Mario Balotelli has returned to the Italy team, more than three years after his last appearance for the Azzurri.
The striker was included to Italy coach Roberto Mancini’s 35-man team for a three-day training camp this week, ahead of the World Cup playoffs in March.
In September 2018, Balotelli, 31, made his last of 36 international appearances in a 1-1 tie against Poland in the Nations League.
Balotelli now plays for Adana Demirspor in Turkey, where he has eight goals in 19 league games.
Mancini has worked with Balotelli at Inter Milan and Manchester City, and Italy has lacked a regular striker in recent years, with Ciro Immobile and Andrea Belotti unable to carry their club form to the international stage.
Between Wednesday and Friday, the training camp will take place. Goalkeeper Marco Carnesecchi, defenders Luiz Felipe and Giorgio Scalvini, midfielders Nicol Fagioli, Davide Frattesi, and Samuele Ricci, and striker Joo Pedro all got their first international call-ups.
On March 24, European champion Italy will face North Macedonia in the World Cup qualification playoffs. The winner goes to the next round, which will be held in Portugal or Turkey five days later.