This marks the fourth meeting between Italy and Georgia, with the Azzurri winning two of the previous encounters. Georgia claimed victory in their last match in Batumi in July 2022.
Captain Michele Lamaro will make his 34th appearance leading the side, featuring in a back row alongside Sebastian Negri and Ross Vintcent. Vintcent returns to start at number eight for the first time in the Autumn Nations Series after missing the match against Argentina.
There is a completely new front row this weekend, with Quesada opting for fresh starters: Simone Ferrari (prop), Giacomo Nicotera (hooker), and Danilo Fischetti (prop) replace last week’s trio.
The second-row combination sees one change, with Niccolò Cannone retaining his place and Dino Lamb coming into the starting XV. This combination brings both experience and form, with Lamb back from a long injury layoff.
The Garbisi brothers are back together in the half-back pairing, with Alessandro Garbisi starting at scrum-half and Paolo Garbisi at fly-half.
The centre pairing of 2024 Guinness Men’s Six Nations Player of the Championship Tommaso Menoncello and Juan Ignacio Brex remains unchanged from last weekend’s loss to Los Pumas.
There are two changes in the back three, with Monty Ioane the only player to retain his shirt as he starts on the wing. Jacopo Trulla starts on the opposite wing, replacing Louis Lynagh, and Matt Gallagher earns his first start on Italian soil, replacing the injured Ange Capuozzo, who picked up a head injury against Argentina.
The matchday squad includes a potential debut for Giulio Bertaccini, a promising centre from Valorugby Emilia. He is the only player from Italy’s Serie A Elite Maschile included and will don the number 23 jersey if he earns his first cap off the bench. Other replacements include Lucchesi, Ceccarelli, Spagnolo, Favretto, Zuliani, Fusco, and Marin.
New Zealand referee Ben O’Keeffe will officiate, overseeing an Italian match for the fifth time in his career. This will also be Italy’s twelfth appearance in Genoa and their first against Georgia at this historic venue.
This is Italy's lineup versus Georgia, Stadio Luigi Ferraris, Genoa 13:40 (GMT) Live on TNT Sports
15 Matt GALLAGHER (Benetton Rugby, 1 cap)
14 Jacopo TRULLA (Zebre Parma, 10 caps)
13 Juan Ignacio BREX (Benetton Rugby, 39 caps)
12 Tommaso MENONCELLO (Benetton Rugby, 21 caps)
11 Monty IOANE (Lyon 33 caps)
10 Paolo GARBISI (Toulon RC, 40 caps)
9 Alessandro GARBISI (Benetton Rugby, 11 caps)
8 Ross VINTCENT (Exeter Chiefs, 7 caps)
7 Michele LAMARO (Benetton Rugby, 42 caps) – captain
6 Sebastian NEGRI (Benetton Rugby, 56 caps)
5 Dino LAMB (Harlequins, 7 caps) 4 Niccolò CANNONE (Benetton Rugby, 45 caps)
3 Simone FERRARI (Benetton Rugby, 57 caps)
2 Giacomo NICOTERA (Stade Francais, 26 caps)
1 Danilo FISCHETTI (Zebre Parma, 45 caps)
REPLACEMENTS
16 Gianmarco LUCCHESI (Toulon RC, 26 caps)
17 Mirco SPAGNOLO (Benetton Rugby, 9 caps)
18 Pietro CECCARELLI (USAP Perpignan, 33 caps)
19 Riccardo FAVRETTO (Benetton Rugby, 3 caps)
20 Manuel ZULIANI (Benetton Rugby, 25 caps)
21 Alessandro FUSCO (Zebre Parma, 17 caps)
22 Leonardo MARIN (Benetton Rugby, 11 caps)
23 Giulio BERTACCINI (Valorugby Emilia, debutant)
