Manuel Coppola (born 11 May 1982) is an Italian former
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 played as a
midfielder
In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...
.
Career
Early career
Born in Rome, Lazio, Coppola started his professional career at
Tivoli. In January 2004 he was signed by
Messina
Messina ( , ; ; ; ) is a harbour city and the capital city, capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of 216,918 inhabitants ...
, but spent the remainder of the season at
Brindisi
Brindisi ( ; ) is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Historically, the city has played an essential role in trade and culture due to its strategic position ...
. In July 2004 he was exchanged for
Marco Zoro, who was already on loan at Messina. Messina also retained the
50% registration rights.
Genoa
In June 2005, Messina bought back Coppola and sent him on loan to
Genoa
Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...
. Coppola won promotion back to Serie B in 2006. In mid-2006 Coppola joined Genoa outright for an undisclosed fee, while Messina secured the services of
Antonio Ghomsi
Antonio Ghomsi (born 22 April 1986) is a Cameroonian former footballer who played as a left-back.
Biography
Ghomsi started his career at Genoa. In July 2006, he was signed by Messina of Serie A. He made his Serie A debut on 1 October against L ...
for free,
Daniele De Vezze and
Massimo Minetti. He won promotion to Serie A in
2006–07 Serie B
The 2006–07 Serie B season is the 75th season since its establishment in 1929. It started on 9 September 2006 and ended on 10 June 2007. The 22 clubs in Serie B each played 42 matches during the regular season. The 2006–07 season marked the ...
. Coppola was not included in the club plan for the
2007–08 Serie A
The 2007–08 Serie A (known as the Serie A TIM for sponsorship reasons) was the 106th season of top-tier Italian football, the 76th in a round-robin tournament. It started on 25 August 2007 and ended on 18 May 2008. Internazionale Milano succe ...
, which he only played once.
Siena
In January 2008, he moved to another Serie A club
Siena
Siena ( , ; traditionally spelled Sienna in English; ) is a city in Tuscany, in central Italy, and the capital of the province of Siena. It is the twelfth most populated city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 52,991 ...
in a temporary deal, with the option to buy
half of the registration rights. In June 2008 Siena exercised this option for €1.5 million.
[Genoa CFC Report and Accounts on 30 June 2008 ] In July 2008 Siena also signed
Abdelkader Ghezzal
Abdelkader Mohamed Ghezzal (; born 5 December 1984) is a former professional footballer who played as a forward or midfield playmaker. Born in France, he made 28 appearances for the Algeria national team scoring 3 goals.
Club career Crotone ...
(for €3.5 million, Genoa bought him for €2 million in June) and bought back
Fernando Forestieri for €4.5 million in June (was €1.7 million a year before
[). The deals effectively made Siena paid Genoa €500,000 cash and 50% registration rights of Forestieri to acquire 50% registration rights of Coppola and Ghezzal from Genoa and Genoa paid Crotone €2 million cash for Ghezzal.
Coppola was only able to play 15 games during the ]2008–09 Serie A
The 2008–09 Serie A (known as the Serie A TIM for sponsorship reasons) was the 107th season of top-tier Italian football, the 77th in a round-robin tournament. It began on 30 August 2008 and ended on 31 May 2009, with the announcement of the ...
season. In June 2009 Siena signed Coppola outright for another €1.5 million and also signed Gianluca Pegolo
Gianluca Pegolo (born 25 March 1981) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper.
Career Early career
Pegolo was born in Bassano del Grappa. He joined Genoa on 6 July 2007 on free transfer. He left for Mantova on 31 August ...
for €1 million (a year before a free agent). Co-currently, Siena sold Houssine Kharja to Genoa for €6.5 million. The deals, again effectively made Genoa acquired Kharja for €4 million cash plus 50% registration rights of Coppola and Pegolo. However, Coppola was involved in another player swap.
Parma
Coppola moved to 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, ...
on 1 July 2009 for €3 million (plus €250,000 other fees[), on a five-year contract.][Parma FC SpA Report and Accounts on 30 June 2010 ] In June 2009 Parma also signed Daniele Galloppa (in co-ownership for €5M[); Parma sold Francesco Parravicini (€2.5M][Parma FC SpA Report and Accounts on 30 June 2019 ] ) and Reginaldo Reginaldo may refer to:
* Maicosuel Reginaldo de Matos (born 1986), footballer
* Reginaldo Araújo (born 1977), Brazilian defender
* Reginaldo de Santana (born 1975), Brazilian football player
* Reginaldo (footballer born 1983) full name Reginal ...
(50% rights for €2.5 million[) to Siena in June. The deals, again effectively made Parma acquired 50% registration rights of Galloppa and full rights of Coppola for €3 million cash plus full rights of Parravicini and 50% registration rights of Reginaldo from Siena. (In 2011 Parma gave Ângelo to Siena for €2.5 million, who a year before a free agent, and another 50% of Reginaldo to Siena for €2.5 million, to acquire the remaining 50% of Galloppa for €5 million)][
After not playing for Parma in the first two games, On 28 August 2009, Coppola was loaned to ]Torino
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 ...
along with Julio César de León
Julio César de León Dailey (; born 13 September 1979) is a Honduran professional footballer who currently plays for Olancho in the Honduran Liga Nacional de Ascenso as a midfielder. He is known for being a free-kick specialist and was an i ...
for free.[ Parma also signed ]Nicola Amoruso
Nicola Amoruso (born 29 August 1974) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a forward. An elegant, technically gifted, and agile forward, known for his delicate touch on the ball and use of feints, he usually played in a ...
from Turin on the same day also for free.[ However, Torino also received €250,000 as ''premi di valorizzazione'' for León's deal.][
In the summer 2010 of Coppola left for US Lecce in temporary deal for €400,000; however, the loan contract also included a bonus deal that Parma paid Lecce €600,000 as ''premi di valorizzazione'', effectively made Parma had to subsidy the loan deal for €200,000 cash.][Parma FC SpA Report and Accounts on 30 June 2011 ]
In the summer of 2011 Coppola left for Empoli F.C. for €300,000 in temporary deal, co-currently Gianluca Musacci moved to Parma also in temporary deal for €300,000.[
]
Siena return
In June 2012, he returned to Siena from Parma in a co-ownership deal; however, it was a financial success only.
Coppola wore no.5 shirt for Siena; however, Coppola again failed to adapt to Serie A football; even Siena was struggling in the bottom.
Cesena
In January 2013, he left for AC Cesena
AC Cesena, commonly referred to as Cesena (), was an Italian football club based in Cesena, Emilia-Romagna. The club spent most of its history in professional leagues such as Serie A and Serie B, but went bankrupt and folded in 2018. Another cl ...
in temporary deal; the deal was extended on 4 July 2013. In June 2014 the co-ownership between Siena and Parma on Coppola was renewed again. On 15 July 2014, Siena officially expelled from Serie B due to financial difficulties, thus Coppola became a free agent. On 23 July 2014, Coppola signed a one-year contract with Serie A newcomers Cesena.
Catania
On 13 January 2015, Coppola was transferred to 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 ...
club Calcio Catania
Catania Football Club, commonly known as Catania, is an Football in Italy, Italian football club based in the city of Catania, Sicily, that plays in Serie C.
Originally founded in 1908 as ''Associazione Sportiva pro Educazione Fisica'', the clu ...
on a -year contract. Catania was relegated at the start of 2015–16 season due to match fixing scandal, thus Coppola left the club.
Ternana
On 27 August 2015, Coppolla was signed by Serie B club Ternana Calcio
Ternana Calcio, commonly referred to as Ternana, is an Italian football club based in Terni, Umbria and currently compete in the Serie C.
The club was founded in 1925 and refounded in 1993. In its history, Ternana has twice played in Serie A ...
in a one-year deal.
Footnotes
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coppola, Manuel
Living people
1982 births
Footballers from Rome
Men's association football midfielders
Italian men's footballers
Serie A players
Serie B players
Serie D players
US Salernitana 1919 players
Genoa CFC players
Siena FC SSD players
Parma Calcio 1913 players
Torino FC players
US Lecce players
Empoli FC players
AC Cesena players
Catania FC players
Ternana Calcio players
21st-century Italian sportsmen