OMM Newsroom
Sampdoria forward Lorenzo Mezzotero’s call-up to Azerbaijan’s national team has prompted discussion in Italian sports media. The 18-year-old scored the first goal of his professional career against Virtus Entella and had previously made three appearances for Azerbaijan’s under-21 team.
Tommaso Maschio, a journalist for TuttoMercatoWeb, wrote in a headline that Azerbaijan “wasted no time and got ahead of Italy.” Giulio Piras of Chiamarsi Bomber noted that Italy could risk losing a talent born in 2008. Elia Serra of Samp News 24 said the situation raised questions about whether young players with dual citizenship are being recruited in time.
FIFA rules
Maria Floris, another journalist at the same outlet, described the call-up as a sign of Mezzotero’s development. Marco Grassini of Club Doria 46 presented it as a reward for the player’s performances.
The call-up does not mean the player has made a definitive choice to represent Azerbaijan. Under FIFA rules, a player who has made no more than three appearances for a senior national team may, under certain conditions, represent another team. The player must have made their last official appearance before turning 21, at least three years must have passed since that match, and they must not have played in the final tournament of a world or continental championship. Four or more appearances, at least one of them official, rule out this switch. Under-21 appearances do not count toward the limit.
Filippo Vincenti of Diario del Web stressed that a call-up does not necessarily mean the player will take part in a match. Azerbaijan will face Liechtenstein away in the Nations League on November 13 and play a friendly against Andorra on November 16.
