Mattia Cassani (Italian pronunciation: [matˈtiːa kasˈsaːni]; born 26 August 1983) is an Italian former footballer who played as a defender.

Mattia Cassani
Personal information
Date of birth (1983-08-26) 26 August 1983 (age 41)
Place of birth Borgomanero, Italy
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s) Right back
Team information
Current team
Bari
Number 15
Youth career
Juventus
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2002–2003 Juventus 0 (0)
2003Sampdoria (loan) 2 (0)
2003–2006 Verona 118 (0)
2006–2011 Palermo 161 (2)
2011–2013 Fiorentina 34 (1)
2013Genoa (loan) 5 (0)
2013–2015 Parma 52 (0)
2015–2016 Sampdoria 25 (0)
2016–2018 Bari 28 (0)
Total 425 (3)
International career
2003 Italy U-20[1] 6 (0)
2004 Italy U-21 Serie B 1 (0)
2009–2012 Italy[1] 11 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17 October 2016
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 11 September 2012

Club career

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Juventus

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Cassani started his career at Juventus during the 2002–03 Serie A season, and then left for Sampdoria on loan in January 2003.

Verona

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In June 2003 he left for Hellas Verona on loan with an option to buy him outright for €800,000,[2][3] Cassani was awarded the number 83 shirt.[4] The loan was extended for one more year in the same month.[5] In June 2005, Verona bought him in a co-ownership deal for €400,000.[6] With Juventus facing the 2006 Italian football scandal they terminated all co-ownership deals, either selling or buying back, Verona bought Cassani outright in June 2006 for an undisclosed fee, thought to be around €1.43M.[7]

Palermo

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Cassani, who had made a name for himself as a versatile fullback, capable of playing on either flank, joined Palermo on 1 July 2006,[8] for €2.5 million[9] on a five-year contract[9] along with teammate Gianni Munari (who joined the club in a co-ownership deal[8] for €1 million[9] on a four-year contract[9]). That season Palermo also sold Fabio Grosso.

On 6 April 2008, Cassani scored his first professional goal, a late 28 yard shot which gave Palermo a 3–2 home win against his former club Juventus ending a string of four consecutive defeats.[10]

In October 2008, his contract was renewed until 30 June 2013.[11] Cassani extended his contract again during the 2010–11 season, until 30 June 2015. Cassani also served as team captain during the first period of the 2010–11 season due to the absence of both Fabrizio Miccoli and Fabio Liverani.

On 2 February 2011, Cassani made his 151st appearance with Palermo, thus becoming the most capped player in Serie A history for the rosanero.[12]

Fiorentina

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On 24 August 2011 he moved to Fiorentina on loan, for €2 million,[13] with an option to make the move permanent at the end of the season, for another €2.75 million.[13][14] On 2 July 2012 he moved permanently to Fiorentina for the pre-agreed price on a three-year contract.[13][15][16]

On 30 January 2013 he moved to Genoa in a temporary deal with the option to purchase, rejoining Rubén Olivera.[17] In June 2013 Genoa did not excise their option to buy Cassani and sold Nenad Tomović to Fiorentina in a forced auction, as both clubs failed to form an agreement before the deadline. On 7 July 2013, Cassani and Olivera were included in La Viola's pre-season friendly.[18] Both players were not in the starting line-up.[19]

Parma

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On 8 August 2013, Cassani was signed by Parma on a temporary deal with the option to buy.[20] In July 2014 he was signed outright.[21][22]

Return to Sampdoria

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On 2 July 2015, Cassani joined Sampdoria on a free transfer, having been recently released by Parma.[23]

International career

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Cassani was capped at U20 level, a development squad to fill the gap between U19 team and the U21.

He also played for the U21 B team consisting of Serie B players, against Belgium U21 on 30 March 2004.[24] On the same day Italy U21 team also scheduled a match against Portugal U21.

In May 2009, Cassani got his first senior national call-up to play for Italy against Northern Ireland,[25] but did not make his debut on that occasion.[26] After receiving his second call-up for Italy's friendlies against the Netherlands and Sweden in November later that year,[27] he made his international debut on 18 November 2009, coming on as a substitute for Christian Maggio in a 1–0 friendly win against Sweden, earning praise for his performance.[28]

Although he was initially named to Lippi's 30 and 28-men provisional 2010 FIFA World Cup squads,[29] he was not included in the 23-men final squad for the tournament, as Italy suffered a first round elimination.[30]

On 6 August 2010, he received his first call-up under new Italy manager Cesare Prandelli for a friendly match against the Ivory Coast,[31] making a substitute appearance in a 1–0 defeat, coming on for Marco Motta in the 70th minute of the match.[32] Cassani was subsequently also called up for Italy's UEFA Euro 2012 qualifiers against Estonia and the Faroe Islands,[33] making his first competitive appearance for Italy, and his first international appearance as a starter in a 2–1 away win over Estonia on 3 September 2010;[34] in total he made 4 appearances in the European qualifiers.[1]

Style of play

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A quick, energetic and versatile right-footed full-back, although he is usually deployed on the right, Cassani is capable of playing along either flank, and is effective both offensively and defensively, due to his good defensive skills, consistency and work-rate, as well as his crossing accuracy, technique, and ability to make attacking runs; he has also occasionally been deployed as a centre-back, due to his tenacity and physique.[35][36][37]

Career statistics

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Club

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As of 31 July 2013
Club performance League Cup Continental Total
Season Club League Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
2002–03 Juventus Serie A 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0
2002–03 Sampdoria Serie B 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
2003–04 Verona 37 0 1 0 0 0 38 0
2004–05 40 0 3 0 0 0 43 0
2005–06 41 0 2 0 0 0 43 0
Total Verona 118 0 6 0 0 0 124 0
2006–07 Palermo Serie A 30 0 2 0 5 0 37 0
2007–08 26 1 2 0 1 0 29 1
2008–09 36 1 0 0 0 0 36 1
2009–10 37 0 3 0 0 0 40 0
2010–11 32 0 5 0 7 0 44 0
2011–12 0 0 0 0 2 0 2 0
Total Palermo 161 2 12 0 15 0 188 2
2011–12 Fiorentina Serie A 26 1 1 0 0 0 27 1
2012–13 8 0 2 0 0 0 10 0
Total Fiorentina 34 1 3 0 0 0 37 1
2012–13 Genoa Serie A 5 0 0 0 5 0
Total Genoa 5 0 0 0 5 0
Career total 320 3 21 0 16 0 357 3

International

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As of 11 September 2012[1]
Italy
Year Apps Goals
2009 1 0
2010 5 0
2011 4 0
2012 1 0
Total 11 0

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Cassani, Mattia – FIGC Archive" (in Italian). FIGC. Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  2. ^ "CALCIOMERCATO, ARRIVA IN PRESTITO DALLA JUVENTUS IL PROMETTENTE DIFENSORE MATTIA CASSANI" (in Italian). Hellas Verona FC. 25 June 2003. Retrieved 13 July 2013.
  3. ^ "Six-Monthly Report at 31 December 2003" (PDF). Juventus FC. 29 March 2004. Retrieved 13 July 2013.
  4. ^ "STAGIONE 2003/2004, LA NUMERAZIONE UFFICIALE DELL'HELLAS VERONA F.C." (in Italian). Hellas Verona FC. 31 July 2004. Retrieved 13 July 2013.
  5. ^ "CALCIOMERCATO: MATTIA CASSANI E CRISTIAN AGNELLI IN GIALLOBLU' ANCHE NEL 2004/2005" (in Italian). Hellas Verona FC. 23 June 2004. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
  6. ^ "Six-Monthly Report at 31 December 2005" (PDF). Juventus FC. 24 March 2006. Retrieved 24 June 2010.
  7. ^ "Reports and Financial Statements at 30 June 2007" (PDF). Juventus FC. 26 October 2007. Retrieved 25 April 2012.
  8. ^ a b "Acquistati Cassani e il 50% di Munari" (in Italian). US Città di Palermo. 1 July 2006. Retrieved 13 July 2013.
  9. ^ a b c d US Città di Palermo Report and Accounts on 30 June 2007 (in Italian)
  10. ^ "PALERMO GRAB LATE WIN". Sporting Life. 6 April 2008. Retrieved 7 April 2008.
  11. ^ "Cassani prolunga il contratto" (in Italian). US Città di Palermo. 14 October 2008. Retrieved 13 July 2013.
  12. ^ "Palermo-Juventus, le curiosità" (in Italian). TuttoMercatoWeb. 2 February 2011. Retrieved 2 February 2011.
  13. ^ a b c US Città di Palermo SpA Report and Accounts on 30 June 2012 (in Italian)
  14. ^ "Cassani in viola. Domani alle 11:30 la presentazione ufficiale" [Cassani is a Viola. Official press conference scheduled for tomorrow 11.30 am] (in Italian). ACF Fiorentina. 24 August 2011. Retrieved 25 August 2011.
  15. ^ "fiorentina riscattato Mattia Cassani dal palermo" (in Italian). violachannel.it. 2 July 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2012.
  16. ^ ACF Fiorentina SpA Report and Accounts on 31 December 2012 (in Italian)
  17. ^ "Cassani joins Genoa". Viola Channel. ACF Fiorentina. 30 January 2013. Retrieved 13 July 2013.
  18. ^ "Viola squad for Montecatini". Viola Channel (in Italian). ACF Fiorentina. 7 July 2013. Retrieved 19 July 2013.
  19. ^ "Fiorentina – Montecatini: le formazioni ufficiali". Viola Channel (in Italian). ACF Fiorentina. 13 July 2013. Retrieved 19 July 2013.
  20. ^ "Official: arrival of Mattia Cassani from Fiorentina". Parma FC. 8 August 2013. Archived from the original on 27 May 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2014.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  21. ^ "Cassani al Parma a titolo definitivo". Viola Channel (in Italian). ACF Fiorentina. 28 July 2014. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  22. ^ "Mattia Cassani di nuovo a Collecchio! E oggi pomeriggio può già allenarsi con noi!" (in Italian). Parma FC. 25 July 2014. Archived from the original on 5 July 2015. Retrieved 7 April 2015.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  23. ^ "Altro rinforzo ufficiale: Mattia Cassani è dei nostri". U.C. Sampdoria. 2 July 2015. Retrieved 4 July 2015.
  24. ^ "Grieco in extremis in Belgio è vittoria". La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). 31 March 2004. Retrieved 24 June 2010.
  25. ^ "Otto novità tra i convocati per l'amichevole Italia-Irlanda del Nord" (in Italian). FIGC. 28 May 2009. Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  26. ^ "Italia-Irlanda del Nord 3-0" (in Italian). PalermoCalcio.it. 6 June 2009. Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  27. ^ "Biondini e Candreva tra i 25 azzurri di Lippi per le due amichevoli" (in Italian). FIGC. 8 November 2009. Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  28. ^ "L'Italia chiude il 2009 con una vittoria. Lippi: "Ora aspettiamo i sorteggi"" (in Italian). FIGC. 18 November 2009. Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  29. ^ "Ufficializzata la lista dei 30: c'è Giuseppe Rossi al posto di Legrottaglie" (in Italian). FIGC. 11 May 2010. Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  30. ^ "Pronta la squadra azzurra: ecco la lista dei 23 per il Mondiale". FIGC (in Italian). 1 June 2010. Retrieved 1 June 2010.
  31. ^ "L'Italia di Prandelli: 8 novità, tra cui Balotelli e Amauri. Torna Cassano" (in Italian). FIGC. 6 August 2010. Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  32. ^ "Italia sconfitta, ma il nuovo corso porta novità, qualità e impegno" (in Italian). FIGC. 10 August 2010. Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  33. ^ "Euro 2012: tornano Pirlo, Gilardino e Pazzini. Novità in difesa" (in Italian). FIGC. 28 August 2010. Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  34. ^ "Cassano e Bonucci salvano l'Italia" (in Italian). UEFA. 3 September 2010. Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  35. ^ "Mattia Cassani" (in Italian). hellastory.net. Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  36. ^ Alessandro Buttitta (25 May 2010). "Palermo, quasi fatta per Gobbi" (in Italian). Tutto Palermo. Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  37. ^ "ROSSI: "Cassani terzino di qualità, è nel pieno della sua maturità"" (in Italian). Palermo24. 24 August 2011. Retrieved 9 July 2016.
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