Leonardo Spinazzola

Italian footballer (born 1993) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Leonardo Spinazzola (Italian pronunciation: [leoˈnardo spinatˈtsɔːla]; born 25 March 1993) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a left wing-back for Serie A club Napoli and the Italy national team.

Full name Leonardo Spinazzola[1]
Date of birth (1993-03-25) 25 March 1993 (age 33)
Place of birth Foligno, Umbria, Italy
Height 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[2]
Quick facts Personal information, Full name ...
Leonardo Spinazzola
Spinazzola with Atalanta in 2017
Personal information
Full name Leonardo Spinazzola[1]
Date of birth (1993-03-25) 25 March 1993 (age 33)
Place of birth Foligno, Umbria, Italy
Height 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[2]
Position Left-back
Team information
Current team
Napoli
Number 37
Youth career
1999–2007 Virtus Foligno[3]
2007–2012 Siena
2010–2012Juventus (loan)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2012–2019 Juventus 10 (0)
2012–2013Empoli (loan) 7 (1)
2013Lanciano (loan) 3 (0)
2013–2014Siena (loan) 24 (1)
2014–2015Atalanta (loan) 2 (0)
2015Vicenza (loan) 10 (0)
2015–2016Perugia (loan) 34 (0)
2016–2018Atalanta (loan) 48 (0)
2019–2024 Roma 104 (5)
2024– Napoli 57 (4)
International career
2011 Italy U19 1 (0)
2012 Italy U20 1 (0)
2017– Italy 27 (0)
Medal record
Men's Football
Representing  Italy
UEFA European Championship
Winner2020 Europe
CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions
Runner-up2022 England
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23:20, 2 May 2026 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 31 March 2026
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Club career

Early years with Siena and loan spells across Italy from Juventus

Born in Foligno, Spinazzola started his career at Siena's youth setup.[4] In 2010, he joined Juventus in a temporary deal, being assigned to the Primavera squad. In June 2012 Juventus signed half of the registration rights for €400,000.

On 5 July 2012 Spinazzola and Filippo Boniperti were loaned to Serie B side Empoli in a season-long loan.[5] On 1 September he played his first match as a professional, coming on as a second-half substitute in a 2–2 away draw against Novara.[6]

Spinazzola scored his first professional goal on the 15th, but in a 2–4 loss at Livorno.[7] After appearing in only seven matches, his loan spell was cut short and he moved to Virtus Lanciano also in a temporary deal in January 2013.[8]

Spinazzola only appeared in three matches with Virtus, all from the bench. On 10 August 2013 he was again loaned, this time to his first club Siena;[9] he appeared regularly with the latter, contributing with 24 matches and one goal for the latter, which narrowly missed out play-offs.

In June 2014 the co-ownership agreement between Siena and Juventus was renewed again. However, after the bankruptcy of Siena in July, Juventus acquired the remaining 50% registration rights of Spinazzola from Siena for free.

On 11 August 2014, Spinazzola joined Serie A side Atalanta also in a loan deal.[10] On 23 August, he made his debut for the club, scoring the last goal of a 2–0 home win against Pisa in the Coppa Italia.[11][12] Spinazzola made his debut in the Italian top flight on 31 August, replacing Marcelo Estigarribia in the 82nd minute of a 0–0 home draw against Verona.[13] After spells on loan with Vicenza and Perugia, Spinazzola returned to Atalanta in July 2016.[11]

Juventus

After spending two seasons on loan with Atalanta, Spinazzola returned to Juventus in mid 2018.[14] An ACL injury ruled him out for the first half of the 2018–19 season.[15] On 11 November, Spinazzola played a match for Juventus U19 in which he scored a goal after 35 minutes in a 3–1 away win against Sassuolo U19.[16] Spinazzola made his Juventus debut on 12 January 2019, in a 2–0 away win over Bologna in the Coppa Italia.[17] Prior to his debut for Juventus, Spinazzola had played two matches for Juventus U19. He made his Champions League debut on 12 March, starting in a 3–0 home win over Atlético Madrid, in the round of 16 of the tournament, which enabled Juventus to advance to the quarter-finals 3–2 on aggregate.[18][19]

Roma

On 1 July 2019, Spinazzola joined Roma from Juventus for €29.5 million, signing a four-year contract with the club, while Luca Pellegrini moved in the opposite direction.[20][21] In January 2020, Spinazzola was close to a transfer move to Inter Milan in exchange for Matteo Politano, but the deal collapsed at the last minute as Inter was not entirely satisfied with Spinazzola's physical conditions.[22]

Napoli

On 10 July 2024, Spinazzola signed for Serie A club Napoli on a free transfer.[23]

International career

On 28 March 2017, Spinazzola made his senior international debut for the Italy national team, along with four other players, coming on as a substitute in a 2–1 friendly away win against the Netherlands.[24]

In June 2021, Spinazzola was included in Italy's squad for UEFA Euro 2020 by manager Roberto Mancini.[25] In the opening match of the tournament on 11 June, a 3–0 win over Turkey, Spinazzola was named man of the match by UEFA for his performance, during which he was credited with an assist on his team's second goal, after his parried shot was scored by Ciro Immobile off the rebound.[26] On 26 June, he assisted the opening goal scored by Federico Chiesa in extra-time on an eventual 2–1 win over Austria in the round of 16, and was also later also involved in the match-winning goal scored by Matteo Pessina; due to his performance, he was named man of the match for the second time in the tournament by UEFA.[27][28] On 2 July, late in the 2–1 quarter-final win over Belgium, Spinazzola was stretchered off the pitch with an Achilles tendon rupture, ending his time in the tournament.[29] On 5 July, Spinazzola underwent a successful surgery of his left Achilles tendon, by surgeon Lasse Lempainen in Turku, Finland.[30][31] On 11 July, Spinazzola won the European Championship with Italy following a 3–2 penalty shoot-out victory over England in the final at Wembley Stadium after a 1–1 draw in extra-time.[32] Spinazzola was clocked as the fastest player of the tournament, tied with Hungary's Loïc Négo, reaching a top speed of 33.8 km/h.[33] For his performances, he was included in the team of the tournament.[34]

Style of play

Although naturally right-footed,[35] Spinazzola prefers playing on the left flank, either as a full-back, wing-back, or winger; a versatile player, he is also capable of playing on the right side of the pitch.[35][36][37][38] A quick, athletic, and offensive-minded player, he is known for his stamina, world class speed and acceleration, physicality, and his polished dribbling skills, which enable him to beat his man in one on one situations on the wing with feints or changes of pace. He is also capable of playing the ball first time, cutting into the centre and providing in-swinging crosses to teammates, or providing depth to his team with his attacking runs down the flank. Defensively, he is known for his anticipation and ability in the air.[36][37] His versatility, characteristics, role, and playing style have drawn comparisons with former Italy and Juventus wing-back Gianluca Zambrotta,[36][37] whom Spinazzola himself has cited as one of his major influences.[38]

Personal life

In May 2018, Spinazzola and then girlfriend Miriam Sette had a son together.[39] On 24 December 2020, the couple married.[40] In February 2021, the couple had a second child together, a daughter.[41]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 2 May 2026[42]
More information Club, Season ...
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Coppa Italia Europe Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Juventus 2011–12 Serie A 000000
2018–19 Serie A 100101[a]000120
Total 100101000120
Empoli (loan) 2012–13 Serie B 711081
Virtus Lanciano (loan) 2012–13 Serie B 300030
Siena (loan) 2013–14 Serie B 24120261
Atalanta (loan) 2014–15 Serie A 203151
Vicenza (loan) 2014–15 Serie B 10000100
Perugia (loan) 2015–16 Serie B 34020360
Atalanta (loan) 2016–17 Serie A 30020320
2017–18 Serie A 180106[b]0250
Total 4803160571
Roma 2019–20 Serie A 241008[b]1322
2020–21 Serie A 2721011[b]0392
2021–22 Serie A 30001[c]040
2022–23 Serie A 2611013[b]1402
2023–24 Serie A 2412010[b]0361
Total 1045404321517
Napoli 2024–25 Serie A 27130301
2025–26 Serie A 303206[a]02[d]0403
Total 574506020704
Career total 299112115622037814
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International

As of match played 31 March 2026[43]
More information National team, Year ...
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Italy 201750
201800
201930
202020
202180
202230
202330
202400
202520
202610
Total270
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Honours

References

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