Simone Zaza facts for kids
Zaza with Sassuolo in 2014
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 25 June 1991 | ||
| Place of birth | Policoro, Italy | ||
| Height | 1.86 m | ||
| Playing position | Striker | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1997–2002 | Stella Azzurra Bernalda | ||
| 2002–2006 | Valdera | ||
| 2006–2008 | Atalanta | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2008–2010 | Atalanta | 3 | (0) |
| 2010–2013 | Sampdoria | 2 | (0) |
| 2011–2012 | → Juve Stabia (loan) | 4 | (0) |
| 2012 | → Viareggio (loan) | 18 | (11) |
| 2012–2013 | → Ascoli (loan) | 35 | (18) |
| 2013 | Juventus | 0 | (0) |
| 2013–2015 | Sassuolo | 64 | (20) |
| 2015–2017 | Juventus | 19 | (5) |
| 2016–2017 | → West Ham United (loan) | 8 | (0) |
| 2017 | → Valencia (loan) | 20 | (6) |
| 2017–2019 | Valencia | 33 | (13) |
| 2018–2019 | → Torino (loan) | 29 | (4) |
| 2019–2022 | Torino | 63 | (12) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2007 | Italy U16 | 3 | (0) |
| 2007 | Italy U17 | 2 | (0) |
| 2009–2010 | Italy U19 | 1 | (0) |
| 2014–2018 | Italy | 18 | (2) |
† Appearances (Goals). |
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Simone Zaza (born June 25, 1991) is an Italian professional footballer. He plays as a striker, which means he is a player who tries to score goals.
Zaza started his professional football journey with Atalanta in 2008. After two seasons, he moved to Sampdoria in 2010. During his time at Sampdoria, he was loaned out to several other teams like Juve Stabia, Viareggio, and Ascoli.
In 2013, he joined Sassuolo, and then in 2015, he moved to Juventus, one of Italy's biggest clubs. With Juventus, he quickly won both the league title and the Italian Cup in his first season. After playing for teams in other countries, West Ham United in England and Valencia in Spain, Zaza returned to Italy in 2018. He played for Torino until 2022.
Simone Zaza also played for the Italian national team. He made his first appearance for Italy in 2014 and later represented his country in the UEFA Euro 2016 tournament.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting His Journey
Simone Zaza was born in Policoro, Italy. He started playing football at a young age with Stella Azzurra in 1997. When he was 11, he moved to the Valdera youth academy. In 2006, a big team from Italy's top league, Serie A side Atalanta, noticed his talent. He joined their youth team and eventually got to play for the main team.
He made his first appearance in Serie A on March 1, 2009, for Atalanta. He played as a substitute in a match against Chievo Verona. He played two more times that season but mostly stayed with the youth team.
Moving to Sampdoria
In July 2010, Zaza joined Sampdoria, another Serie A team. He signed a four-year contract. He played for their youth team, called Primavera, but also got to play for the first team a couple of times. After that season, he became a full member of the main team.
Loan Spells: Juve Stabia and Viareggio
To get more playing time, Zaza was loaned to Juve Stabia in Serie B (the second division) in July 2011. He didn't play much there, so Sampdoria called him back. In January 2012, he was loaned again, this time to Lega Pro Prima Divisione team Viareggio. This loan was a big success for him! He scored 11 goals in 18 league games, showing his skill as a striker.
Loan Spell: Ascoli
After his successful time at Viareggio, Zaza was loaned to Ascoli for the 2012–13 Serie B season. He joined them in July and made his debut in September. He continued to score many goals, netting 18 in 35 league matches. Even though he scored a lot, Ascoli was relegated to a lower league that season. He returned to Sampdoria in June 2013.
Playing for Sassuolo
On July 9, 2013, Juventus bought Zaza from Sampdoria. At the same time, he moved to Sassuolo in a special deal called "co-ownership." This meant both Juventus and Sassuolo owned parts of his contract. He returned to play in Serie A with Sassuolo.
On September 1, 2013, Zaza scored his first goal in Serie A for Sassuolo. He also helped Sassuolo earn their first-ever point in the top league with a goal against Napoli. In June 2014, Sassuolo bought Zaza completely from Juventus. However, Juventus kept the option to buy him back later.
Joining Juventus
On July 7, 2015, Juventus decided to bring Zaza back to their team. He joined them for €18 million. On September 23, 2015, Zaza scored his first goal for Juventus in his very first game, which was a 1-1 draw against Frosinone. A week later, he scored his first goal in the Champions League against Sevilla, helping Juventus win 2-0. He also scored two goals in a big win against their city rivals Torino in the Italian Cup.
Loan to West Ham United
On August 28, 2016, Zaza was loaned to West Ham United, a team in the English Premier League. He made his debut in September. He played 11 games for West Ham, but he didn't score any goals. He got a knee injury in December and left the club in January 2017.
Moving to Valencia
On January 15, 2017, Zaza moved to La Liga club Valencia in Spain, first on a loan. He made his debut on January 21. On February 19, he scored his first goal for Valencia. Just a few days later, he scored a great goal against Real Madrid, helping Valencia win. In April, Valencia bought him permanently from Juventus. On September 19, he scored three goals (a hat-trick) in less than 10 minutes in a big 5-0 win against Málaga.
Playing for Torino
On August 17, 2018, Zaza was loaned to Torino, another Italian team, with an agreement for them to buy him later. In his first game under a new manager, he scored two goals in the second half to help Torino come back from being two goals down and draw the match.
On August 31, 2022, Simone Zaza's contract with Torino ended by agreement between him and the club.
International Career
Simone Zaza has played for Italy at different youth levels, including the under-16, under-17, and under-19 teams.
On August 31, 2014, he was called up to the senior national team for the first time. He made his debut on September 4, starting in a 2-0 win against the Netherlands. He also scored his first goal for Italy on September 9, in a 2-0 victory against Norway during a Euro 2016 qualifying game.
He was part of Italy's squad for UEFA Euro 2016. In a group match against Sweden, he came on as a substitute and helped set up the winning goal. In the quarter-final match against Germany, the game went to a penalty shootout. Zaza was brought on specifically to take a penalty, but he unfortunately missed it. Italy was then eliminated from the tournament. After the match, Zaza apologized to the fans, saying he was sorry to have let them down.
In 2018, Zaza was called back to the Italian national team. On June 4, he scored the opening goal in a 1-1 draw against the Netherlands in a friendly match.
Style of Play
Simone Zaza is known as a quick, strong, and well-rounded forward. He is left-footed and has good technique, a powerful shot, and a knack for scoring goals. He is a physical player who works hard on the field. He can play as a main striker or as a second striker, supporting his teammates. Because of his strength, movement, and ability to head the ball accurately, he is also good in the air.
He earned the nickname "giant killer" because he often scored important goals against bigger, more famous teams, especially when he played for smaller clubs like Sassuolo.
Personal Life
Since 2022, Simone Zaza has been in a relationship with Angelica Erthal, who is a model from Brazil. They welcomed their first child in January 2024.
Career Statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Atalanta | 2008–09 | Serie A | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2009–10 | Serie A | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| Sampdoria | 2010–11 | Serie A | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||
| Juve Stabia (loan) | 2011–12 | Serie B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 4 | 0 | ||
| Viareggio (loan) | 2011–12 | Lega Pro | 18 | 11 | — | — | — | 18 | 11 | |||
| Ascoli (loan) | 2012–13 | Serie B | 35 | 18 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 36 | 18 | ||
| Sassuolo | 2013–14 | Serie A | 33 | 9 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 35 | 9 | ||
| 2014–15 | Serie A | 31 | 11 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 34 | 12 | |||
| Total | 64 | 20 | 5 | 1 | – | – | 69 | 21 | ||||
| Juventus | 2015–16 | Serie A | 19 | 5 | 3 | 2 | — | 2 | 1 | 24 | 8 | |
| West Ham United (loan) | 2016–17 | Premier League | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 11 | 0 | |
| Valencia (loan) | 2016–17 | La Liga | 20 | 6 | — | — | — | 20 | 6 | |||
| Valencia | 2017–18 | La Liga | 33 | 13 | 6 | 0 | — | — | 39 | 13 | ||
| Torino (loan) | 2018–19 | Serie A | 29 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 30 | 4 | ||
| Torino | 2019–20 | Serie A | 24 | 6 | 1 | 0 | — | 6 | 3 | 31 | 9 | |
| 2020–21 | Serie A | 29 | 6 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 31 | 7 | |||
| 2021–22 | Serie A | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 10 | 0 | |||
| Total | 91 | 16 | 5 | 1 | – | 6 | 3 | 102 | 20 | |||
| Career total | 297 | 89 | 20 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 328 | 97 | ||
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Italy | 2014 | 4 | 1 |
| 2015 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2016 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 2 | 1 | |
| Total | 18 | 2 | |
- Scores and results list Italy's goal tally first.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 9 September 2014 | Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, Norway |  Norway |
1–0 | 2–0 | UEFA Euro 2016 qualification |
| 2. | 4 June 2018 | Allianz Stadium, Turin, Italy |  Netherlands |
1–0 | 1–1 | Friendly |
Honours
Juventus
- Serie A: 2015–16
- Coppa Italia: 2015–16
- Supercoppa Italiana: 2015
Individual
- La Liga Player of the Month: September 2017
See also
In Spanish: Simone Zaza para niños
