Gianluca Lapadula facts for kids
Lapadula in 2016
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 7 February 1990 | ||
| Place of birth | Turin, Italy | ||
| Height | 1.78 m | ||
| Playing position | Striker | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Cagliari | ||
| Number | 9 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1996–2004 | Juventus | ||
| 2004–2007 | Collegno Paradiso | ||
| 2006–2007 | → Treviso (loan) | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2007–2008 | Pro Vercelli | 4 | (0) |
| 2008–2009 | Ivrea | 18 | (0) |
| 2009–2012 | Parma | 0 | (0) |
| 2010–2011 | → Atletico Roma (loan) | 0 | (0) |
| 2011 | → Ravenna (loan) | 7 | (1) |
| 2011–2012 | → San Marino Calcio (loan) | 35 | (24) |
| 2012–2013 | Cesena | 9 | (0) |
| 2013 | → Frosinone (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| 2013–2015 | Parma | 0 | (0) |
| 2013–2014 | → Gorica (loan) | 28 | (11) |
| 2014–2015 | → Teramo (loan) | 38 | (21) |
| 2015–2016 | Pescara | 40 | (27) |
| 2016–2018 | AC Milan | 27 | (8) |
| 2017–2018 | → Genoa (loan) | 28 | (6) |
| 2018–2020 | Genoa | 8 | (1) |
| 2019–2020 | → Lecce (loan) | 25 | (11) |
| 2020–2022 | Benevento | 58 | (19) |
| 2022– | Cagliari | 69 | (24) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2017 | Italy B | 1 | (3) |
| 2020– | Peru | 40 | (9) |
† Appearances (Goals). |
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Gianluca Lapadula Vargas, born on February 7, 1990, is a professional football player. He plays as a striker for the Cagliari team in Italy. Even though he was born in Italy, he plays for the Peru national football team.
Gianluca has played for many different football clubs throughout his career. He has played over 100 games in both Serie A and Serie B, which are top football leagues in Italy. He played for famous teams like Milan, Genoa, Lecce, Benevento, and Cagliari. He was even the top scorer in Serie B twice, once for Pescara in the 2015–16 season and once for Cagliari in the 2022–23 season.
Gianluca was once called to play for Italy's national team. However, he chose to play for Peru and made his first appearance in 2020. He played for Peru in the Copa América tournaments in 2021 and 2024. In 2021, he helped Peru reach fourth place.
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Gianluca Lapadula's Early Life
Gianluca Lapadula was born in Turin, Italy, on February 7, 1990. His father, Gianfranco, is from southern Italy, and his mother, Blanca, is Peruvian. Gianluca also has a brother named Davide, who played as a forward in lower-level football leagues.
People often call Gianluca by his nicknames. In Italy, he is known as Lapagol, and in Peru, he is called El Bambino.
Gianluca Lapadula's Club Career
Starting His Football Journey
Gianluca Lapadula started his football career at Juventus, a very famous Italian club. He left Juventus in 2004 and then played for Collegno Paradiso. In 2006, he went on loan to Treviso.
In 2007, he joined Pro Vercelli. The next season, in 2008–09, he played for Ivrea. He even scored a goal in a special tournament for young players. In August 2009, he signed with Parma and played for their youth team. In July 2010, he moved to Atletico Roma.
Playing on Loan: Atletico Roma and Cesena
Gianluca played his first game for Atletico Roma on August 8, 2010, in a cup match. In January 2011, he went to Ravenna. In the 2011–12 season, he was the top scorer in his group with 24 goals.
On June 15, 2012, Gianluca joined Cesena, a team in Serie B. He signed a five-year contract. However, he did not play much for Cesena. So, on January 8, 2013, he moved to Frosinone. In July 2013, he returned to Parma.
Loans to Gorica and Teramo
On July 1, 2013, Gianluca was loaned to ND Gorica, a club in Slovenia. He helped Gorica win the Slovenian Football Cup. He scored two goals in the quarter-finals and one goal in the semi-finals.
In July 2014, he was loaned to Teramo. He scored 21 goals and helped the team get promoted to Serie B. However, their promotion was later cancelled because of issues with match-fixing.
Time at Pescara
After Parma faced financial problems, Gianluca Lapadula became a free agent. In July 2015, he signed a four-year contract with Pescara in Serie B. In the 2015–16 season, he scored 30 goals in 43 games. This made him the top scorer in Italy's second division that season.
Playing for AC Milan
On June 24, 2016, Gianluca Lapadula joined AC Milan, a very famous club. Milan reportedly paid €9 million for him, and he signed a five-year contract. He made his first appearance for Milan on August 27, 2016.
He scored his first goal for Milan and in Serie A on November 6, in a 2–1 win against Palermo. On November 26, he scored two goals in one game against Empoli. He finished the 2016–17 season with 8 goals in 27 games.
Moving to Genoa
On July 18, 2017, Gianluca moved to Genoa. He joined on a one-season loan, which then became a permanent transfer. The total cost was €13 million, making him Genoa's most expensive player at that time.
Gianluca scored 6 goals in 28 games during the 2017–18 Serie A season. The next season, he played only eight league games and scored one goal. On July 12, 2019, he was loaned to Lecce, a team that had just been promoted to Serie A. He scored 11 goals in the 2019–20 Serie A season, including two goals in a win against Napoli.
Time at Benevento
On September 2, 2020, Gianluca Lapadula joined Benevento on a three-year contract. The team reportedly paid €4 million for him. He played in almost every game during the 2020–21 Serie A season and scored eight goals. However, his team was moved down to a lower league.
On September 21, 2021, Gianluca scored three goals in one game as Benevento won 4–1 against Cittadella. The team finished 7th and qualified for the play-offs. He scored important goals in the play-offs, helping his team advance.
Joining Cagliari
On July 26, 2022, Gianluca Lapadula joined Cagliari on a three-year contract. He came to the team after another player, João Pedro, left. He was bought for about €1.5 million. With 21 goals in 36 games, he was the top scorer and Player of the Season in the 2022–23 Serie B league.
In the play-offs, he scored two goals in a win against Venezia. He also scored a penalty goal in a comeback win against his old club Parma. He scored an early goal in the final win against Bari, helping Cagliari win.
After a right-ankle injury in June 2023, Gianluca did not return to play until November.
Gianluca Lapadula's International Career
Gianluca Lapadula could choose to play for either Italy or Peru because of his family background. He was called up by Peru for a tournament, but he had not yet decided which country to play for. On November 7, 2016, he was called up to the Italy senior squad for the first time.
On May 31, 2017, Gianluca scored three goals for the Italy B team in a friendly game against San Marino.
On October 30, 2020, Gianluca was called up by coach Ricardo Gareca to the Peru senior team. He made his first appearance for Peru on November 13, coming on as a substitute in a game against Chile.
Gianluca scored his first goal for Peru on June 23, 2021, in a 2–2 game against Ecuador in the 2021 Copa América. He also helped set up another goal in that game. On July 2, he scored once and helped with an own goal in a 3–3 draw against Paraguay in the quarter-finals of the same tournament. He also scored Peru's first penalty in the shootout, which they won. On July 9, he scored Peru's second goal in a 3–2 loss to Colombia in the third-place match.
In the qualification games for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Gianluca scored the first goals in wins against Bolivia, Venezuela, and Paraguay. However, his team did not qualify for the World Cup.
How Gianluca Lapadula Plays
Gianluca Lapadula is a strong and energetic forward. He is known for how hard he works and his good attitude. He can play as a main centre-forward or in more creative roles, like a second striker or a winger on either side of the field. This is because he has good technical skills and can both score goals and help his teammates score. He is also very accurate and powerful when he shoots, and he has a strong left foot.
Career Statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Atletico Roma (loan) | 2010–11 | Serie C1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 1 | 0 | |
| Ravenna (loan) | 2010–11 | Serie C1 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | 7 | 1 | |
| San Marino (loan) | 2011–12 | Serie C2 | 35 | 24 | 0 | 0 | – | 35 | 24 | |
| Cesena | 2012–13 | Serie B | 9 | 0 | 2 | 1 | – | 11 | 1 | |
| Frosinone (loan) | 2012–13 | Serie C1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 6 | 0 | |
| Gorica (loan) | 2013–14 | 1. SNL | 28 | 11 | 4 | 3 | – | 32 | 14 | |
| Teramo (loan) | 2014–15 | Lega Pro | 38 | 21 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 41 | 24 |
| Pescara | 2015–16 | Serie B | 40 | 27 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 46 | 30 |
| Milan | 2016–17 | Serie A | 27 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 29 | 8 |
| Genoa (loan) | 2017–18 | Serie A | 28 | 6 | 1 | 0 | – | 29 | 6 | |
| Genoa | 2018–19 | Serie A | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | – | 9 | 2 | |
| Lecce (loan) | 2019–20 | Serie A | 25 | 11 | 2 | 2 | – | 27 | 13 | |
| Benevento | 2020–21 | Serie A | 37 | 8 | 0 | 0 | – | 37 | 8 | |
| 2021–22 | Serie B | 21 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 25 | 13 | |
| Total | 58 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 62 | 21 | ||
| Cagliari | 2022–23 | Serie B | 36 | 21 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 43 | 26 |
| 2023–24 | Serie A | 22 | 3 | 1 | 1 | – | 23 | 4 | ||
| 2024–25 | Serie A | 11 | 0 | 3 | 1 | – | 14 | 1 | ||
| Total | 69 | 24 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 80 | 31 | ||
| Career total | 378 | 153 | 22 | 12 | 15 | 10 | 415 | 175 | ||
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Peru | 2020 | 2 | 0 |
| 2021 | 15 | 5 | |
| 2022 | 7 | 3 | |
| 2023 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 11 | 1 | |
| Total | 40 | 9 | |
- Scores and results list Peru's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Lapadula goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 23 June 2021 | Estádio Olímpico Pedro Ludovico, Goiânia, Brazil |  Ecuador |
1–2 | 2–2 | 2021 Copa América |
| 2 | 2 July 2021 | Estádio Olímpico Pedro Ludovico, Goiânia, Brazil |  Paraguay |
2–1 | 3–3 | 2021 Copa América |
| 3 | 9 July 2021 | Estádio Nacional Mané Garrincha, Brasília, Brazil |  Colombia |
2–2 | 2–3 | 2021 Copa América |
| 4 | 11 November 2021 | Estadio Nacional, Lima, Peru |  Bolivia |
1–0 | 3–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 5 | 16 November 2021 | Estadio Olímpico de la UCV, Caracas, Venezuela |  Venezuela |
1–0 | 2–1 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 6 | 29 March 2022 | Estadio Nacional, Lima, Peru | Paraguay |
1–0 | 2–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 7 | 5 June 2022 | RCDE Stadium, Barcelona, Spain |  New Zealand |
1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
| 8 | 27 September 2022 | Audi Field, Washington, D.C., United States |  El Salvador |
2–1 | 4–1 | Friendly |
| 9 | 22 March 2024 | Alejandro Villanueva Stadium, Lima, Peru |  Nicaragua |
2–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
Awards and Achievements
Gorica
- Slovenian Football Cup: 2013–14
Milan
- Supercoppa Italiana: 2016
Cagliari
- Serie B play-offs: 2023
Individual Awards
- Lega Pro top scorer: 2014–15 (Group A, 24 goals)
- Serie B top scorer: 2015–16 (27 goals), 2022–23 (21 goals)
- Gran Galà Top 11 Serie B: 2015–16
See also
In Spanish: Gianluca Lapadula para niños
