Como 1907 Primavera midfielder Riccardo Cassano has earned his first senior Italy call-up under head coach Roberto Mancini. The camp marks an invaluable opportunity for the teenager to introduce himself to the senior Azzurri setup as the squad gathers this week at Coverciano.
Alongside fellow Biancoblù talents Mattia Liberali and Samuele Ricci, Cassano will take part in preparations for Italy’s upcoming Nations League clashes against France and Belgium before rejoining his own age group for the Under-17 World Cup, set to run from 19 November to 13 December in Qatar.
"Head coach Roberto Mancini has given me a wonderful opportunity - a dream come true for anyone my age. I’d like to thank everyone who has helped me achieve this small goal: from the Primavera manager Gianluca Falsini to the first-team manager Cesc Fàbregas, as well as all the coaches I’ve had over the years. I just have to thank everyone who has supported me and who continues to support me on this journey."
Born in Olgiate Comasco in 2009, Cassano inherited far more than just a name from his father Stefano - current head coach of Como’s Under-13s - picking up a deep-rooted passion for the game. He first kicked a ball at age six with the Como crest already stitched to his chest. His journey through the youth ranks was interrupted only briefly following the club’s bankruptcy, spending 2018 to 2019 at Shape Village in Appiano Gentile, an Inter-affiliated academy. In 2020, he returned home. Moving steadily from the Under-12s through to the Primavera, Cassano has grown alongside Como 1907’s ambitious academy project, flourishing both as a player and as a person.
During the 2025/26 campaign, while starring for the Under-17s, Cassano became a regular face in senior squad training. By season's end, Cesc Fàbregas handed him two first-team squad call-ups for the closing fixtures against Parma and Cremonese. While he has yet to make his senior debut, the young midfielder joined captain Lucas Da Cunha and the rest of the squad atop the open-top bus parade through the city to celebrate a historic UEFA Champions League qualification.
Fàbregas has never hidden his belief in the youngster’s potential, handing him a starting spot in July’s pre-season friendly against Paris FC at the Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia. The 17-year-old academy product took full advantage of the faith shown in him, setting up Tasos Douvikas for one of Como’s two goals on the day.
This season, Cassano has been a standout for Gianluca Falsini’s side across Primavera 1 and the UEFA Youth League. In both competitions, his technical quality, vision, positional awareness, and composure have turned heads. Most recently, he found the net in back-to-back away trips against Lens and Fiorentina - slotting home the winner at Viola Park under the watchful eye of Mancini himself.
After earning a call-up to Daniele Franceschini’s Italy Under-18s during the autumn break, Cassano now heads into an even bigger milestone alongside club teammate Matteo Albini: representing the Azzurrini at the Under-17 World Cup in Qatar, where Italy will meet Ivory Coast, Jamaica, and Uzbekistan in Group E.
"I’ll try to make the most of this opportunity to be called up to the senior national team by showing Coach Mancini what I’m capable of. Then another wonderful experience awaits me: the World Cup in Qatar. We’re a strong squad; in my opinion, we’ve got all the right qualities to go a long way."
Rubbing shoulders with the elite offers a chance to accelerate his development alongside senior professionals, before testing himself on the demanding world stage of a youth World Cup. Still shy of his 18th birthday, Riccardo Cassano heads into this defining stretch with renewed drive - continuing a journey that has embodied the values of his hometown club, Como 1907, from day one.