Italian Tresoldi torn between Germany and the Azzurri: 50‑50 decision

While the German team is fighting for a strong striker, Italy equally hopes for the services of the same player. Nicolo Tresoldi is missing from Jürgen Klopp's first DFB squad because he has not yet decided which country he wants to represent in the future.

Jürgen Klopp has called up 44 players to his first squad. One name that many had hoped for among the nominees is missing: Nicolo Tresoldi. The reason is not that Klopp did not want to call up the 22‑year‑old centre‑forward.

Decision between two national teams

The attacker, born in Italy, said in a press conference on Tuesday: “My heart is 50:50. Both countries mean a lot to me.” With that, he confirmed that he has not yet made a final decision on whether he wants to play for the DFB team or the Azzurri in the future.

The striker, trained at Hannover 96, has been playing in Belgium for Club Brugge since the summer of 2025. He has completed his national team career at the junior level for Germany – eight appearances for the U19 and already 24 matches for the German U21, in which he has scored twelve goals.

Klopp maps the way forward for Germany's U21 after clinching Euro ticket

Impact on the U21 qualification

With the German U21, Tresoldi is heading for the Euro 2027 in Albania and Serbia. In the qualification round, Germany sits first in Group F ahead of the level‑tied Greeks. Only the nine group winners and the best runner‑up qualify directly for the final tournament.

The remaining eight runners‑up play in playoffs for the four remaining Euro tickets. In his nomination press conference, Klopp had already explained that Tresoldi has not yet made a final decision.

U21 national coach Antonio Di Salvo showed understanding: “The world has changed. 20, 30 years ago, you didn’t have to make such decisions. Today players have the possibility to play for a second or even a third country – and if they need time, you have to give it to them.”

Germany slips further in the FIFA ranking under Jürgen Klopp

Tre s oldi also spoke about his talks with Klopp and the Italian national coach Roberto Mancini: “We had good talks. I explained my situation to Klopp, and he understood. He is a great person. It was not a coach‑player talk, but like a father‑son talk. He said the door is always open for me.” Mancini also received the same message.