A month after the announcement of Houssem Aouar, eager to wear the jersey of Algeria, we thought that articles were going to burst everywhere to announce a forcing of the Algerian Football Federation (FAF) with another Franco- Algerian from OL, Rayan Cherki. But surprise this Tuesday, the daily La Repubblica indicates that the Lyon attacking midfielder would also be tracked… by the Italian selection.
The 19-year-old player, who is emerging this season in Ligue 1 (3 goals and 5 assists) and who is about to play the Euro Espoirs in June with the Blueberries, would indeed have a grandfather from Puglia, region of southern Italy. This would have pushed Roberto Mancini to consider summoning the young Lyonnais.
After all, last month the coach of the Nazionale surprised by calling CA Tigre’s Argentinian striker Mateo Retegui for the first time during the opening of the Euro 2024 qualifiers. Possessing an Italian passport due to origins sicilians of his grandfather, the 23-year-old was stunning for his first steps with the Italian selection (2 goals against England and Malta), all without speaking a word of Italian.