Balotelli named in Italy’s squad for first time since 2018

Balotelli returns to Italy national team

He now plays in Turkish league

Balotelli has scored 14 goals for Italy

Italian-born striker, Mario Balotelli has made a return to the Azurri’s national team for the first time since 2018 ahead of their FIFA World Cup playoff games in March.

The former Manchester City striker who has scored fourteen goals in thirty-six appearances hasn’t played under his former boss Roberto Mancini since September 2018, in a Nations League game against Poland.

Balotelli is one of 35 players named for a three-day training camp after scoring nine times in 21 appearances across all competitions this season, for his club Adana Demirspor in Turkey.

The 31-year-old Balotelli has performed well in Turkey this season making 21 appearances across all competitions, for a total of 1309 minutes.

In that time, he has scored nine goals and provided five assists, finding his footing for the first time in a long while.