Landon Donovan MVP award voters aren’t the only one’s paying attention to Sebastian Giovinco’s record-setting season. Folks in the old world are taking notice, too.
On Saturday, Italian national team manager Antonio Conte called the Atomic Ant back across the Atlantic for a pair of upcoming UEFA Euro 2016 qualifiers against Azerbaijan and Norway on Oct. 10 and 13. Italy currently leads Group H with 18 points, two ahead of Norway in UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying.
In 29 MLS appearances for Toronto FC, Giovinco has 20 goals and 15 assists, and now owns the record for most points in a season after registering the league’s first-ever 20-15 campaign. The 28-year-old has 21 caps for Italy (one goal), and was called into Conte’s side last month but did not feature because of injury.
He's not the only MLS player to play for the Azzurri in these upcoming matches, however. New York City FC's Andrea Pirlo, a longtime star for the Italian national team, is headed to Conte's squad, too.
Toronto FC host the Philadelphia Union on Saturday (5 pm ET; SN360 in Canada, MLS LIVE in the US) with a potential playoff spot on the line.