Federico Balzaretti
Encyclopedia
Federico Balzaretti is an Italian
footballer who currently plays as a left back
for Serie A
club Palermo
and Italy national football team
.
Known as 'Balzac' by most fans, he grew up since the age of 6 in the Torino
youth system, debuting for the granata in season 2002–03. After a couple of seasons on loan to Varese
and Siena
, 'Balzac' was heavily involved in the 2004–05 Serie B
campaign of Torino, which brought the team to a Serie A
promotion.
However, as Torino disbanded right after that promotion, 'Balzac' was released in a free transfer, and was signed by city arch-rivals Juventus. In 2005–06 he was part of the first team for the bianconeri, often playing as regular under orders of coach Fabio Capello
, and finally winning the Serie A league.
'Balzac's' first ever senior goal game on 17 February 2007, in Serie B
, as Juventus beat Crotone
5–0. He was sold to Fiorentina
on July 2007, but failed to impress with the viola as he made only six appearances in the first half of the Serie A 2007-08
, and was subsequently signed by Palermo
in a permanent move during the January transfer market. At Palermo, he took the #42 jersey as a homage to his father, who was born in 1942; in his tenure with the Sicilian side, he immediately established himself as a mainstay, playing regularly for the rosanero also in the following seasons and establishing as one of the most praised Italian left backs. It is reported he will join Paris Saint-Germain F.C. in January 2012 or the summer of 2012 as Palermo have agreed to sell him.
under coach Cesare Prandelli
on 17 November 2010, in a friendly match against Romania
.
|1999-00||rowspan="2"|Varese
||Serie C1||17||0||0||0||0||0||17||0
|-
|2000-01||||27||0||2||0||0||0||29||0
|-
|2001-02||Siena
||Serie B
||16||0||4||0||0||0||20||0
|-
|2002-03||rowspan="3"|Torino
||Serie A
||13||0||1||0||0||0||14||0
|-
|2003-04||rowspan="2"|Serie B
||39||0||0||0||0||0||39||0
|-
|2004-05||38+4||1+1||7||0||0||0||49||2
|-
94||2||8||0||0||0||102||2
|-
|2005-06||rowspan="2"|Juventus
||Serie A
||20||0||4||0||4||0||28||0
|-
|2006-07||Serie B
||37||2||3||0||0||0||40||2
|-
|2007-08||Fiorentina
||Serie A
||6||0||2||0||3||0||11||0
|-
|2007-08||rowspan="5"|Palermo
||rowspan="5"|Serie A
||16||0||0||0||0||0||16||0
|-
|2008-09||33||0||1||0||0||0||34||0
|-
|2009-10||34||1||2||0||0||0||36||1
|-
|2010-11||33||2||4||0||7||0||44||2
|-
|2011-12||9||0||0||0||2||0||11||0
|-
125||3||7||0||9||0||141||3
337||6||24||0||16||0||377||6
Eleonora Abbagnato; their wedding took place in summer of 2011 in Palermo. She is six months pregnant with their first child as of October 2011.
Italian people
The Italian people are an ethnic group that share a common Italian culture, ancestry and speak the Italian language as a mother tongue. Within Italy, Italians are defined by citizenship, regardless of ancestry or country of residence , and are distinguished from people...
footballer who currently plays as a left back
Defender (association football)
Within the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposition from attacking....
for Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
club Palermo
U.S. Città di Palermo
Unione Sportiva Città di Palermo is an Italian football club from Palermo, Sicily which currently plays in Serie A, the top level of Italian football. Formed in 1900 as Anglo Panormitan Athletic and Football Club, the club had various names before assuming its final form in 1987 and is currently...
and Italy national football team
Italy national football team
The Italy National Football Team , represents Italy in association football and is controlled by the Italian Football Federation , the governing body for football in Italy. Italy is the second most successful national team in the history of the World Cup having won four titles , just one fewer than...
.
Club career
Torino F.C.
Torino Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Torino, is a professional Italian football club based in Turin, Piedmont, that was founded in 1906. The club has spent most of its history in the top tier in Italian football....
youth system, debuting for the granata in season 2002–03. After a couple of seasons on loan to Varese
A.S. Varese 1910
A.S. Varese 1910 is an Italian football club from Varese, founded 22 March 1910. It currently plays in Serie B, ranked one division below Serie A in the Italian football league.-History:...
and Siena
A.C. Siena
Associazione Calcio Siena is an Italian football club based in Siena.The club currently plays in Serie A, having gained promotion from Serie B at the end of the 2010-2011 season....
, 'Balzac' was heavily involved in the 2004–05 Serie B
Serie B
Serie B, currently named Serie bwin due to sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega Serie B since July 2010, after the split of Lega Calcio that previously took care of both the...
campaign of Torino, which brought the team to a Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
promotion.
However, as Torino disbanded right after that promotion, 'Balzac' was released in a free transfer, and was signed by city arch-rivals Juventus. In 2005–06 he was part of the first team for the bianconeri, often playing as regular under orders of coach Fabio Capello
Fabio Capello
Fabio Capello is an Italian football manager and former player. He is the manager of the England national football team.Capello has the distinction of winning the domestic league title with every club he has coached throughout his career...
, and finally winning the Serie A league.
'Balzac's' first ever senior goal game on 17 February 2007, in Serie B
Serie B
Serie B, currently named Serie bwin due to sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega Serie B since July 2010, after the split of Lega Calcio that previously took care of both the...
, as Juventus beat Crotone
F.C. Crotone
Football Club Crotone is an Italian football club based in Crotone, Calabria. Founded in 1923, it currently plays in Serie B, holding home games at Stadio Ezio Scida, which has a 9,631-seat capacity.-History:...
5–0. He was sold to Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as simply Fiorentina, is a professional Italian football club from Florence, Tuscany. Founded by a merger in 1926, Fiorentina have played at the top level of Italian football for the majority of their existence; only four clubs have played in more Serie A...
on July 2007, but failed to impress with the viola as he made only six appearances in the first half of the Serie A 2007-08
Serie A 2007-08
The 2007-08 Serie A football season was the seventy-sixth since its establishment, and started on August 26, 2007 and ended on May 18, 2008. Internazionale successfully defended the championship on the final day of the season, finishing first with 85 points, three ahead of Roma.-Plusvalenze...
, and was subsequently signed by Palermo
U.S. Città di Palermo
Unione Sportiva Città di Palermo is an Italian football club from Palermo, Sicily which currently plays in Serie A, the top level of Italian football. Formed in 1900 as Anglo Panormitan Athletic and Football Club, the club had various names before assuming its final form in 1987 and is currently...
in a permanent move during the January transfer market. At Palermo, he took the #42 jersey as a homage to his father, who was born in 1942; in his tenure with the Sicilian side, he immediately established himself as a mainstay, playing regularly for the rosanero also in the following seasons and establishing as one of the most praised Italian left backs. It is reported he will join Paris Saint-Germain F.C. in January 2012 or the summer of 2012 as Palermo have agreed to sell him.
International career
After playing with a number of youth selections between 2000 and 2002, Balzaretti made his debut with the Italian national teamItaly national football team
The Italy National Football Team , represents Italy in association football and is controlled by the Italian Football Federation , the governing body for football in Italy. Italy is the second most successful national team in the history of the World Cup having won four titles , just one fewer than...
under coach Cesare Prandelli
Cesare Prandelli
Cesare Claudio Prandelli is an Italian football coach and former player. He is currently the manager of the Italy national football team.-Playing career:...
on 17 November 2010, in a friendly match against Romania
Romania national football team
The Romania national football team is the national football team of Romania and is controlled by the Romanian Football Federation.Romania is one of only four national teams, the other three being Brazil, France, and Belgium, that took part in the first three World Cups.However, after that...
.
Career statistics
|-|1999-00||rowspan="2"|Varese
A.S. Varese 1910
A.S. Varese 1910 is an Italian football club from Varese, founded 22 March 1910. It currently plays in Serie B, ranked one division below Serie A in the Italian football league.-History:...
||Serie C1||17||0||0||0||0||0||17||0
|-
|2000-01||||27||0||2||0||0||0||29||0
|-
|2001-02||Siena
A.C. Siena
Associazione Calcio Siena is an Italian football club based in Siena.The club currently plays in Serie A, having gained promotion from Serie B at the end of the 2010-2011 season....
||Serie B
Serie B
Serie B, currently named Serie bwin due to sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega Serie B since July 2010, after the split of Lega Calcio that previously took care of both the...
||16||0||4||0||0||0||20||0
|-
|2002-03||rowspan="3"|Torino
Torino F.C.
Torino Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Torino, is a professional Italian football club based in Turin, Piedmont, that was founded in 1906. The club has spent most of its history in the top tier in Italian football....
||Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
||13||0||1||0||0||0||14||0
|-
|2003-04||rowspan="2"|Serie B
Serie B
Serie B, currently named Serie bwin due to sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega Serie B since July 2010, after the split of Lega Calcio that previously took care of both the...
||39||0||0||0||0||0||39||0
|-
|2004-05||38+4||1+1||7||0||0||0||49||2
|-
94||2||8||0||0||0||102||2
|-
|2005-06||rowspan="2"|Juventus
Juventus F.C.
Juventus Football Club S.p.A. , commonly referred to as Juventus and colloquially as Juve , are a professional Italian association football club based in Turin, Piedmont...
||Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
||20||0||4||0||4||0||28||0
|-
|2006-07||Serie B
Serie B
Serie B, currently named Serie bwin due to sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega Serie B since July 2010, after the split of Lega Calcio that previously took care of both the...
||37||2||3||0||0||0||40||2
|-
|2007-08||Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as simply Fiorentina, is a professional Italian football club from Florence, Tuscany. Founded by a merger in 1926, Fiorentina have played at the top level of Italian football for the majority of their existence; only four clubs have played in more Serie A...
||Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
||6||0||2||0||3||0||11||0
|-
|2007-08||rowspan="5"|Palermo
U.S. Città di Palermo
Unione Sportiva Città di Palermo is an Italian football club from Palermo, Sicily which currently plays in Serie A, the top level of Italian football. Formed in 1900 as Anglo Panormitan Athletic and Football Club, the club had various names before assuming its final form in 1987 and is currently...
||rowspan="5"|Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
||16||0||0||0||0||0||16||0
|-
|2008-09||33||0||1||0||0||0||34||0
|-
|2009-10||34||1||2||0||0||0||36||1
|-
|2010-11||33||2||4||0||7||0||44||2
|-
|2011-12||9||0||0||0||2||0||11||0
|-
125||3||7||0||9||0||141||3
337||6||24||0||16||0||377||6
Private life
Balzaretti is married to renowned Italian ballerinaBallerina
A ballerina is a title used to describe a principal female professional ballet dancer in a large company; the male equivalent to this title is danseur or ballerino...
Eleonora Abbagnato; their wedding took place in summer of 2011 in Palermo. She is six months pregnant with their first child as of October 2011.
Honours
Juventus-
- Serie A championsSerie ASerie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
: 2005–06
- Serie A champions