Interim Italy coach Silvio Baldini has praised Gianluigi Donnarumma and Francesco Pio Esposito for acting as leaders in an inexperienced squad for their upcoming friendlies against Luxembourg and Greece.

The Azzurri failed to qualify for a third successive edition of the World Cup following a penalty shoot-out defeat to Bosnia-Herzegovina in the UEFA play-offs in March.  

They are the first former champions to ever miss three consecutive World Cups, having also missed the 2018 and 2022 tournaments. 

Until this sequence, they had only ever missed the 1930 and 1958 editions, declining to take part in the former and failing to qualify for the latter.

That has their June friendlies to feel particularly low-key, with the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) yet to name a successor to Gennaro Gattuso, amid links with Antonio Conte, Massimiliano Allegri and even Pep Guardiola.

Under-21 boss Baldini will lead a young squad in their upcoming matches, with their squad featuring 21 uncapped players.

The only players in the group with previous senior international experience are Donnarumma (81 caps), Esposito (seven), Marco Palestra and Niccolo Pisilli (two caps each).

"We were honestly surprised by the attitude of Donnarumma, Pio Esposito and others," Baldini said at Tuesday's press conference, ahead of facing Luxembourg on Wednesday.

"They put themselves at the disposal of the group and even thanked them for being with the team. Seeing them so humble and at the same level as the others was wonderful."

Despite the downbeat feeling around Italy's camp, Baldini is excited to see new names get opportunities to represent their country.

"I feel there is a lot of talent in this group, they are great players who are in Serie A and this is the moment where they can explode onto the scene," Baldini added.

"We already saw that kind of development with Marco Palestra and Niccolo Pisilli, who stepped into the big leagues and were part of this group of youngsters."