5 youngsters who could represent Italy in the 2018 FIFA World Cup

#2 Roberto Gagliardini - Inter (On loan from Atalanta)

Age: 23

Position: Central-midfielder

Gagliardini thrives in a box to box role

Much like Caldara, Roberto Gagliardini is one of those players who was a part of Atalanta’s surprising success last season. While he didn’t stay at the club till the end of the season thanks to a loan stint at Inter, he impressed enough to earn a national team debut under Gian Piero Ventura when he came on for an injured Daniele de Rossi.

A central midfielder by trade, Gagliardini thrives on playing a box to box role on the pitch and featured for the Azzurri side in the U20 World Cup in Korea, despite being 23 years old. This season, the Atalanta man has been used in the central midfield of a 4-2-3-1 formation by Luciano Spalletti, with Mattias Vecino’s presence allowing him the room to maraud forward.

With two of Italy’s veteran midfielders in De Rossi and Claudio Marchisio now aging, Gagliardini could be the man to lead the side forward along with Marco Verratti.