Manolo Gabbiadini (; born 26 November 1991) is an Italian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a striker for

UAE Pro League The UAE Pro League (), also known as the ADNOC Pro League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the highest level of the Emirati football league system. The first team to w ...

club

Al-Nasr Al-Nassr Football Club () is a professional football club based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The club competes in the Saudi Pro League, the top tier of the Saudi football league system. Al-Nassr is one of only three clubs to have participated ...

and the Italy national team. Gabbiadini began his professional career with

Atalanta Atalanta (; ) is a heroine in Greek mythology. There are two versions of the huntress Atalanta: one from Arcadia (region), Arcadia, whose parents were Iasus and Clymene (mythology), Clymene and who is primarily known from the tales of the Caly ...

, where he made his

Serie A The Serie A (), officially known as Serie A Enilive in Italy and Serie A Made in Italy abroad for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Italy and the highest tier of the Italian football league system. Establish ...

debut in 2010. After a one-year stint at

Cittadella Cittadella () is a medieval walled city in the province of Padua, northern Italy, founded in the 13th century as a military outpost of Padua. The surrounding wall has been restored and is in circumference with a diameter of around . There are fo ...

between 2010 and 2011, he returned to Atalanta, before moving to

Bologna Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...

in 2012. The following year, Gabbiadini joined

Sampdoria Unione Calcio Sampdoria, commonly referred to as Sampdoria (), is an Italian professional football club based in Genoa, Liguria. Sampdoria was formed in 1946 from the merger of two existing sports clubs whose roots can be traced back to the ...

, where he scored a personal best of ten goals in the Italian top flight. In 2015, he was sold to

Napoli Naples ( ; ; ) is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its province-level municipality is the thir ...

, before moving to

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

during the 2017 January transfer window. Gabbiadini returned to Sampdoria in 2019. Having represented Italy internationally at under-20 and under-21 levels, Gabbiadini made his senior debut in 2012.

Club career

Atalanta

Born in the province of

Bergamo Bergamo ( , ; ) is a city in the Alps, alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from the alpine lakes Lake Como, Como and Lake Iseo, Iseo and 70 km (43 mi) from Lake Garda, Garda and Lake ...

, he grew up in the youth teams of Bolgare and then

, who loaned him to Palazzolo and

Montichiari Montichiari (Brescian: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Brescia, in Lombardy. It received the honorary title of city with a presidential decree on December 27, 1991. The town is home to the Gabriele D'Annunzio airport (Italian: ''Aer ...

, before returning to Bergamo. He made his

debut for the club on 14 March 2010 in a league match against

Parma Parma (; ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmesan, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,986 inhabitants as of 2025, ...

, coming on as a 79th-minute substitute for Simone Tiribocchi. Following his debut, Gabbiadini made one further appearance for the club during the

2009–10 Serie A The 2009–10 Serie A (known as the Serie A TIM for sponsorship reasons) was the 108th season of top-tier Italian football, the 78th in a round-robin tournament. There were three promoted teams from the Serie B, replacing the three teams that w ...

campaign.

Loan to Cittadella and return to Atalanta

On 9 July 2010, Gabbiadini joined

Serie B The Serie B (), officially known as Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 season. It had b ...

side

, along with Daniele Gasparetto, in co-ownership deal for a peppercorn of €500, as part of the negotiation that saw Atalanta sign Matteo Ardemagni. He scored five goals in 27 appearances, including 15 starts, during the

2010–11 Serie B The 2010–11 Serie B (known as the Serie bwin for sponsorship reasons) is the seventy-ninth season since its establishment in 1929, and the first one under the rule of the new Lega Serie B. A total of 22 teams contest the league, 15 of which retu ...

season. On 21 June 2011, Gabbiadini returned to Atalanta after his co-ownership deal was resolved for €1.5 million for 50 percent of his registration rights. During the

2011–12 Serie A The 2011–12 Serie A (known as the Serie A TIM after its headline sponsors) was the 110th season of top-tier Italian football, the 80th in a round-robin tournament, and the second since its organization under a league committee separate from S ...

campaign, Gabbiadini was fully integrated into the club's first team. He made 25 league appearances for the club, including eight starts, and scored his first Serie A goal on 25 March 2012 in the 2–0 home victory over

. He also scored in his lone

2011–12 Coppa Italia The 2011–12 Coppa Italia, also known as TIM Cup for sponsorship reasons, was the 65th edition of the domestic competition. As in the previous year, 78 clubs took part in the tournament. Internazionale were the cup holders. Napoli were the winner ...

appearance for ''La Dea''.

Juventus

On 24 August 2012,

Juventus Juventus Football Club (; from , ), commonly known as Juventus or colloquially as Juve (), is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football clubs in Italy, club based in Turin, Piedmont, who compete in Serie A, the ...

officially signed Gabbiadini in a new co-ownership agreement for €5.5 million, however it involved €3.5 million cash along with the co-ownership of

James Troisi James Troisi ( ; born 3 July 1988) is a former Australian professional Association football, soccer player who plays as an attacking midfielder or Winger (association football), winger. Early life Troisi was born in Rose Park, South Australia, ...

's contract, which was valued at €2 million. Troisi was a free agent just two days prior to the deal, but signed by Juventus for the sole purpose of this negotiation.

Loan to Bologna

Immediately following his transfer to the city of

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

, Gabbiadini was loaned to fellow Serie A side Bologna on a season-long loan deal. The loan deal was not confirmed until the final week of the 2012 summer transfer window, though Gabbiadini previously trained with Bologna days before the deal was officially finalized. He enjoyed a productive year at Bologna, scoring seven goals in 31 appearances during the

2012–13 Serie A The 2012–13 Serie A (known as the Serie A TIM for sponsorship reasons) was the 111th season of top-tier Italian football, the 81st in a round-robin tournament, and the 3rd since its organization under a league committee separate from Serie B. ...

season. On 19 June 2013, at the end of the campaign, the co-ownership agreement between Atalanta and Juventus was renewed, with the player's registration rights remaining with Juventus.

Sampdoria

On 9 July 2013,

acquired the 50 percent registration rights of Gabbiadini from Atalanta for €5.5 million, with Juventus retained the remaining 50 percent registration rights. Gabbiadini would spend the

2013–14 Serie A The 2013–14 Serie A (known as the Serie A TIM for sponsorship reasons) was the 112th season of top-tier Italian football, the 82nd in a round-robin tournament, and the 4th since its organization under a league committee separate from Serie B. ...

for the

Liguria Liguria (; ; , ) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is roughly coextensive with ...

n club. In his first season with the ''Blucerchiati'', he scored ten goals, a personal best, in 35 appearances.

Napoli

In January 2015, Gabbiadini joined

for a reported fee of €13 million, to be split equally between Sampdoria and Juventus, each owning 50 percent of the player at the time of the deal. (Juventus later declared that their revenue was €6.25 million). He made his debut on 11 January against former team Juventus at the

Stadio San Paolo Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, formerly known as Stadio San Paolo, is an all-seater football stadium in Naples, Italy. Completed in 1959, it is the fourth largest football stadium in Italy after Milan's San Siro, Rome's Stadio Olimpico and ...

, replacing

José Callejón José María Callejón Bueno (; born 11 February 1987) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a forward or winger. He began his career with the reserve teams of Real Madrid, but made a name for himself at Espanyol. In 2011 ...

for the last 17 minutes of a 3–1 defeat. His first goal for the team came on 1 February, the winner in a 2–1 victory away to

Chievo Chievo (4,500 inhabitants) is a frazione of Verona located to the west of the city, around from the historic city centre, on the shores of the river Adige. It is best known for its football team, A.C. ChievoVerona. History The name came from t ...

from

Ivan Strinić Ivan Strinić (; born 17 July 1987) is a Croatian former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Defender (association football)#Full-back, left-back. Strinić spent his professional career playing in a number of clubs from ...

's assist. On 19 March 2016, he scored a first-half brace in a 6–0 victory over

Southampton

On 31 January 2017, Gabbiadini signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with

. The transfer fee paid was reported to be in the region of £14 million to £15 million depending on the source, although the club did not officially disclose the transfer fee. On 4 February 2017, he scored his first goal for the club on his debut in the

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

in a 1–3 loss to

West Ham West Ham is a district in East London, England and is in the London Borough of Newham. It is an inner-city suburb located east of Charing Cross. The area was originally an ancient parish formed to serve parts of the older Manor of Ham, a ...

. He started his second game for Southampton on 11 February and scored twice inside the first 45 minutes in Southampton's 4–0 win at

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

. He scored two more goals in his next match (and had a further goal disallowed incorrectly for offside), in the 2017 EFL Cup Final on 26 February, in a 3–2 defeat by

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

to bring his goal-scoring tally to five in his first three matches for Southampton. With his goal in the next match, a 4–3 win at

Watford Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne. Initially a smal ...

on 4 March, Gabbiadini became the first Saints player to score in each of his first four matches for the club. His performances for Southampton throughout the February period saw him awarded the Premier League's PFA Fans’ Player of the Month award.

Return to Sampdoria

On 11 January 2019, Gabbiadini returned to Italy and signed with former club

, for a reported fee of £12 million.

Al-Nasr

On 29 July 2023, Gabbiadini signed for Emirati club

International career

Youth

On 17 November 2010, Gabbiadini made his debut with the Italian under-21 squad in a friendly game against

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. On 29 March 2011, he scored his first goal for the U21 team in a friendly game against

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. On 6 October 2011, he scored a

hat trick A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mechan ...

in the away match won 7–2 against

Liechtenstein Liechtenstein (, ; ; ), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein ( ), is a Landlocked country#Doubly landlocked, doubly landlocked Swiss Standard German, German-speaking microstate in the Central European Alps, between Austria in the east ...

. He took part at the

2013 UEFA European Under-21 Championship 2013 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, or simply the 2013 Euro Under-21, was the 19th staging of UEFA's UEFA European Under-21 Championship, European Under-21 Championship. The final tournament was hosted by Israel from 5–18 June 2013. The Is ...

s in Israel, scoring two goals against hosts

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

in the group stage, as Italy went on to reach the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...

, only to lose to

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

Senior

On 15 August 2012, Gabbiadini made his debut with the Italian senior team, playing in the second half of the friendly match against

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

Bern Bern (), or Berne (), ; ; ; . is the ''de facto'' Capital city, capital of Switzerland, referred to as the "federal city".; ; ; . According to the Swiss constitution, the Swiss Confederation intentionally has no "capital", but Bern has gov ...

, which Italy lost 2–1. On 17 November 2015, he came off the bench to score his first international goal for Italy in the 66th minute of a 2–2 friendly home draw against

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

, in

, although he was forced off early after sustaining an injury.

Style of play

Regarded as one of the most promising Italian players of his generation, Gabbiadini is a versatile, creative, well-rounded, and hardworking

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People *Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Smal ...

, with an eye for goal, who is capable of playing in several offensive positions, either in the

centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

as a striker, as a supporting forward, as an

attacking midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

, or as a winger on either flank. His preferred role is on the right, however, where he is capable of cutting into the middle and

curling Curling is a sport in which players slide #Curling stone, stones on a sheet of ice toward a target area that is segmented into four concentric circles. It is related to bowls, boules, and shuffleboard. Two teams, each with four players, take t ...

shots on goal with his stronger left foot, rather than looking to deliver crosses into the area from the touchline. A dynamic player with good tactical awareness, he possesses pace, as well as a good positional sense and offensive movement, which allow him to play between the lines, or take advantage of openings and spaces by making attacking runs into good areas in which he can receive the ball. He also possesses good control, quick feet, and technical skills, which, along with his strength, enable him to retain possession when playing with his back to goal and hold up the ball for teammates. Gabbiadini is capable both of

creating Creation or The Creation or Creations, may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film * ''Creation'' (1922 film), a British silent drama * ''Creation'' (unfinished film), 1931 * ''Creation'' (2009 film), about Charles Darwin Literature * ''Creation ...

and scoring goals due to his intelligence, link-up play, and his powerful and accurate shot with his left foot, in particular from outside the penalty area; he is also an accurate set-piece taker. In spite of his height and physique, he is not particularly strong in the air.

Personal life

Gabbiadini's older sister Melania is also a forward, who has spent most of her career with AGSM Verona and plays internationally for the

Italy women's national football team The Italy women's national football team () has represented Italy in international women's football since their inception in 1968. The team is controlled by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), the governing body for football in Italy. Form ...

. He has mentioned her as a formative influence. On 17 June 2017, Gabbiadini married his long-term partner Martina Rubini in the parish church of

Sasso Marconi Sasso Marconi ( Bolognese: ) is a town and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Bologna in northern Italy, south-southwest of Bologna. Known as Sasso Bolognese until 1938, it is named after Guglielmo Marconi, the radio pioneer, who was born in t ...

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Italy's goal tally first.''

Honours

Southampton *

EFL Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

runner-up: 2016–17 Individual * Premier League PFA Fans’ Player of the Month: February 2017

References

External links

Profile at Lega-Calcio.it

Profile at La Gazzetta dello Sport (2009–10)

FIGC National Team data

Tuttomercatoweb.com
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gabbiadini, Manolo 1991 births Living people Men's association football forwards Italian men's footballers Italy men's youth international footballers Italy men's under-21 international footballers Italy men's international footballers Italian expatriate men's footballers Serie A players Serie B players Premier League players UAE Pro League players Atalanta BC players AS Cittadella players UC Sampdoria players Juventus FC players Bologna FC 1909 players SSC Napoli players Southampton F.C. players Al-Nasr SC (Dubai) players Italian expatriate sportspeople in England Italian expatriate sportspeople in the United Arab Emirates Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in the United Arab Emirates Footballers from Calcinate 21st-century Italian sportsmen