As the first international break of the 2026-27 season gets underway, here is a look at some of the Serie A players whose call-ups might’ve flown under the radar.

Monday signalled the start of the September-October international break, which will see most European nations play four international fixtures instead of the usual two. Italy are in Nations League action against Belgium on September 25, Turkiye on September 28, France on October 2 and Turkiye again on October 5.

A total of 160 Serie A players will be involved with their senior national teams over the next few weeks, and looking through the list, there may be one or two names that might have slipped under the radar, including a Spain call-up for Inter’s Josep Martinez, a return to the Brazil squad for Douglas Luiz and a potential first Argentina cap for Santiago Castro.

COMO, ITALY – MARCH 03: Josep Martinez and Yann Aurel Bisseck of FC Internazionale at the end of the Lega Serie A Coppa Italia match between Como 1907 and FC Internazionale at Giuseppe Sinigaglia Stadium on March 03, 2026 in Como, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

The 28-year-old, who has replaced Yann Sommer as Inter’s first-choice goalkeeper this season, technically already has one cap for Spain. However, that was over five years ago, and came about due to the fact that most of the regular Spain side were in isolation following a positive COVID-19 test in the camp. Martinez made his debut in a Spain side that featured mostly U21 players for an international friendly against Lithuania in June 2021.

So, despite the fact that he has already debuted for the Spain senior side, this feels like a first ‘proper’ call-up for the Nerazzurri stopper, who is very much there on merit this time around. He is expected to be the third-choice behind Unai Simon and David Raya, though.

PARMA, ITALY – MAY 10: Mandela Keita of Parma Calcio 1913 celebrates scoring his team’s second goal during the Serie A match between Parma Calcio 1913 and AS Roma at Stadio Ennio Tardini on May 10, 2026 in Parma, Italy. (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)

Parma’s Keita also has one Belgium cap to his name, but that came two years ago, prior to his move to Serie A from Royal Antwerp.