Inter Milan forward Francesco Pio Esposito continued his impressive scoring streak for Italy, netting his second consecutive goal in a narrow 1-0 triumph over Greece. The friendly match, however, was also marked by the early dismissal of Borussia Dortmund’s Luca Reggiani, who received a red card just 13 minutes into his senior international debut.
This victory marks the second consecutive win for Italy under the interim leadership of Silvio Baldini, who is slated to return to the U21 squad. The team secured the win in an international friendly played on Sunday night.
In a night where Italy’s U17 European Championship success was also celebrated, Pio Esposito’s goal was his fifth in nine appearances for the Azzurri. The goal came from a well-placed cross by Jeff Ekhator, which Esposito controlled expertly before firing home with his right foot, benefiting from a slight deflection off a Greek defender.
Esposito had an earlier opportunity before halftime after receiving a through ball, but his attempt was saved by the Greek goalkeeper Vlachodimos.
The second half saw Luca Koleosho strike the crossbar from close range with a left-footed shot following a cross from Seydou Fini.
Pietro Comuzzo was forced off with a suspected calf injury. His replacement, Luca Reggiani, made his senior debut but was sent off after only 13 minutes for a foul in central midfield. Despite being Italy’s last defender, Reggiani was shown a red card.
Italy’s defense held firm for most of the latter part of the match. In the final ten minutes, Greece threatened, with Zafeiris hitting the post from inside the box, and Donnarumma making a save to deny Pavlidis shortly after.
The 1-0 win concludes Italy’s 2025-26 campaign. The national team will resume action on September 25 in the Nations League against Belgium, while Serie A is set to restart on August 23.
Greece 0-1 Italy
Goal: 18′ Pio Esposito
Greece (3-4-1-2): Vlachodimos; Retsos, Hatzidiakos, Koulierakis (46′ Rota); Vagiannidis (76′ Tetteh), Mouzakitis (76′ Zaferis), Triantis (62′ Androutsos), Kiriakopoulos (63′ Tsimikas); Tzolis (88′ Pavlidis); Masouras (63′ Kyziridis), Douvikas (88′ Kostoulas).
Italy (4-3-3): Donnarumma; Ahanor (46′ Mane), Comuzzo (55′ Reggiani), Chiarodia, Bartesaghi; Pisilli, Lipani (74′ Dagasso), Ndour; Koleosho (87′ Faticanti), Esposito (87′ Camarda), Ekhator (46′ Fini (74′ Favasuli)).