Sergio Parisse
Italian general Sergio Parisse has returned to lead his troops into battle against Wales at Cardiff on Saturday.
Parisse, who was sidelined with flu for the past 3 matches, is back at the helm of the Azzurri and at the base of the scrum in the No 8 jersey.
Parisse is 1 of 7 changes to coach Jacques Brunel’s starting line-up with Edoardo Gori back from suspension to provide some experience at scrumhalf.
Other changes are Andrea Masi, Leonardo Sarto and Gonzalo Garcia who are all added to the backline.
Up front, Michele Rizzo starts at loosehead prop, while Quintin Geldenhuys comes in for Marco Fuser at lock.
This is the Azzurri’s final Test before they kick-off their Rugby World Cup campaign against France.
Italy: 15 Andrea Masi, 14 Leonardo Sarto, 13 Luca Morisi, 12 Gonzalo Garcia, 11 Giovanbattista Venditti, 10 Tommaso Allan, 9 Edoardo Gori, 8 Sergio Parisse (Captain), 7 Francesco Minto, 6 Alessandro Zanni, 5 Joshua Furno, 4 Quintin Geldenhuys, 3 Martin Castrogiovanni, 2 Leonardo Ghiraldini, 1 Michele Rizzo
Replacements: 16 Andrea Manici, 17 Matias Aguero, 18 Lorenzo Cittadini, 19 Valerio Bernabò, 20 Samuela Vunisa, 21 Guglielmo Palazzani, 22 Carlo Canna, 23 Luke McLean.
Date: Saturday 5 September
Venue: Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
Kick-Off: 18:00 SA Time (17:00 BST, 18:00 Italy Time, 16:00 GMT)
Referee: Jérôme Garcès (France)
Assistant Referees: Greg Garner (England), Dudley Phillips (Ireland)
TMO: Simon McDowell (Ireland)
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