Alberto Gilardino

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Alberto Gilardino
Personal information
Date of birth 5 July 1982 (1982-07-05) (age 29)
Place of birth Biella, Italy
Height 1.84 m (6 ft 1⁄2 in)
Playing position Striker
Club information
Current club Genoa
Number 82
Youth career
Piacenza
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
1999–2000 Piacenza 17 (3)
2000–2002 Verona 39 (5)
2002–2005 Parma 96 (50)
2005–2008 Milan 94 (36)
2008–2012 Fiorentina 118 (48)
2012– Genoa 4 (1)
National team‡
2000–2004 Italy U-21 30 (19)
2004– Italy 47 (17)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 29 January 2012.

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 7 June 2011

Alberto Gilardino, Ufficiale OMRI[1][2] (Italian pronunciation: [alˈbɛrto dʒilarˈdino]; born 5 July 1982) is an Italian World Cup-winning footballer who plays as a striker for Serie A club Genoa and the Italian national team.

In his early career, he was compared to Filippo Inzaghi,[3] and Christian Vieri described him as the fusion of both players.

Contents

[edit] Club career

[edit] Early years

Gilardino started his career at Piacenza, playing his first match in Serie A in the 1999–2000 season. That first season he made 17 league appearances and scored 3 goals.

"Gila", as he is often nicknamed, was sold to Verona in 2000 in co-ownership, for 7.5 billion Italian lire.[4] Despite his young age, he scored five goals in his two seasons at the club where he made 39 league appearances. But Gilardino was already attracted Verona to sign in full in June 2001,[5] For another 7 billion lire.[6] After Martin Laursen was bought back in June 2001 by Parma, Anthony Šerić was sold to Verona in a co-ownership deal, then Gilardino was also bought by Parma in a co-ownership deal during 2001–02 season and loaned back to Verona.

He also faced a car accident which ruled him out of season in April 2001.[7]

[edit] Parma

His career was launched on the international stage in 2002, as Parma bought the remained 50% registration rights and gave Šerić back to Verona.[8] Later Adrian Mutu, his team-mate at Verona was also signed, to replace the exit of Marco Di Vaio. Under Cesare Prandelli, who later bought him to La viola, Gilardino scored five goals in his first season, and netted 23 times in his second season, after the exit of Adriano. That total in the 2003–04 campaign made him the second-most prolific Serie A scorer. The success in club level and U-21 level earned him a contract extension until June 2007.[9] He repeated this feat in 2004–05, scoring another 23 goals and finishing as the second-best scorer in Serie A once again. He scored 50 goals for Parma in only 96 appearances in Serie A.

[edit] Milan

He made an estimated €24 million transfer to A.C. Milan on 17 July 2005.[10] Though he scored 17 domestic goals for Milan, he failed to find his offensive form in Milan's 2005–06 Champions League campaign, going goal-less in all 12 matches.[11] Gilardino's European offensive output the next season was equally disappointing, with only two goals. One of his two goals, though, helped Milan seal a decisive 3–0 win over Manchester United in the second leg of the semi-finals on 3 May 2007, which put them back into the Champions League final and set up a rematch with Liverpool. He played only two minutes as a substitute for Filippo Inzaghi in Milan's 2–1 victory. Gilardino led Milan in 2006–07 Serie A scoring with 12 goals; no other Milan player hit double figures.

Gilardino contributed a brace in Milan's 5–1 defeat of Lazio on 7 October 2007 (which marked his first domestic goal following a double in Milan's 5–2 victory over Ascoli on 18 April), and likewise for his first Champions League scores of the season in a 4–1 victory over Shakhtar Donetsk on 24 October.

[edit] Fiorentina

Gilardino with the shirt of Fiorentina
Gilardino during a 3–0 loss to Lazio on September 24, 2008.

On 25 May 2008, Fiorentina sporting director Pantaleo Corvino confirmed that a deal to sign Gilardino from Milan had been completed.[12] On 28 May 2008, the deal was confirmed; Gilardino moved for €12 million[13] and signed a five-year deal. Fiorentina coach Cesare Prandelli previously guided Gilardino when the pair were with Parma. His first goal with the Violas arrived in the first leg of the third qualifying round for the 2008–09 UEFA Champions League against Slavia Prague, where he scored the second goal of the match. On 31 August, Gilardino scored on his Serie A debut against Juventus in the 89th minute to tie the game at 1–1. In the successive league match, he supplied an assist to Adrian Mutu to open the score in the match against Napoli, but Fiorentina still finished on the losing side by suffering a 1–2 defeat at the Stadio San Paolo. In the first match from the Champions League group stages against the French of Olympique Lyonnais, he scored two goals in the first half to give Fiorentina a two-goal cushion, only to be cancelled by two second-half goals from Frédéric Piquionne and Karim Benzema. Gilardino finished the 2008–09 season with 19 Serie A goals and was instantly beloved by the Viola faithful. Among the highlights of his season was a double against Roma and an astonishing tight angle shot against Genoa while being marked by three defenders.[14] Gilardino had an exceptional campaign in the Champions League the following season, first scoring a dramatic late goal to give Fiorentina a 2–2 tie at Sporting Lisbon, then against Debrecen, and then scoring in the third minute of stoppage time against Liverpool in the final match day of the group phase at Anfield, which gave Fiorentina a coveted first place finish at the expense of Lyon. On February 27, 2011, Gilardino scored his 200th career goal in a match against Bari.

[edit] Genoa

On the 3 January 2012 Gilardino penned a four-and-a-half-year contract with his new employers; Genoa, and it is believed to have cost around €8million (£6.7m). A statement on the club's official website read: "Fiorentina announces that it has sold striker Alberto Gilardino to Genoa. [15] Gilardino has chosen his shirt number 82.[16]

[edit] International career

Gilardino played with Italy in the 2004 Olympics in Athens, winning the bronze medal. He also led Italy's Under 21 team to victory in the 2004 European Under-21 Football Championship.

Gilardino is currently the all-time top scorer for the Italy National Under-21 team.

He was a member of the Italy squad that won the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He played in the first two matches, scoring a goal against the United States with a diving header, then coming on as a substitute in the semifinal match against Germany, hitting the post in extra time and providing the pass for Alessandro Del Piero's stoppage-time goal two minutes after the first goal sealing the Azzurri's 2–0 victory.

On 17 October 2007, Gilardino assumed the team captaincy for the first time in his international career after Daniele De Rossi was substituted during Italy's 2–0 friendly win over South Africa. He returned to the national team on 20 August 2008 and scored the first of Italy's two goals in an international friendly against Austria, which ended in a 2–2 draw.

In June 2009, Marcello Lippi called Gilardino up for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa. Gilardino played a friendly match against New Zealand in Pretoria, South Africa days before Italy's first match, netting two goals and displaying a wonderful performance.

On 10 October 2009, Gilardino scored what he describes as the most important goal of his career so far, scoring in the 89th minute against Ireland. This enabled them (Italy) to qualify for the 2010 World Cup to try to defend the title they won in 2006.

On 14 October 2009, Gilardino scored a hat trick in the final 13 minutes of the game against Cyprus to cap a 3–2 victory for Italy.

Gilardino was part of the Italian 2006 FIFA World Cup squad.

[edit] Honours

[edit] Club

[edit] National team

[edit] Individual

[edit] Career statistics

Correct as of December 17, 2011.
Club Season Domestic
League		 Domestic
Cup		 European
Competition1		 Other
Tournaments2		 Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Piacenza 1999–00 17 3 - - - - - - 17 3
2000 - - 3 2 - - - - 3 2
Total 17 3 3 2 – – – – 20 5
Verona 2000–01 22 3 1 1 - - - - 23 4
2001–02 17 2 2 1 - - - - 19 3
Total 39 5 3 2 – – – – 42 7
Parma 2002–03 24 4 2 1 2 0 - - 28 5
2003–04 34 23 2 0 4 3 - - 40 26
2004–05 38 23 1 0 8 1 - - 47 24
Total 96 50 5 1 14 4 – – 115 55
Milan 2005–06 34 17 3 2 10 0 - - 47 19
2006–07 30 12 4 2 11 2 - - 45 16
2007–08 30 7 1 0 8 2 1 0 40 9
Total 94 36 8 4 29 4 1 0 132 44
Fiorentina 2008–09 35 19 1 0 10 6 - - 46 25
2009–10 36 15 3 0 9 4 - - 48 19
2010–11 35 12 1 0 - - - - 36 12
2011–12 12 2 1 1 - - - - 12 3
Total 118 48 6 1 19 10 – – 142 59
Career Totals 363 142 25 10 62 18 1 0 451 169

1European Competitions include the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Cup and UEFA Super Cup.
2Other Tournaments include the FIFA Club World Cup.

[17][18]

Italy national team
Year Apps Goals
2004 4 1
2005 8 4
2006 11 4
2007 2 0
2008 5 1
2009 9 6
2010 6 1
2011 2 0
Total 47 17

[edit] International goals

Alberto Gilardino international goals.[19]

# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. October 13, 2004 Parma, Italy  Belarus 4–3 Win FIFA World Cup 2006 Qualification
2. February 9, 2005 Cagliari, Italy  Russia 2–0 Win Friendly
3. August 17, 2005 Dublin, Ireland  Republic of Ireland 1–2 Win Friendly
4. October 12, 2005 Lecce, Italy  Moldova 2–1 Win FIFA World Cup 2006 Qualification
5. November 12, 2005 Amsterdam, Netherlands  Netherlands 1–3 Win Friendly
6. March 1, 2006 Florence, Italy  Germany 4–1 Win Friendly
7. April 30, 2006 Geneva, Switzerland  Switzerland 1–1 Draw Friendly
8. June 17, 2006 Kaiserslautern, Germany  United States 1–1 Draw FIFA World Cup 2006
9. September 6, 2006 Saint-Denis, France  France 1–3 Loss UEFA Euro 2008 Qualification
10. August 20, 2008 Nice, France  Austria 2–2 Draw Friendly
11. June 10, 2009 Pretoria, South Africa  New Zealand 4–3 Win Friendly
12. June 10, 2009 Pretoria, South Africa  New Zealand 4–3 Win Friendly
13. October 10, 2009 Dublin, Ireland  Republic of Ireland 2–2 Draw FIFA World Cup 2010 Qualification
14. October 14, 2009 Parma, Italy  Cyprus 1–2 Win FIFA World Cup 2010 Qualification
15. October 14, 2009 Parma, Italy  Cyprus 2–2 Win FIFA World Cup 2010 Qualification
16. October 14, 2009 Parma, Italy  Cyprus 3–2 Win FIFA World Cup 2010 Qualification
17. September 7, 2010 Florence, Italy  Faroe Islands 1–0 Win UEFA Euro 2012 Qualification

[edit] Personal life

Gilardino is close friends with former Milan teammate Daniele Bonera; they were also teammates at Parma. Gilardino once dedicated one of his goals to Daniele's baby daughter Talitha. Besides his goal-scoring, he is well-remembered for his goal celebration as well – getting on his knees and "playing the violin" at the touchline in front of the fans. He became engaged to Alice Bregoli on 31 March 2006[20] and had their first baby, a girl Ginevra, on 2 March 2008. The couple wed July 5, 2009 in Santa Margherita Ligure, in the province of Genoa. [2]. The second daughter, named Gemma, born on 19 March 2011.

[edit] References

  1. ^ FIFA.com
  2. ^ AscotSportal.com
  3. ^ "Il Verona mette i brividi alla Roma" (in Italian). Corriere della Sera. 2001-08-27. http://archiviostorico.corriere.it/2001/agosto/27/Verona_mette_brividi_alla_Roma_co_0_0108274660.shtml. Retrieved 2010-04-09. 
  4. ^ Carlo Laudisa (2000-09-28). "Gillet a Bari avvicina Mancini a Napoli. Gilardino a Verona" (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. http://archiviostorico.gazzetta.it/2000/settembre/28/Gillet_Bari_avvicina_Mancini_Napoli_ga_0_0009282868.shtml. Retrieved 2010-04-08. 
  5. ^ "DOPO MAURO CAMORANESI E GIUSEPPE COLUCCI, ALTRO COLPO DI MERCATO! L’HELLAS VERONA F.C. ACQUISTA PER INTERO ALBERTO GILARDINO." (in Italian). Hellas Verona FC. 2001-06-16. http://www.hellasverona.it/news.php?id=110. Retrieved 2010-04-08. 
  6. ^ Carlo Laudisa , Stefano Carini (2001-06-17). "Thuram: domani il sì alla Juve" (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. http://archiviostorico.gazzetta.it/2001/giugno/17/Thuram_domani_alla_Juve_ga_0_0106174573.shtml. Retrieved 2010-04-08. 
  7. ^ Germano Mosconi (2001-04-28). "Gilardino, tragedia sfiorata" (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. http://archiviostorico.gazzetta.it/2001/aprile/28/Gilardino_tragedia_sfiorata_ga_0_010428879.shtml. Retrieved 2010-04-08. 
  8. ^ "COMPROPRIETA': L'HELLAS RISCATTA MARCO CASSETTI, CLAUDIO FERRARESE RESTA AL CITTADELLA" (in Italian). Hellas Verona FC. 2002-06-26. http://www.hellasverona.it/news.php?id=676. Retrieved 2010-04-08. 
  9. ^ "Gilardino staying at Parma". UEFA.com. 2004-08-11. http://www.uefa.com/competitions/uefacup/news/kind=1/newsid=214929.html. Retrieved 2008-05-03. 
  10. ^ "Gilardino 'honoured' to join Milan". UEFA.com. 2005-07-18. http://www.uefa.com/competitions/ucl/news/kind=1/newsid=317789.html. Retrieved 2008-05-03. 
  11. ^ "Gilardino gives Milan another year". UEFA.com. 2006-10-02. http://www.uefa.com/competitions/ucl/news/kind=1/newsid=463290.html. Retrieved 2008-05-03. 
  12. ^ [1]
  13. ^ "Bilancio Gruppo Milan Anno 2008 [AC Milan Group 2008 Annual Report]" (in Italian). AC Milan. ca. April 2009. http://media3.acmilan.com/uploads/bilancio/BilancioGruppoMilan_ACM_12-08.pdf. Retrieved 13 May 2011. 
  14. ^ Pier Luig Todisco (2008-09-19). "Viola di rabbia a Lione Doppio Gilardino e poi pari". La Gazzetta dello Sport. http://www.gazzetta.it/Calcio/SerieA/Squadre/Fiorentina/Primo_Piano/2008/09/17/lioneviola.shtml. Retrieved 2010-04-08. 
  15. ^ "Genoa confirm Gilardino capture". http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/12963/7409388/Genoa-confirm-Gilardino-capture. 
  16. ^ "Gilardino: 'My light is back'". Football Italia. 5 January 2012. http://www.football-italia.net/node/14332. Retrieved 5 January 2012. 
  17. ^ http://www.national-football-teams.com/v2/player.php?id=8273
  18. ^ http://www.rsssf.com/miscellaneous/gilardino-intlg.html
  19. ^ F.I.G.C. Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio
  20. ^ alice.it

[edit] External links

Genoa C.F.C. – current squad
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