Immobile began his career atSorrento. In 2009, he was purchased byJuventus, and was later loaned out to threeSerie B clubs, includingPescara, with whom he won the league title as the top scorer, before moving toGenoa in 2012. After a season with the club, he moved to Juventus' rivalsTorino, where he won theCapocannoniere award for the top scorer in Serie A. After his breakout season at Torino, he was sold to German clubBorussia Dortmund for around €18 million in 2014, where they won theDFL-Supercup, before moving to Spanish clubSevilla in 2015. In 2016, he returned to Torino on loan, and was later sold toLazio in July of that year.
At Lazio, Immobile won aCoppa Italia and twoSupercoppa Italiana titles, and is currently the club'sall-time highest goalscorer. In his second season at Lazio, he won theCapocannoniere for a second time, with 29 goals in 33 games. The2019–20 season was the most prolific of Immobile's career; he equalled the record formost Serie A goals in a season with 36, and won a thirdCapocannoniere title and firstEuropean Golden Shoe, given to the top scorer in Europe. In2022, he won theCapocannoniere for a fourth time, with 27 goals in 31 games. Overall, Immobile managed to score 120 goals at theStadio Olimpico - more than any other player at a single stadium used in Italy's top flight.[4] He currently sits eighth in theall-time list of Serie A top scorers.
Born inTorre Annunziata, in theprovince of Naples, Immobile began his youth career in the football school "Torre Annunziata '88", before transferring to "Maria Rosa" and finally the youth team ofSalernitana, where however, he failed to emerge.[5] He later joined Sorrento,[6] with whom he scored 30 goals in the under-17 during the 2007–08 season, including a brace against Torino, impressing the observers of Juventus.[7]
In 2008, he was signed at the age of 18 for €80,000 (equivalent to €107,843 in 2023)[8] by Juventus under the recommendation ofCiro Ferrara. He went on to play with thePrimavera formation.[9][10]
Immobile with Juventus in August 2011
Immobile joined thePrimavera squad in 2009, where he formed a striking partnership withAyub Daud, that led the squad to win the2009 Torneo di Viareggio, where he scored a total five goals; two of which came in the final.[11]
On 14 March 2009, Immobile made hisSerie A debut in a 4–1 home win againstBologna, replacing Juventus' captainAlessandro Del Piero in the 89th minute.On 25 November 2009, Immobile also made his debut in a European competition, once again as a second-half substitute for Del Piero in aChampions League game againstBordeaux. In February 2010, he scored ahat-trick againstEmpoli in the2010 Torneo di Viareggio final to seal the title for a second consecutive season.[12]
On 1 July 2010, Immobile, along with teammateLuca Marrone, were sent on loan to recently relegatedSerie B sideA.C. Siena. In exchange for the two loans, Juventus acquiredNiccolò Giannetti,Leonardo Spinazzola, and Austrian midfielderMarcel Büchel on loan from the Tuscan club.[13] Immobile never broke into the first team, however, and in January 2011, he left Siena, after just 4 appearances and 1 goal. Following his departure from Siena, he was immediately loaned by Juventus toGrosseto, another Serie B club for the remainder of the2010–11 Serie B season.[14]
On 17 August 2011, it was announced that Immobile would joinSerie B clubPescara on a season-long loan from Juventus.[15] He scored his first goal for the club on 26 August during his debut for Pescara in the first league match againstHellas Verona. By the end of the2011–12 Serie Bandata (first half of the season), Immobile had already scored 14 league goals. On 30 January 2012,Genoa confirmed that they had paid €4 million for half of the player's rights from Juventus, following his mercurial form in Serie B. He completed his season with Pescara in the Italian second division, as the club won the league title and sealed promotion toSerie A. He also went on to become the Serie B season's top scorer with a total of 28 goals, seven more than the second-highest scorer,Juve Stabia'sMarco Sau. Immobile was also named Serie B's Player of the Year at the2012 AIC Gran Gala del Calcio, alongside teammatesLorenzo Insigne andMarco Verratti.[16]
Immobile formally became a Genoa player on 1 July 2012 after the loan with Pescara expired. On 19 June 2013, Genoa and Juventus again renewed the co-ownership agreements of Immobile andRichmond Boakye.[17]
On 12 July 2013 Juventus bought Genoa's half of Immobile for €2.75 million.[18] On the same day he was sold to city-rivalsTorino under a new co-ownership deal for €2.75 million.[19]
He made his debut for Torino during the first round of theCoppa Italia against former club Pescara, scoring his first goal of the season.[20] He provided an assist in his Serie A debut for the club, but did not score until 7 October in a 2–2 draw againstSampdoria. Previously, Immobile had failed to score in Serie A since December 2012. The goal signalled a run of form for Immobile, with the player scoring a further 12 goals in his next 15 matches, including his first brace in Serie A during a game againstChievo Verona in December.[21]
On 22 March 2014, Immobile scored his first Serie A hat-trick, in a 3–1 win againstLivorno.[22] Three days later, he scored a spectacular volley with his left foot againstRoma, temporarily bringing theGranata level at theStadio Olimpico.[23] On 6 April, he scored the winning goal againstCatania in a 2–1 victory.[24]
On 13 April, Genoa were leading 1–0, when Immobile andAlessio Cerci both scored in stoppage time to give Torino a 2–1 win.[25][26] He scored again in the following round in a 3–3 draw away toLazio.[27] On 27 April, Immobile scored for the sixth consecutive match in a 2–0 defeat ofUdinese.[28] This took him to 21 goals in the season,[29] equaling the seasonal goal records ofPaolo Pulici andFrancesco Graziani at Torino.[30][31]
On 11 May, Immobile scored in the penultimate fixture of the season againstParma, but was sent off in the second half and suspended for the final match againstFiorentina.[32] He concluded his season with 22 goals in 33 appearances, plus one goal in theCoppa Italia.[33] He became the first Torino player to win theCapocannoniere sinceFrancesco Graziani in the1976–77 season.[34]
Immobile playing for Borussia Dortmund in July 2014
On 2 June 2014,Bundesliga clubBorussia Dortmund announced the signing of Immobile,[35][36] despite the co-ownership agreement between Torino and Juventus not being resolved.Urbano Cairo, the president of Torino, accused Juventus and Dortmund of violating FIFA regulation regarding transfer on 10 May 2014,[37] whichFIGC also states that such transfers must have mutual consent of the co-owners. Cairo also wanted to keep Immobile for at least a season for sports and for profit. On 18 June 2014,[38] Juventus sold the remaining 50% registration rights of Immobile to Torino for €8.035 million.[39] Torino later revealed in its financial filing, that the transfer fee to the German side was €17.955 million.[40] On 13 August, Immobile made his Dortmund debut, starting in the 2014 DFL-Supercup against Bayern Munich, with Dortmund winning 2–0.[41]
Immobile made his Bundesliga debut on 23 August in the opening match of Dortmund's2014–15 Bundesliga campaign which saw them lose 2–0 toBayer Leverkusen at home. On 16 September, Immobile scored his first goal for the club, opening a 2–0 home win overArsenal in the group stages of the Champions League.[42]He scored four goals in six Champions League matches,[43] in a 3–0 away win overAnderlecht, in a 4–1 home win overGalatasaray and in a 1–1 home draw vsAnderlecht, with Borussia qualifying as first from the group. On 17 December 2014, Immobile assisted the first goal and scored the second on a 2–2 home draw withWolfsburg.[44]
Immobile with Sevilla in August 2015, prior to the UEFA Super Cup
On 12 July 2015, Immobile joinedSevilla on a season-long loan after scoring just three goals in the league in his first season at Borussia Dortmund, with a total 10 goals in 34 matches across all competitions.[45] Sevilla also had an option to sign him outright. He made his debut for the club on 11 August 2015, coming off the bench to replaceKevin Gameiro in the 80th minute of the2015 UEFA Super Cup final, againstBarcelona, and assistingYevhen Konoplyanka's temporary equaliser to send the match into extra-time; Barcelona went on to win the match 5–4.[46]
On 31 July 2015, Immobile was stretchered off the pitch wearing anoxygen mask and aneck brace after playing just five minutes in a friendly againstWatford atVicarage Road after clashing heads with an opponent. He was taken to the hospital for tests and was in recovering condition.[47] It was later determined hisnasal septum ruptured, which looked like a major injury, but turned out to be only minor.[48] On 8 November 2015, Immobile scored his first goal for Sevilla in the 36th minute as they emerged victorious in a 3–2La Liga home win overReal Madrid.[49] In November, the obligation to buy clause was exercised when Immobile made his fifth appearance, buying him outright for €11 million plus the €3 million for the loan spell.[50]
On 14 January 2016, Immobile returned to Torino on loan until the end of2015–16 season.[51] Two days later on his return debut, he scored the opening goal of a 4–2 home victory overFrosinone.[52] On 14 February, he scored a brace, in a 3–1 win away againstPalermo.[53] On 22 March, it was determined he sustained a muscular injury at the half time mark in aderby with Juventus two days prior, and would be sidelined for a month.[54]
On 27 July 2016, Immobile signed withLazio for a fee of €8.75 million (plus €700,000 commission to agents).[55][56] On 21 August, Immobile scored on his debut in Lazio's opening match of a 4–3 away win overAtalanta.[57] Immobile finished the season with 23 league goals in 36 appearances plus 3 goals in the Coppa Italia,[58] surpassing his total when he won theCapocannoniere with Torino in the 2013–14 season, though this time he did not win theCapocannoniere, losing it to Bosnian strikerEdin Džeko of cross-town rivalsRoma, who scored 29 league goals.[59]
On 13 August 2017, Immobile scored the opening two goals of theSupercoppa Italiana; Lazio won with a final score of 3–2 over Juventus.[60] On 10 September, in Lazio's third match of the season, he scored a hat-trick and got an assist in a 4–1 home win overMilan.[61] On 21 October, Immobile extended with Lazio until 2022.[62] On 6 January 2018, Immobile scored four goals in the first half away toSPAL, the first Lazio player to score multiple hat-tricks in a season in 16 years; Lazio eventually won the match 5–2.[63] On 22 February 2018, Immobile scored a hat-trick in theEuropa League round of 32 second leg home toSteaua București in a 5–1 win, which allowed Lazio to qualify, 5–2 on aggregate, to the round of 16.[64] On 31 March 2018, Immobile scored twice in Lazio's 6–2 home win overBenevento, his 36th goal of the season, breakingGiorgio Chinaglia's previous record for most goals scored by a Lazio player in a single season, by two goals.[65] Immobile ended the season with 29 goals in 33 appearances, winning theCapocannoniere jointly with Inter'sMauro Icardi.[66] Immobile also ended the 2017–2018 season asUEFA Europa League's top scorer with 8 goals, jointly withAritz Aduriz.
On 31 August 2020, Immobile signed a five-year contract extension with Lazio.[71] On 20 October 2020, he scored his first Champions League goal for Lazio in a 3–1 win over his former club Borussia Dortmund in the2020–21 season.[72] On 12 May 2021, Immobile scored the only goal of a 1–0 home win overParma in Serie A; this was his 150th goal for Lazio across all competitions.[73]
On 30 October 2021, the Italian striker netted his 159th career goal for the Biancocelesti in a 2–1 win victory overAtalanta, drawing level withSilvio Piola'sall-time club goal record.[74] On 4 November, Immobile scored againstMarseille in theUEFA Europa League to becomeLazio'sall-time leading goalscorer, surpassingSilvio Piola, with 160.[75] With this goal, the Italian striker also became the club's all-time top scorer in the Europa League (11); he surpassed former strikerPierluigi Casiraghi, who had scored 10 times in the competition for Lazio.[76] On 7 November, with a goal againstSalernitana in a 3–0 victory, Immobile became the first Lazio player to score 10+ goals in six consecutive Serie A seasons.[77]
On 6 January 2022, by scoring a goal in a 3–3 draw againstEmpoli, Immobile became just thefourth player in Serie A history to score 15 goals in the league in seven separate seasons.[78] On 5 March, he made his 200th appearance for Lazio in Serie A, in which he scored a penalty againstCagliari in a 3–0 away victory.[79] In addition, with his goal against the Rossoblu, he matched Silvio Piola'sgoal record with Lazio in Serie A (143) and became thethird player to ever score 20 or more Serie A goals in six different seasons.[80]
On 16 April, he scored in the stoppage time in a 1–1 draw againstTorino, which was his 180th Serie A goal, matchingSampdoria veteranFabio Quagliarella at13th in the league's all-time top scorers list. In addition, he became the first Italian player in Serie A history to score at least 25 goals in three separate league campaigns and reached 30+ goals in all competitions for a third time in his career.[81] On 24 April, by scoring in a 2–1 defeat againstMilan, Immobile became just the fourth player inEurope's top five leagues to score more than 25 goals in a league season at least three times since the 2016–17 season, joiningRobert Lewandowski,Lionel Messi, andCristiano Ronaldo.[82]
On 7 November 2023, Immobile scored his 200th Lazio goal in a 1–0 home win againstFeyenoord in the2023–24 UEFA Champions League.[85] On 10 February 2024, Immobile scored his 200th goal in Serie A in a 3–1 away win over Cagliari.[86] Four days later, he converted a penalty in a 1–0 win overBayern Munich in theChampions League round of 16 first leg, to be his first ever goal in the knockout phase of the competition, in addition to securing Lazio's first ever win against that opponent, and their first victory in the knockout stages since the 1999–2000 season.[87] However, he eventually managed to score only eleven goals in all competitions, including seven Serie A goals in the 2023–24 season.[88]
On 13 July 2024, Immobile andSüper Lig clubBeşiktaş agreed on contract terms. He signed a contract to stay with the club until June 2026.[89] A month later, on 3 August, he scored a brace and was named player of the match in a 5–0 victory overGalatasaray in theTurkish Super Cup.[90]On 18 August 2024, on the second matchday of theSüper Lig, he scored a brace againstAntalyaspor, securing a 4–2 victory forBeşiktaş. Immobile scored 10 goals in his first 10 games for Beşiktaş and is the first player since the 2007–08 season to score five goals in the first six matches of the league.[91]
Immobile taking on the Portuguese defence in a June 2015 friendly inGeneva, Switzerland
On 2 March 2014, Immobile received his first call-up to the senior national team byCesare Prandelli, for a friendly match againstSpain three days later.[93] He debuted as a substitute forAlessio Cerci after 69 minutes as Spain eventually won 1–0.[94]
On 13 May 2014, Immobile was named in Italy's provisional 30-man squad for the2014 FIFA World Cup,[95] and on 1 June he was named in the final 23-man squad.[96] On 8 June, he scored a hat-trick in Italy's final World Cup warm-up match, a 5–3 unofficial win over Brazilian club sideFluminense. Immobile made his competitive debut in Italy's opening 2–1 victory overEngland inManaus on 14 June, playing the last 17 minutes in place ofMario Balotelli who scored the Italian winner.[97] He scored his first official international goal in the third minute of a 2–0 friendly victory against theNetherlands on 4 September 2014.[98]
In June 2021, Immobile was included in Italy's squad forUEFA Euro 2020 by managerRoberto Mancini.[100] In the opening match of the tournament on 11 June, he scored Italy's second goal and assisted Insigne for his team's final goal in a 3–0 win overTurkey.[101] In the following group match on 16 June, Immobile scored Italy's third goal in a 3–0 victory overSwitzerland.[102] In the semi-final against Spain on 6 July, he assisted the opening goal scored in the second half byFederico Chiesa of a 1–1 draw, before being substituted byDomenico Berardi; after extra-time, Italy advanced to thefinal of the tournament following a 4–2 penalty shoot-out victory.[103] On 11 July, Immobile won the European Championship with Italy following a 3–2penalty shoot-out victory overEngland atWembley Stadium in thefinal, after a 1–1 draw inextra-time; Immobile started the match, but was once again replaced by Berardi during the second half of regulation time.[104][105]
Although primarily a main striker, Immobile is capable of playing anywhere along the front-line. A quick forward, Immobile is primarily known for his offensive movement off the ball, as well as his ability to make attacking runs and exploit spaces.[108] He will often drift wide, from a central position, when making forward runs, allowing him to ghost in behind the defensive line where he can cut in to shoot, usually into the far post. His main characteristics are his eye for goal and finishing ability with either foot, as well as his physical attributes; he also possesses solid technique, and is effective in the air.[108][109][110] In addition to his offensive capabilities and goalscoring ability, he is also a hard-working player, known for his willingness to chase down the ball and press opponents when not in possession;[108] he also possesses good link-up play,[111] which enables him to provideassists for teammates, in addition to scoring goals himself.[112] He is also an accuratepenalty taker.[113][114] One of the most prolific strikers of his generation,[115] his goalscoring record and efficiency has earned him the nickname "King Ciro" with the Lazio supporters.
In May 2014, Immobile and his long-time girlfriend Jessica Melena married.[116] They have four children.[117] Immobile is a great fan ofFormula One racing and participated in the third stage of the "Race For The World" directed on Sky and organized byCharles Leclerc to raise funds to be allocated to the fight against COVID-19.[118]
On 16 April 2023, Immobile, accompanied by his two daughters, suffered a spinal cord sprain and a fractured rib following a collision of his car with a tram nearStadio Olimpico in Rome.[119][120]
^Berlusconi: “Montolivo out 5 mesi. Balo (29 June 2011)."SpazioMilan – L'emozione rossonera". Spaziomilan.it.Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved2 June 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
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