Cristian Volpato

Cristian Volpato
Personal information
Date of birth (2003-11-15) 15 November 2003 (age 21)
Place of birth Camperdown, New South Wales, Australia
Height 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s) Attacking midfielder, winger
Team information
Current team
 Sassuolo
Number 7
Youth career
2013–2015 Sydney United 58
2016–2018 Sydney FC
2018–2020 Western Sydney Wanderers
2020–2022 Roma
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2021–2023 Roma 10 (2)
2023– Sassuolo 22 (1)
International career‡
2022 Italy U19 4 (2)
2022–2023 Italy U20 7 (2)
2022– Italy U21 6 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 29 May 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 16 June 2024

Cristian Volpato (born 15 November 2003) is a professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or winger for Serie B club Sassuolo. Born and raised in Australia, Volpato has represented Italy internationally at youth level since 2022.

Early life

Volpato was born in Camperdown,[1][2][3][4][5] an inner western suburb of Sydney in Australia.[6] He attended the prestigious rugby school St Joseph's College Hunters Hill.[7] Volpato is of Italian descent, both his parents are second generation Italians.

Club career

Youth career

Volpato first started playing football in Abbotsford, in Sydney suburbs, where he was a prolific goalscorer.[6][8][9]

This allowed him to take his first steps into professional football, at Andrea Icardi's AC Milan Soccer School, Sydney FC and the Western Sydney Wanderers academy.[8][9][10][11][12][13] He soon earned a trial in the AS Roma Youth Sector through Fabrizio Piccareta.[2][11][14][15]

After a few months in Rome where he was able to demonstrate his attacking abilities, the young footballer signed a three-year contract with the club from the Italian capital in January 2020.[8][10][16][17] A month later he also joined Francesco Totti's agency, while he had already taken the number 10 shirt with Roma's Youth.[2][3][10][14][18][19]

A year later, Volpato signed his first professional contract with Roma, a new three-year deal tying him to the club until 2024.[9][11][20] As the youth competitions due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy, he then became a regular with the under-18, scoring five goals during the 2020–21 season, soon earning a place in the under-19s squad.[1][8][14]

Roma

Volpato made his professional debut for Roma on 4 December 2021, aged 18, in a Serie A match lost 3–0 against Inter Milan.[4][8][21] On 19 February 2022, Volpato scored his first Serie A goal in a match drawn 2–2 against Hellas Verona.[22]

In the following season, after making his debut in the UEFA Europa League with Roma, he made his first league appearance on 31 October 2022, coming on as a substitute for Nicolò Zaniolo at the 57th minute of the match against Hellas Verona. In the occasion, he scored a goal and assisted Stephan El Shaarawy for another one, thus helping Roma obtain a 3–1 win.[23][24]

Sassuolo

After stalling for much of negotiation,[25] on 29 June 2023, Volpato signed a contract to Sassuolo,[26] after completing a €7.5 million transfer which included a 15% future resale fee.[27] The transfer is the third-highest fee for an Australian player.[28]

Volpato scored his first goal for Sassuolo against Bologna on 3 February 2024.

International career

Despite being born in Australia, Volpato is a dual citizen of both Australia and Italy,[29] Volpato is eligible to represent either Australia or Italy internationally.[30]

In early August 2021, Volpato was called by Carmine Nunziata to the Italy national under-19 team,[31] being however forced to forfeit a few days later.[32] He took part in the 2022 UEFA European Under-19 Championship with Italy U19, scoring two goals in the tournament.[citation needed]

"I spoke to Cristian [Volpato] yesterday three times. [...] I pretty much told him yesterday that he was in the 26-man squad. [...] He came back last night and declined the offer to come and play for Australia at the World Cup. That's his decision at the end of the day."

– Australia national team manager Graham Arnold on Volpato declining the offer to represent Australia at the 2022 FIFA World Cup

On 12 December 2021, it was reported that Australia national team manager Graham Arnold was considering calling up Volpato for the upcoming 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Vietnam and Oman. He was also called up to the Australia U23 side; however, he was withdrawn from the squad by Roma.[33] In March 2022, following Australia's 2–0 loss to Japan, Volpato posted an image on his Snapchat story poking fun at the team. This led to many fans labeling him as "childish" and "immature".[34] With Australia announcing their World Cup squad on 8 November, Graham Arnold disclosed that Volpato had been offered a spot in the 26 man squad, but declined the opportunity.[35]

On 19 November 2022, he made his debut for the Italy U21 squad in a friendly match lost 4–2 against Germany.[citation needed]

Style of play

Volpato is able to play both as a trequartista or a winger.[2][5] Seen as a regista or deep-lying playmaker in his early career,[17] he is often compared to Totti, his model as a number 10 and his direct mentor in his first year at Roma.[2][3][8][10][14]

Career statistics

As of match played 26 May 2024[36]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Coppa Italia Europe Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Roma 2021–22 Serie A 3 1 0 0 0 0 3 1
2022–23 7 1 1 0 3[a] 0 11 1
Total 10 2 1 0 3 0 14 2
Sassuolo 2023–24 Serie A 22 1 3 0 — 25 1
Career total 34 3 4 0 3 0 41 3
  1. ^ Appearances in UEFA Europa League

Honours

Roma

References

  1. ^ a b Carina, Stefano (26 October 2021). "Roma, Mourinho convoca il 17enne Volpato, il primo della scuderia di Totti". Il Messaggero (in Italian). Archived from the original on 28 October 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d e Zucchelli, Chiara (27 October 2021). "Dalla scuderia Totti col 10 sulle spalle. Roma, la prima di Volpato". La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). Archived from the original on 27 October 2021. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  3. ^ a b c Bergantini, Luca (5 April 2021). "Christian Volpato, un Aussie nella città eterna". MondoPrimavera (in Italian). Archived from the original on 15 April 2021. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  4. ^ a b Federici, Thomas (4 December 2021). "Résultat et résumé AS Rome - Inter Milan, Serie A, 16e journée". L'Équipe (in French). Archived from the original on 5 December 2021. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  5. ^ a b Cardia, Ivan (1 November 2021). "Roma, Mourinho punta ancora sulla Primavera: i prossimi cinque talenti da lanciare". TUTTOmercatoWEB (in Italian). Archived from the original on 1 November 2021. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  6. ^ a b "Cristian Volpato is set to tear it up for AS Roma – and possibly turn his back on Australia". The Roar. 14 September 2021. Archived from the original on 15 September 2021. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  7. ^ "x.com".
  8. ^ a b c d e f Paoli, Alessandro (5 December 2021). "Esordio in A per Volpato. Il 10 italo-austrialiano nel segno di Totti". Voce Giallorossa (in Italian). TUTTOmercatoWEB. Archived from the original on 5 December 2021. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  9. ^ a b c Raso, Emilio (26 February 2021). "Volpato: "Che emozione lavorare con Dzeko, Pedro e Mkhitaryan"". Il Romanista. Archived from the original on 27 February 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  10. ^ a b c d Lewis, Dave (19 May 2020). "Meet the Roma-based Aussie who's been snapped up by Totti". SBS. Archived from the original on 6 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  11. ^ a b c Davidson, John (23 February 2021). "Aussie teenager signs pro deal with Roma". SBS. Archived from the original on 7 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  12. ^ Symonds, Nick (6 March 2021). "The next Socceroos golden generation". The Roar. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
  13. ^ "Football NSW squads ready for National Youth Championships". Football NSW. 28 September 2016. Archived from the original on 7 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  14. ^ a b c d Andrea Di Carlo (13 September 2021). "Volpato, numero 10 "benedetto" dal Capitano". Siamo la Roma (in Italian). Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  15. ^ Bossi, Dominic (16 September 2021). "Cut by Wanderers but selected for Italy: How Sydney kid slipped from Australia's grasp". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 16 September 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  16. ^ Rugari, Vince; Bossi, Dominic (23 January 2020). "Macarthur FC hit one Mile-stone, but losing hope of reaching another". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 23 January 2020. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  17. ^ a b "Roma scatenata sul mercato! Ecco Cristian Volpato". Gazzetta Regionale (in Italian). 21 January 2020. Archived from the original on 9 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  18. ^ Rupolo, Nicholas (19 February 2020). "The Mixer: Francesco Totti to sign Aussie starlet". FTBL. Archived from the original on 22 February 2020. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  19. ^ "Totti, presa la procura del giovane Cristian Volpato". IlRomanista.eu. 6 August 2020. Archived from the original on 19 September 2020. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  20. ^ "Roma, Volpato rinnova fino al 2024: "Incredibile allenarsi con Dzeko, Mkhitaryan e Pedro"". Roma news (in Italian). 23 February 2021. Archived from the original on 9 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  21. ^ Canicchio, Lorenzo (4 December 2021). "Esordio in Serie A per Cristian Volpato. Giornata comunque memorabile per lui". Gazzetta Regionale. Archived from the original on 4 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  22. ^ "Chi è Volpato, il talento gestito da Totti a segno in Roma-Verona | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
  23. ^ Ottaviano, Luca (31 October 2022). "Roma, da Verona a Verona: il filo giallorosso di Volpato". MondoPrimavera (in Italian). Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  24. ^ Rotondaro, Vittorio (1 November 2022). "Chi è Volpato, il talento gestito da Totti a segno due volte contro il Verona". Goal.com (in Italian). Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  25. ^ "Accordo Roma-Sassuolo per Volpato: 9 milioni alla 'Lupa', ma il giocatore temporeggia | Goal.com Italia". Goal Italia (in Italian). 12 June 2023.
  26. ^ "Calciomercato | Cristian Volpato è un nuovo calciatore neroverde". U.S. Sassuolo Calcio (in Italian). 29 June 2023.
  27. ^ Marzio, Gianluca Di. "Sassuolo, ufficiali gli acquisti di Volpato e Missori dalla Roma". Gianluca Di Marzio (in Italian).
  28. ^ "Teen prodigy seals third-biggest Aussie transfer ever as Socceroos locked in Italy tug of war". Fox Sports. 29 June 2023.
  29. ^ Austin, Jack. "'Bitter taste' could see Socceroos miss out on future superstar Cristian Volpato". Optus Sport. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
  30. ^ Lewis, Dave (2 March 2022). "'He loves Australia': AS Roma starlet ready to commit to Socceroos". FTBL.
  31. ^ "First match of the season on 13 August against Albania: Nunziata selects 25 Azzurrini". Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio. 6 August 2021. Archived from the original on 6 August 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  32. ^ Paoli, Alessandro (8 August 2021). "Forfait El Hilali, Volpato e Zanotti. Convocati Cavallini e Giovane". Tutto Nazionali (in Italian). Archived from the original on 5 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  33. ^ "Socceroos' plot to hand shock cap to Serie a prodigy Cristian Volpato, to avoid losing him to Italy". 12 December 2021.
  34. ^ Lewis, Dave (6 April 2022). "Online trolls 'driving' Roma starlet away from Socceroos". FTBL.
  35. ^ "Cristian Volpato declined to play for Socceroos at World Cup, says Australia coach Graham Arnold". www.sportingnews.com. 8 November 2022. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  36. ^ Cristian Volpato at Soccerway. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
  37. ^ Lowe, Sid (31 May 2023). "Montiel edges Sevilla to seventh Europa League triumph with win over Roma". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 1 June 2023.