Italy coach Cesare Prandelli would like to see Argentina playing Italy in a friendly dedicated to newly elected Pope Francis

"We've played friendlies with all the best national teams, only Argentina is missing," Prandelli said Wednesday, a day after Italy's 2-0 win over Malta in a World Cup qualifier.

"If we could arrange it, it would be nice to have an audience with the pope, who comes from Buenos Aires and loves football, and then go all together with both squads on one bus to the stadium. I couldn't dream of anything better."

The hypothetical friendly would likely be held at Rome's Stadio Olimpico, a short drive from Vatican City.

While no match is scheduled yet, Italy does have an open friendly date in August.