Cisse: ‘Italy is full of strong young players, I want to prove I should be here’

Cisse: ‘Italy is full of strong young players, I want to prove I should be here’ Alphadjo Cisse has spoken about the moment he found out he had been called up to the Italy national team for the first time, says that he wasn’t to prove what he has to offer during his first camp with the Nazionale and says that there is plenty of young talent in Serie A and Serie B: ‘Let me tell you’. Cisse was included in the Italy national team squad for the first time last week, ahead of Nations League fixtures against France on Thursday and Belgium on Sunday. ITALY – OCTOBER 28: Alphadjo Cisse of AC Milan celebrates scoring his team’s second goal during the Serie A match between AC Milan and Bologna FC at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on October 28, 2026 in Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images) It has been a remarkable rise to the top for the 20-year-old, who was playing in Serie B with Catanzaro last season. He is now Milan’s leading goalscorer across all competitions in 2026-27 and has already bettered his goalscoring tally from last season with eight from 15 appearances so far. The versatile attacker spoke in-depth about his career to date and his first Italy call-up in a recent interview with Cronache di Spogliatoio. Cisse: ‘Italy is full of strong, young players, let me tell you’ The latest Italy squad was announced on Thursday evening, just before Cisse and Milan kicked off against Ferencvaros in the Europa League. Cisse found out that he had been selected for the Azzurri while in the media zone in San Siro. ITALY – SEPTEMBER 16: Alphadjo Cisse’ of AC Milan competes for the ball with Alessandro Circati of SL Benfica during the UEFA Europa League 2026/27 League Phase MD1 match between AC Milan and SL Benfica at Stadio San Siro on September 16, 2026 in Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images) “I was on my way to do the pre-match interviews ahead of Ferencvaros in the Europa League and they stopped me and said: ‘Alpha, they’ve called you up to the national team … the senior national team!’. I had the game to play, so it only sunk in later,” he recalled (via TMW ). “I want to prove that I should be there. They’d been talking to me about it for about 10 days, but it was still up in the air. This is my big chance. I haven’t had the chance to stop and reflect on my journey here, but football moves quickly!” Cisse is a glaring example of what can happen when young players are given opportunities at the top level. He feels that there are plenty more uncovered gems knocking about in Serie A and Serie B. ITALY – NOVEMBER 8: Alphadjo Cissé of Milan (2nd from right) scores a goal during the Serie A match between Genoa CFC and AC Milan at Stadio Luigi Ferraris on November 8, 2026 in Genoa, Italy. (Photo by Simone Arveda/Getty Images) “Italy is full of strong, young players, let me tell you. It just depends on the opportunities you’re given. A lot have come through over the last few months, myself included, and I’m sure that there will be lots more in the near future. “Once you get to a certain level, it becomes amazing. I was impressed by Pisilli more than anyone: He’s so strong. I knew about him before, but playing with him made me understand his strength.”