Chelsea’s Emerson Palmieri will miss Roberto Mancini’s first games in charge of Italy with injury, reports Italian outlet Calciomercato.
Born in Brazil, he became eligible for Italy in 2017 when he gained citizenship, but he is yet to appear for the national side.
Injury has hampered him for the past year. He suffered a ligament injury in his knee in May of last year while playing for Roma, keeping him out until mid-December.
Even then, he has struggled to find fitness, making just seven appearances since signing for the Blues in January in a deal worth around £17.5 million.
He was called up for the Italy squad for a friendly with San Marino at the end of last season, but the knee injury kept him from making his debut.
The 23-year-old will want to prove his fitness if he is to make more of an impact at Stamford Bridge next season, so he will need to have a few injury free months to hit the ground running.
He will not be replaced in Mancini’s squad.
