Italy announce Team for Scotland clash at the Stadio Olimpico
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Italy head coach Gonzalo Quesada has named his squad to face Scotland on Saturday, 7 February, with kick-off scheduled for 3:10 PM at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. The match will be broadcast live on Sky Sport Uno, free-to-air on TV8, and streamed on NOW TV.
This will be the 39th meeting between the two sides. Their most recent encounter in Rome ended in victory for the Azzurri, marking the first win of the Quesada era with the men’s national team.
The match will be a special occasion for three players, who will be honoured before kick-off for reaching 50 international caps: captain Michele Lamaro, Juan Ignacio Brex and Paolo Garbisi.
Italy will line up with a new back-three combination, featuring Leonardo Marin at full-back alongside Monty Ioane and Louis Lynagh. The established centre partnership of Brex and Tommaso Menoncello returns, while Paolo Garbisi and Alessandro Fusco will combine at half-back. For Fusco, this marks a symbolic fixture, as he earned his first Six Nations cap against Scotland in Edinburgh in 2023.
The back row will consist of Lorenzo Cannone, Manuel Zuliani and captain Lamaro. In the second row, Andrea Zambonin partners Niccolò Cannone, while the front row is formed by Simone Ferrari, Giacomo Nicotera and Danilo Fischetti.
Tommaso Di Bartolomeo, Muhamed Hasa and Giacomo Da Re have all received their first call-ups to a Guinness Six Nations matchday squad. Among the replacements are five Zebre Parma players: Spagnolo, Ruzza, Favretto, Alessandro Garbisi and Pani.
Martin Page-Relo will miss the match after failing to recover from injury and has returned to Bordeaux, while Stephen Varney has trained separately this week as he continues his recovery from an adductor injury.
The match will be officiated by New Zealand referee Ben O’Keeffe.
Italy XV to face Scotland
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Leonardo Marin (Benetton Rugby, 17 caps)
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Louis Lynagh (Benetton Rugby, 9 caps)
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Juan Ignacio Brex (Toulon, 49 caps)
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Tommaso Menoncello (Benetton Rugby, 34 caps)
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Monty Ioane (Lyon, 42 caps)
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Paolo Garbisi (Toulon, 49 caps)
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Alessandro Fusco (Zebre Parma, 20 caps)
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Lorenzo Cannone (Benetton Rugby, 33 caps)
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Manuel Zuliani (Benetton Rugby, 38 caps)
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Michele Lamaro (Benetton Rugby, 49 caps) – captain
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Andrea Zambonin (Exeter Chiefs, 14 caps)
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Niccolò Cannone (Benetton Rugby, 58 caps)
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Simone Ferrari (Benetton Rugby, 69 caps)
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Giacomo Nicotera (Stade Français, 36 caps)
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Danilo Fischetti (Northampton Saints, 58 caps)
Replacements:
16. Tommaso Di Bartolomeo (Zebre Parma, 6 caps)
17. Mirco Spagnolo (Benetton Rugby, 19 caps)
18. Muhamed Hasa (Zebre Parma, 4 caps)
19. Federico Ruzza (Benetton Rugby, 67 caps)
20. Riccardo Favretto (Benetton Rugby, 8 caps)
21. Alessandro Garbisi (Benetton Rugby, 19 caps)
22. Giacomo Da Re (Zebre Parma, 6 caps)
23. Lorenzo Pani (Zebre Parma, 8 caps)
