'He deserves to' - Liverpool star's ex-teammate issues public support for 'pure talent' after national team snub
A Liverpool fans’ favourite has found himself snubbed by his national team during the break
The international break came at a welcome time for Liverpool after three defeats in a week put a dent in the strong start to the new season made by Arne Slot’s Reds.
Fans will hope that the players are reinvigorated when they return from their respective national sides ahead of Liverpool’s next fixture against Manchester United at Anfield.
For several of the squad, though, the international break is hardly a rest as they hold key positions of responsibility for their respective nations, several wearing the captain’s armband. Add to that the travelling around Europe or the world, and fans will hope none of the squad have picked up any injuries when they return later this week.
One Liverpool star has seen a former team-mate come to his support with praise of the highest order, following a recent disappointment with his national team set-up during the latest set of international fixtures.
Federico Chiesa receives support of ex-teammate after Italy snub
Liverpool fans’ favourite Federico Chiesa has not featured for his native Italy since he arrived at Anfield in August 2024, with issues of a lack of playing time, form and fitness contributing to over a year on the periphery for the Azzurri.
Chiesa has seen a boost in his importance to Slot’s Liverpool squad in the new season, though, and so a return to his national side may be getting closer. As of October 2025, he has still not been picked by Gennaro Gattuso, with reports stating it was a mutual decision as he is not yet ready to return.
Former Juventus, Fiorentina and Italy team-mate Federico Bernardeschi has spoken in favour of Chiesa returning to the national team set-up ahead of the World Cup next summer.
“I truly love Fede like a brother. It’s hard to say, but what he said about me, I said with an open heart. He deserves it, he deserved it, and he will deserve it again,” said Bernardeschi. “He’s an incredibly talented player. I remember his debut against Juve in Turin, with Fiorentina. I told him: ‘Don’t worry, play, you’re great, there’s no need for me to tell you anything else.’
“He already had the weight of his father’s surname, so it was as if he had to leave with an extra 30 kg in his backpack. I didn’t think it was right; it should have been Federico, not his father Enrico. He’s proven himself, and he’ll do it again.
“I think we need such pure talent, which is sometimes criticized. But in the end, talent is talent; it emerges in difficult moments. Like what happened to him last year, but look how he’s emerging. We talk often; he’s on a great team, and if he’s there, it’s because he deserves to be there. Nothing else matters.”
The duo played 63 games together for Italy, Juventus and Fiorentina.
Gattuso speaks as Chiesa seeks Italian dream
Chiesa was famously a major part of the Italian side who won Euro 2020 over England on penalties. But he has yet to represent his nation at a World Cup, as Italy have not qualified for the tournament for 11 years. They missed out on the Russia and Qatar editions and last competed in Brazil in 2014, where they crashed out in the group stage alongside the Three Lions.
It has previously been reported that Chiesa may consider leaving Liverpool to return to Serie A in January in order to get the game time necessary to force his way into Gattuso’s squad ahead of the finals.
Though their qualification is not yet secured - Italy sit in second place in group I of UEFA’s qualifying set-up, six points behind Norway with a game in hand. They still have a slender chance of finishing top of the group, but a more likely outcome is that Italy will be entered into the play-offs in March 2026. That is the exact hurdle they fell at in both 2018 and 2022, but Chiesa will hope to be there to help his nation get over the line this time.
Gattuso said: “The Chiesa issue is very simple. I talk to my players a lot, and I want to make that clear, a lot. I speak every week with Fede and he knows what I think of him, but I also have to respect what the player tells me. He does not feel at 100 per cent and wants to be at 100 per cent, that is the truth.”