle Walker during England's training session. Getty -
England's Jude Bellingham during training. Reuters -
Reece James, Eric Dier, Tammy Abraham and Ben Chilwell take part in England's training session. Getty -
England train for their Nations League match against Italy. Getty
