Gabriele Zappa

Gabriele Zappa
at Euro 2020 in Monza, Italy
Personal information
Date of birth (1999-12-22) 22 December 1999 (age 26)
Place of birth Monza, Italy
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Positions
Team information
Current team
 Hellas Verona
(on loan from Cagliari)
Number 4
Youth career
2004–2009 COSOV
2009–2010 Nuova Usmate
2010–2014 Accademia Internazionale
2014–2019 Inter Milan
2019 Pescara
2019 → Inter Milan (loan)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2019–2021 Pescara 25 (5)
2019 → Inter Milan (loan) 0 (0)
2020–2021 → Cagliari (loan) 34 (0)
2021– Cagliari 161 (6)
2026– → Hellas Verona (loan) 4 (1)
International career‡
2016 Italy U18 3 (0)
2018–2020 Italy U20 5 (0)
2020–2021 Italy U21 4 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 20 September 2026
‡ National team caps and goals as of 31 May 2021

Gabriele Zappa (born 22 December 1999) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a right-back or centre-back for Serie B club Hellas Verona, on loan from Cagliari.

Club career

Early career

Zappa began his youth career at Villasanta-based COSOV aged five, before playing one year for Nuova Usmate and then for Accademia Internazionale.

Inter Milan

Zappa was raised in the Inter Milan youth sector, and started playing for their under-19 squad in the 2016–17 season. On 10 April 2018, he signed his first professional contract with the club. He played several games for the senior squad in the summer 2018 pre-season, including appearances in the 2018 International Champions Cup.

On 30 January 2019, Inter agreed on his transfer to Pescara, with Pescara loaning him back to Inter for the remainder of the 2018–19 season, and Inter holding a buy-back clause. He was called-up for Inter's senior squad competitive game for the first time on 14 March 2019, for the Europa League game against Eintracht Frankfurt, but remained on the bench.

Pescara

Zappa joined Pescara on a previously agreed contract for the summer 2019 pre-season. He made his Serie B debut for Pescara on 24 September 2019, in a game against Cittadella. During the match, he replaced Antonio Balzano late in the first half after the latter suffered an injury. Three days later, he made his first Serie B start, against Crotone.[citation needed]

Cagliari

On 8 September 2020, he joined Serie A side Cagliari on loan from Pescara with an obligation to buy.

Loan to Verona

On 28 August 2026, Zappa joined Verona on loan with a conditional obligation to buy for €2 million.

International career

In September 2016, Zappa was first called up to represent Italy in friendly games for the under-18 squad.

Style of play

Zappa is a right-back who can also play as a right-sided central defender. He is known for his attacking style and dribbling ability.

Career statistics

As of match played 29 August 2026
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Coppa Italia Continental Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Pescara 2018–19 Serie B ———00
2019–20 Serie B 25510—265
2020–21 Serie B ———00
Total 2551000265
Inter Milan (loan) 2018–19 Serie A ——0000
Cagliari (loan) 2020–21 Serie A 34020—360
Cagliari 2021–22 Serie A 25030—280
2022–23 Serie B 34320—363
2023–24 Serie A 38120—401
2024–25 Serie A 37230—402
2025–26 Serie A 31020—330
2026–27 Serie A 1000—10
Total —2006140002146
Verona (loan) 2026–27 Serie A ——0000
Career total 193111300020611

Honours

Individual

References

  1. ↑ "Gabriele Zappa" (in Italian). Cagliari Calcio. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
  2. ↑ "Alle origini di Zappa: dall'Accademia Inter al sogno Serie A col Cagliari". La Giovane Italia (in Italian). 26 October 2020. Archived from the original on 26 February 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  3. ↑ Gabriele Zappa at TuttoCalciatori.net (in Italian)
  4. ↑ "FIRST PROFESSIONAL CONTRACT FOR GABRIELE ZAPPA" (Press release). Inter Milan. 10 April 2018.
  5. ↑ "Chelsea v Inter game report". ESPN. 28 July 2018.
  6. ↑ "GRAVILLON SIGNS FROM PESCARA WITH ZAPPA MOVING THE OTHER WAY" (Press release). Inter Milan. 10 April 2018.
  7. ↑ "Inter v Eintracht game report". ESPN. 14 March 2019.
  8. ↑ "Cittadella v Pescara game report". Soccerway. 24 September 2019.
  9. ↑ "Zappa al Cagliari" (Press release) (in Italian). Cagliari. 8 September 2020. Archived from the original on 8 September 2020. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  10. ↑ "Ufficiale: Gabriele Zappa è un nuovo giocatore del Verona". Hellas Verona. 28 August 2026. Retrieved 29 August 2026.
  11. ↑ "Zappa Italy U18 profile" (in Italian). Italian Football Federation. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  12. 1 2 "Fanta consigli, difensori che segnano: Zappa, un gol ogni 4 partite". La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). 9 September 2020. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  13. ↑ Gabriele Zappa at Soccerway. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
  14. ↑ "Gabriele Zappa Wins November's Goal of the Month Presented by iliad" (Press release). Serie A. 4 December 2024. Retrieved 4 December 2024.