Official: Alphadjo Cisse included in Italy’s senior squad after success with Milan

By: Isak Möller

Alphadjo Cisse has earned a well-deserved call-up to Italy’s national team for the upcoming international break, set to represent the senior team for the first time.

While Milan’s start to the season has been so-so, there have been some positives to note. One of them is definitely Cisse, who has taken the Rossoneri world by storm after arriving in the summer, quickly proving that he’s not too inexperienced to have a key role.

In 12 appearances so far, eight of them from start, the attacking midfielder has bagged an impressive seven goals. Three of them came against RB Salzburg, when he got himself a perfect hat-trick (right foot, left foot, header).

As a result of his successful start to the season, Cisse has been called up by Roberto Mancini for international duty with Italy. It’s the first time that he has been included in the senior squad, after playing a key role with the U21 side for quite some time.

It’s massive news for the 20-year-old, who as explained above really has surprised everyone with his performances. It’s safe to say that his market value is already much higher than the €8m plus bonuses that Milan paid to Hellas Verona in January this year.

Before Thursday’s defeat to Ferencvaros, before the squad had been announced, Cisse was asked about potentially being included in the senior squad: “I’d be very happy if the call were to come. But I’m thinking about today and tomorrow will be another day,” he said.

Let’s see if he will get some playing time, but given that Mancini is keen on focusing on youth (the former Milan man Simone Lontani has also been called), the feeling is that he could.