Mancini's New Italy and the Zoma Decision
Roberto Mancini is back in the Italy dugout and the first big call of his second reign may already be staring him in the face: Mohamed Ali Zoma.
The 22-year-old 1. FC Nürnberg winger, born and raised in Merate, is suddenly at the centre of a tug of war that stretches from Lombardy to West Africa and back to Coverciano. Italy’s extra-long Nations League window in September and October – two weeks, four games, against Belgium, Turkiye, France and Turkiye again – could be where that battle is settled.
This isn’t just another squad list. It’s a reset.
Italy are still nursing the bruises from a brutal calendar year that ended without a ticket to the 2026 World Cup. Gennaro Gattuso is gone, Mancini has been recalled as CT, and the Azzurri need both a new direction and a jolt of energy. That combination almost always leads to one thing: opportunity for new blood.
Zoma is exactly the type of player who forces a national coach into a decision.
Eligible for Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast through his parents, he has yet to be tied down at senior level. Every goal he scores in Germany, every scouting report that lands on Mancini’s desk, pushes Italy closer to a now-or-never moment.
The numbers explain why his name will not go away. After coming through at AlbinoLeffe, where he featured for both the youth and senior sides in Serie C, Zoma moved to Nürnberg last summer in a €1.5m deal. It already looks like a bargain that belongs in a different bracket.
Nineteen goal involvements in the 2. Bundesliga last season – 14 goals and five assists from 29 appearances – turned him from a promising winger into a headline act. He has started 2026-27 as if insulted by the idea of a sophomore slump: five goals in his first five league games, the kind of form that makes national team coaches pick up the phone.
Mancini did exactly that.
“It’s true, Roberto Mancini and I have spoken. He said that he is keeping an eye on me and that I should keep going like this, and then we’ll see,” Zoma told Sky, confirming direct contact with the Italy boss. No promises, no guarantees, but a very clear signal: he is firmly on the radar.
Clubs have noticed too. Sky Sport DE’s Florian Plettenberg reported concrete interest in the winger towards the end of the summer transfer window. Nürnberg’s response was blunt. They refused to cash in, holding their ground and reportedly slapping a €20m valuation on a player they see as central to their plans.
That stance only underlines how quickly Zoma’s stock has risen. Twelve months ago he was a shrewd pick-up from Serie C. Now he is a €20m asset, a Nations League candidate, and a potential cornerstone of Italy’s next attacking generation.
Inside Coverciano, the debate is straightforward but urgent. Italy cannot afford to lose talented dual nationals at a time when the pool of elite forwards remains thin. Zoma’s pace, direct running and end product fit the profile of exactly what the Azzurri have lacked in too many tight games.
Reports in Italy suggest the decision is moving in one direction. Tuttosport describes a call-up as “increasingly close”. TMW goes further, predicting that Zoma will be in Mancini’s next squad.
The fixtures add another layer of intrigue. Belgium, Turkiye, France, Turkiye again – a demanding run that doubles as a laboratory. Mancini needs results to restore authority, but he also needs to stamp his identity on a group still scarred by failure. That tension often defines a manager’s boldest selections.
Does he throw Zoma straight into that mix? Or does he wait, risk a rival federation moving faster, and watch a potential Azzurri regular slip away?
The first international break of 2026-27 is almost here. For Mancini, it’s not just about four Nations League matches. It’s about whether Mohamed Ali Zoma wears blue now, or never.
