12 players from Pioli’s squad will be in action with their respective national teams in this upcoming break.
After beating Sampdoria and Cagliari 1-0 and 4-1 respectively at the start of the Serie A campaign, it’s time for the first international break of the season.
12 Milan players will be in action for 9 different sides (7 countries). All players will be fighting in World Cup qualifiers with plenty to play for in the break.
From the new signings that arrived this summer, Mike Maignan, Alessandro Florenzi and Fodé Ballo-Touré have been called up by their countries. Mike is joined by Theo Hernández in the squad of World Champions France, while Davide Calabria got called up for the EURO 2020 winners Italy of Roberto Mancini.
Alexis Saelemaekers got called up by Belgium while Ismaël Bennacer, Rade Krunić and Simon Kjær will also represent their countries. Franck Kessié was called up by Cote d’Ivoire but he will not join them in this break as he is still recovering from an injury. Pierre Kalulu, Sandro Tonali and Alessandro Plizzari will all be in action in the Under 21 EURO 2023 Qualifiers in this upcoming national break.
The full list of called-up players and their matches with dates and times is below:
| National Team | Player/s called-up | Matches |
|---|---|---|
| Algeria | Ismaël Bennacer | World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Algeria-Djibouti (Blida, September 2nd 2021, Stade Mustapha Tchaker, 21:00 CET) World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Burkina Faso-Algeria (Marrakesh, September 7th 2021, Stade de Marrakech, 21:00 CET) |
| Belgium | Alexis Saelemaekers | World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Estonia-Belgium (Tallinn, September 2nd 2021, A. Le Coq Arena, 20:45 CET) World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Belgium-Czech Republic (Brussels, September 5th 2021, King Baudouin Stadium, 20:45 CET) World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Belarus-Belgium (Kazan, September 8th 2021, Kazan Central Stadium, 20:45 CET) |
| Bosnia and Herzegovin | Rade Krunić | World Cup 2022 Qualifier: France-Bosnia and Herzegovina (Strasbourg, September 1st 2021, Stade de la Meinau, 20:45 CET) World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Bosnia and Herzegovina-Kuwait (Zenica, September 4th 2021, Bilino Polje, 20:45 CET) World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Bosnia and Herzegovina-Kazakhstan (Zenica, September 4th 2021, Bilino Polje, 20:45 CET) |
| Denmark | Simon Kjær | World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Denmark-Scotland (Copenhagen, September 1st, Parken Stadium, 20:45 CET) World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Faroe Islands-Denmark (Tórshavn, September 4th, Tórsvøllur, 20:45 CET) World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Denmark-Israel (Copenhagen, September 7th, Parken Stadium, 20:45 CET) |
| France | Mike Maignan Theo Hernández | World Cup 2022 Qualifier: France-Bosnia and Herzegovina (Strasbourg, September 1st 2021, Stade de la Meinau, 20:45 CET) World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Ukraine-France (Kyiv, September 4th 2021, NSC Olimpiyskiy, 20:45 CET) World Cup 2022 Qualifier: France-Finland (Lyon, September 7th 2021, Parc Olympique Lyonnais, 20:45 CET) |
| Italy | Alessandro Florenzi Davide Calabria | World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Italy-Bulgaria (Florence, September 2nd 2021, Stadio Artemio Franchi, 20:45 CET) World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Switzerland-Italy (Basel, September 5th 2021, St. Jakob-Park, 20:45 CET) World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Italy-Lithuania (Reggio Emilia, September 8th 2021, Stadio Città del Tricolore, 20:45 CET) |
| Senegal | Fodé Ballo-Touré | World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Senegal-Togo (Thiès, September 1st 2021, Stade Lat Dior, 18:00 CET) World Cup 2022 Qualifier: Congo-Senegal (Brazzaville, September 7th 2021, Stade Alphonse Massemba-Débat, 18:00 CET) |
| France U21 | Pierre Kalulu | U21 EURO 2023 Qualifier: France U21-North Macedonia U21 (Le Mans, September 2nd 2021, MMArena, 18:30 CET) U21 EURO 2023 Qualifier: Faroe Islands U21-France U21 ( Toftir, September 6th 2021, Toftir Stadium, 18:30 CET) |
| Italy U21 | Alessandro Plizzari Sandro Tonali | U21 EURO 2023 Qualifier: Italy U21-Luxembourg U21 (Empoli, September 3rd 2021, Stadio Carlo Castellani , 17:30 CET) U21 EURO 2023 Qualifier: Italy U21-Montenegro U21 (Vicenza, September 7th 2021, Stadio Romeo Menti, 17:30 CET) |
Glad that Theo is finally getting his call up!