After Sandro Tonali and Nicolo Zaniolo were sent home from the Italy team on Friday due to an investigation into possible violations of gambling laws, AS Roma attacker Stephan El Shaarawy was called up to join the Italy team.
The FIGC has confirmed that El Shaarawy will be available for the early training session on Friday and is currently on his way to meet the rest of his colleagues at the national training centre in Coverciano, which is located near Florence.
Although El Shaarawy has played for the Azzurri 29 times and has scored six goals for them, he has not participated in a game since March of 2021.
The 30-year-old striker has not scored in any of his last eight matches across all competitions, which has led to him being demoted to the role of a substitute at Roma following the arrival of Romelu Lukaku on loan from Chelsea. Lukaku is a Belgian international player.
The unexpected comeback of the athlete who formerly played for AC Milan and Shanghai Shenhua was made possible because Italian prosecutors have opened an inquiry into allegations of betting on sporting events.
The police interrogated three players, including Tonali, who went from AC Milan to Newcastle this summer, and Zaniolo, who moved from Roma to Aston Villa in July.
Thursday was the day that detectives went to Tonali and Zaniolo’s home in Coverciano to inform them that they were the subjects of an inquiry and to interview them.
Both players will be unavailable for Italy’s Euro 2024 qualifying matches against Malta and England. The European champions are currently in second place in Group C but are tied with Ukraine and North Macedonia on seven points each.
When Newcastle purchased Tonali from AC Milan in the summer for a rumoured £60 million (or $73 million), he became the most expensive Italian footballer ever. Tonali, who is 23 years old and has played 15 times for his country, became the most expensive player in the world.
Zaniolo, who also has 15 caps for Italy’s national team, was once the emerging young star of Italian football. However, two serious knee injuries and a falling out with Jose Mourinho at Roma led to his being shipped off to Galatasaray, who loaned him to Villa in August. Zaniolo also has 15 caps for Italy’s national team.