Italy named their 30-man provisional squad for the Euros on Monday.
Marco Verratti and Claudio Marchisio were two of the big names missing - both due to injury.
Two of the most notable names omitted were Andrea Pirlo and Sebastian Giovinco - both currently play in the MLS. Pirlo with New York City FC and Giovinco with Toronto FC. The possibility of Pirlo not traveling to France this summer had been flagged previously. He is 37 after all, but still, with the injuries to Verratti and Marchisio, you would have thought he was in with a shout. Also, had he been included, Pirlo's 13 international goals would have made him the second top scorer in Conte's squad.
Giovinco's omission is also surprising. He's only 29 and has been prolific since his move to the US.
It turns out that where he plays is the main issue for Antonio Conte. The manager of Ireland's Group E opponents does not think much of the North American league.
I spoke to Andrea, I needed to hear from him and we sent people to the US.
However, we’ve made other choices and you have to accept them and deal with the consequences. Nothing was left to chance.
We evaluated him and Giovinco, it’s normal that if you choose to go and play there then you can pay the consequences in footballing terms.
We evaluated them technically, we didn’t leave anything to chance. Anyone who thinks otherwise is wrong, we went everywhere to have clear and precise ideas.
I picked the 30 who I think will give me the most guarantees.
Of course, Martin O'Neill has a much different view when it comes to MLS players. Both Robbie Keane and Kevin Doyle were included in his 35-man squad. The former is almost certain to be part of the final 23.
