The Red Devils will play against Italy in Brussels next Thursday and against Israel three days later in Budapest. Romelu Lukaku is back in the selection. Roméo Lavia is also celebrating his return after an absence of more than a year and a half due to persistent injuries.
Club Brugge revelation Joaquin Seys is the only newcomer. As announced, Kevin De Bruyne will not be there, nor will Youri Tielemans. The Aston Villa midfielder is struggling with a knee injury, according to the national coach.
Tedesco announced in October that De Bruyne would no longer play for the Devils this year. The playmaker celebrated his return to Manchester City in the Champions League on Tuesday after a thigh injury, but indicated to the national coach that he wants extra time to take care of his body. That was also the case for Lukaku during the previous international break. The Devils’ all-time top scorer has not been present since the European Championship, officially to focus on his integration at his new club Napoli, but in a podcast by Friends of Sports he confirmed that “the fire is not burning for a while”.
When asked whether Tedesco had to convince his striker to return, the answer is clear: “No, I didn’t have to convince him at all. I never do that, by the way. It’s actually an honor for the player. Lukaku is extremely motivated to be back.”
For Lavia it has been since March 2023 that he was there again. The European Championship qualifier in Sweden and the friendly match in Germany were the first two matches with Tedesco as national coach, a few months after the painful elimination in the group stage at the World Cup in Qatar. Lavia immediately made a good impression in central midfield, but subsequently struggled from one injury to another. As a result, he was not present at the European Championships in Germany last summer.
Related News :