MILAN – An Italy U-21 team packed with Nerazzurri beat Germany U-21s 1-0 in a friendly match last night. Azzurri coach Devis Mangia fielded a defence made up entirely of players who are owned or co-owned by Inter.
21-year-old goalkeeper Francesco Bardi, currently on loan at Novara, played the full 90 minutes and kept a clean sheet. Protecting his goal was a Nerazzurri back four of 23-year-old right-back Giulio Donati, currently on loan at Grosseto; a central defensive pairing of Matteo Bianchetti (19), an important member of last year's highly successful Primavera side who is now gaining experience with Hellas Verona in Serie B, and Luca Caldirola (22), who is also continuing his development in Italy's second tier with Brescia; and 20-year-old left-back Cristiano Biraghi.
Besides the 100% Nerazzurri defence, there was another Inter player on the pitch for the Under-21s last night: Samuele Longo did a stint up front after coming on as a second-half substitute. The 21-year-old striker joined Spanish outfit Espanyol on loan last August after spending the summer training with Andrea Stramaccioni's senior squad.
