Player Analysis: Luca Pellegrini

Italy has been a production line of defenders for decades, and with a new generation emerging, it is not surprising that there are some promising talents who can feature in the Azzurri defence in the future.

Left back is one of those positions which the Italians have been blessed with talent. Starting from Renzo De Vecchi at the turn of the 20th century, Umberto Caligaris and Luigi Allemandi in the interwar years, Giacinto Facchetti in the 1960s and 70s, Antonio Cabrini in the 1980s, and Paolo Maldini in the 1990s and 2000s, Italian coaches have been spoiled for choice in this role.

Current options Cristiano Biraghi and Emerson Palmieri have not performed with great consistency or reached the levels of their predecessors and there is a 21-year-old who could challenge for their spots in the senior squad in the future.

When nostalgic Serie A fans hear of the name Luca Pellegrini, they might think of the sweeper who played for Sampdoria in the 1980s and early 90s during Il Doria’s golden age, but now their city rivals Genoa have a Luca Pellegrini of their own.