Mattia Destro

2.1. Early life and background

Mattia Destro was born on 20 March 1991 in Ascoli Piceno, Italy. His connection to football runs deep, as he is the son of former Italian footballer Flavio Destro, who also coached the Allievi Nazionali team at Ascoli while Mattia was in the youth ranks.

2.2. Youth club career

Destro commenced his youth career with his hometown club, Ascoli. In mid-2005, he transitioned to the highly regarded youth system of Inter Milan. During his time at Inter, Destro distinguished himself as a prolific scorer across various age groups.

He was the top-scorer for the Giovanissimi Nazionali team in the 2005-06 season, securing the league title with them in 2006. In the 2006-07 season, he was the second top-scorer for the Allievi Nazionali team, finishing behind Mario Balotelli, and won the league title with this team in 2008. By the 2008-09 season, he became the second top-scorer for Inter's Primavera team, only behind Aiman Napoli.

While with the Primavera team, Destro scored four goals in the league group stage and one in the league playoff during the 2007-08 season. He was part of the squad that won the 2008 Torneo di Viareggio and reached the final of the Primavera League, where they lost to Sampdoria. In the 2009-10 Campionato Nazionale Primavera Group Stage, Destro netted an impressive 18 goals. He also made appearances in a few club friendly matches for Inter's first team during this period and was included in Inter's 2009-10 UEFA Champions League squad as an under-21 youth product, although he did not make any appearances in the tournament as Inter went on to win the title.

3.1. Genoa (first spell)

In June 2010, Destro moved to Genoa as part of a complex deal that saw Andrea Ranocchia transfer to Inter Milan. Genoa initially acquired a preferential option to sign Destro in a co-ownership arrangement. He was initially on loan for the 2010-11 season.

Destro made his Serie A debut for Genoa on 12 September 2010, starting against Chievo as the sole central forward in a 3-4-3 formation due to an injury to Luca Toni. He made an immediate impact, scoring a goal in the sixth minute of the match, though Genoa ultimately lost 1-3. Following this loan spell, Genoa purchased Destro's full registration rights from Inter in June 2011 for €4.50 M EUR. This transfer was part of a broader exchange, alongside Samuele Longo, which facilitated Inter's full signing of Ranocchia.

3.2. Siena

In 2011, Destro joined Siena, a newly promoted Serie A club, on a loan deal for €1.50 M EUR, with an option for a co-ownership agreement. He quickly established himself as a vital player for Siena, becoming the team's top goalscorer with 12 goals in 30 league appearances, surpassing Emanuele Calaiò who had 11 goals.

On 20 June 2012, Siena exercised their option, purchasing half of Destro's registration rights from Genoa for €1.30 M EUR. However, a subsequent agreement between Roma, Genoa, and Siena led to Genoa buying back Destro's remaining rights from Siena for €7.50 M EUR (comprising €6.00 M EUR cash plus half of the rights to Eugenio Lamanna) to finalize his transfer to Roma.

3.3. Roma

Mattia Destro's transfer to Roma was announced on 30 July 2012, in a loan deal valued at €11.50 M EUR, which included €8.50 M EUR in cash and half the rights to both Giammario Piscitella and Valerio Verre. The agreement also contained an option for Roma to purchase him outright for an additional €4.50 M EUR, potentially bringing the total cost to €16.00 M EUR. Destro was brought in as a replacement for Fabio Borini, who had recently moved to Liverpool.

He made his debut for Roma on 2 September 2012, appearing in a 3-1 away victory against Inter in Serie A. His first goal for the Giallorossi came on 4 November in a 4-1 home win against Palermo. Notably, in the same match, he received a red card for taking off his shirt while celebrating his goal, having already been booked. In his inaugural season with Roma, Destro made 21 Serie A appearances, often coming on as a substitute, and scored six goals. While Roma finished sixth in the league, they reached the final of the 2012-13 Coppa Italia. Destro was the top scorer in the tournament with five goals, but Roma ultimately lost 1-0 to fierce rivals Lazio in the final.

Injuries significantly hampered Destro during his first season and continued into the 2013-14 season. He did not make his first appearance of the season until 8 November 2013, coming on as a substitute against Fiorentina and immediately scoring the winning goal in a 2-1 victory. Following his return from injury, Destro began playing regularly and rediscovered his impressive goalscoring form. He scored a brace in a 3-0 win against Sampdoria in February and netted a hat-trick in a 3-1 victory over Cagliari in April 2014. This match was followed by controversy when Destro was retroactively banned for three matches (which became four due to accumulated yellow cards) by league authorities for punching defender Davide Astori during the game, an incident unpunished by the referee at the time. Despite this setback, Destro concluded the season as Roma's top scorer with 13 league goals, contributing to their second-place finish in Serie A behind Juventus. At this point, he was considered one of the top strikers in Serie A, with a goal-per-minute ratio in Europe's top five leagues bettered only by Sergio Agüero and Lionel Messi.

During the summer of 2014, Destro was the subject of considerable transfer speculation, with media linking him to clubs like Chelsea and Real Madrid. VfL Wolfsburg reportedly made a €30.00 M EUR offer, but Roma opted to retain him. He opened his scoring account for the 2014-15 Serie A season on 20 September in a 2-0 win against Cagliari. His second goal of the season, a spectacular 40-yard half volley, secured a 2-0 victory over Hellas Verona.

3.4. AC Milan (loan)

On 30 January 2015, Mattia Destro moved to AC Milan on loan from Roma for the remainder of the season. He scored his first goal for Milan on 15 February in a 1-1 draw against Empoli. At the conclusion of the 2014-15 season, Destro departed the club, having registered 3 goals in 15 appearances across all competitions.

3.5. Bologna

On 20 August 2015, Bologna successfully signed Destro from Roma on a five-year deal. The transfer fee was €8.50 M EUR, with potential bonuses up to an additional €3.00 M EUR. Upon joining, Destro became Bologna's highest-earning player that season, with a net salary of €1.60 M EUR per year.

He made his debut for Bologna on 22 August 2015, coming on as a substitute in a 2-1 defeat to Lazio. His first goal for the club came on 1 November in a 3-0 win over Atalanta. Demonstrating his continued importance to the team, Destro later signed a new contract with Bologna, reportedly worth €2.00 M EUR per year. He remained a key attacking option for Bologna for several seasons, contributing with goals and assists.

3.6. Genoa (second spell)

Mattia Destro returned to Genoa on 4 January 2020, initially on a loan deal until the end of the 2019-20 season. Following this loan period, on 7 September 2020, he signed a permanent contract with the club as a free transfer. During his second stint with Genoa, Destro continued to be a significant contributor in attack, showcasing his experience and goalscoring ability.

3.7. Empoli

On 28 June 2022, Destro joined Empoli on a free transfer, marking another chapter in his Serie A career. He began his spell with the club, contributing to their efforts in the league. After the 2022-23 season, he briefly left Empoli as a free agent but then re-joined the club on 29 August 2023, demonstrating a continued commitment to the team.

4.1. Youth national teams

Destro has been a consistent presence in Italy's youth national teams, playing for almost every level from under-16 to under-21, with the exception of the under-20 team. He received his first youth national team call-up in a training camp during Christmas 2005.

He made his debut for the Italy under-16 team in the international Val-de-Marne tournament. Destro was also a member of the under-17 team for the 2008 Euro qualification, scoring one goal in two appearances in the main qualification round and one goal in the elite qualification round. He participated in the 2008 Minsk under-17 International Tournament, scoring against Moldova and Belarus, with Italy finishing third.

On 17 December 2008, Destro scored on his under-19 debut in a 3-1 win against Romania. He also scored the only goal in a subsequent 1-0 victory over Norway in March 2009. In January 2009, he earned a single cap for the Italian under-18 team, scoring in a 3-0 win against Denmark. Destro was a regular for the under-18/19 teams, and in the qualification in November, he scored five goals in three appearances, including a hat-trick against Turkey in January 2010. He played all three matches of the 2010 UEFA European Under-19 Championship for the U19 team, although the team failed to score any goals and finished at the bottom of Group B.

Destro received his first under-21 call-up in September 2010, making his debut as a substitute in a 1-0 win against Wales in a qualification match. On 8 October 2010, he started a play-off match against Belarus, scoring the opening goal with a left-foot shot from a Diego Fabbrini pass as Italy secured a 2-0 victory. He also scored against Turkey in a 1-0 win during the under-21 Championship qualifier. He was part of the Italy U-21 squad that finished as runner-up in the 2013 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.

4.2. Senior national team

Mattia Destro's senior international career began in 2012 under head coach Cesare Prandelli. He was initially included in Prandelli'2s 32-man preliminary squad for UEFA Euro 2012 but was not selected for the final tournament squad.

He made his debut for the Italy national team on 15 August 2012, starting in a 1-2 friendly loss against England at Wembley Stadium. In his third appearance for the national team, on 11 September 2012, Destro scored his first international goal within the first five minutes of Italy's 2-0 victory against Malta at the Stadio Alberto Braglia in Modena. This goal came during Italy's second 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying match.

Destro was also named in the provisional 30-man squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup but was ultimately one of seven players cut from the final roster. He has accumulated eight caps for Italy, scoring one international goal.

7.1. Club statistics

7.2. International statistics

:Scores and results list Italy's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Destro goal.