Marco Palestra
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 3 March 2005 | ||
| Place of birth | Buccinasco, Italy | ||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Positions | |||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Chelsea | ||
| Number | 2 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2010–2014 | GS Assago | ||
| 2014–2015 | Inter Milan | ||
| 2014–2023 | Atalanta | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2023–2024 | Atalanta U23 | 40 | (3) |
| 2023–2026 | Atalanta | 9 | (0) |
| 2025–2026 | → Cagliari (loan) | 37 | (1) |
| 2026– | Chelsea | 5 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2023–2024 | Italy U19 | 9 | (1) |
| 2024 | Italy U20 | 2 | (0) |
| 2024– | Italy U21 | 8 | (0) |
| 2026– | Italy | 2 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 16:35, 8 November 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 23:04, 31 March 2026 (UTC) | |||
Marco Palestra (born 3 March 2005) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a right-back or right wing-back for Premier League club Chelsea and the Italy national team.
Club career
Palestra began playing football with GS Assago where he stayed four years, had a year long stint with Inter Milan's academy before finally finishing his development with Atalanta's academy starting in 2014. Originally a central midfielder, at U17 level he was converted to a winger and then a right-back. He was promoted to the newly created Atalanta U23's in their debut season in the 2023–24 Serie C. He made his senior and professional debut with the senior Atalanta team as a substitute in a 4–0 UEFA Europa League win over Raków Częstochowa on 14 December 2023. He was loaned to fellow Serie A club Cagliari for the 2025–26 season. On 24 January 2026, he scored his first Serie A goal and provided an assist in a 2–1 away victory over Fiorentina.
Palestra signed a seven-year contract with Premier League club Chelsea on 1 July 2026, for an initial transfer fee worth approximately £43 million, with a further £5 million available in performance-related add-ons. On 10 October 2026, Palestra made his Premier League debut for Chelsea as a substitute in a 5-1 home victory against Bournemouth.
International career
Palestra is a youth international for Italy. In September 2023, he was called up to the Italy U18s for a set of friendlies. In November 2023 he was called up to the Italy U19s for a set of 2024 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualification matches.
In March 2026, he was called up to the senior Italy team for the first time for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification play-offs. He made his debut on 26 March in a 2–0 win over Northern Ireland in the play-off semi-finals. He also played in the play-off final against Bosnia, which Italy lost on penalties and resulted in them failing to qualify for a third successive World Cup.
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 8 November 2026
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Atalanta U23 | 2023–24 | Serie C | 40 | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 41 | 3 | |||
| Atalanta | 2023–24 | Serie A | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2024–25 | Serie A | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 15 | 0 | ||
| Total | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 0 | |||
| Cagliari (loan) | 2025–26 | Serie A | 37 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 37 | 1 | |||
| Chelsea | 2026–27 | Premier League | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 6 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 91 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 100 | 4 | ||
- ↑ Includes Coppa Italia, FA Cup
- ↑ Includes EFL Cup
- ↑ Appearance in UEFA Europa League
- ↑ Appearances in UEFA Champions League
- ↑ One appearance in UEFA Super Cup, one appearance in Supercoppa Italiana
International
- As of match played 31 March 2026
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Italy | 2026 | 2 | 0 |
| Total | 2 | 0 | |
Honours
Atalanta
Individual
- Serie A Best Defender: 2025–26
- EA Sports FC Serie A Team of the Season: 2025–26
- Serie A Team of the Year: 2025–26
References
- ↑ "Chi è Marco Palestra, il classe 2005 convocato da Gasperini contro la Juve". Atalantini.com. 6 May 2023.
- ↑ "Dalla Primavera 1 alla Serie C: Marco Palestra convince sempre di più". La Giovane Italia News.
- ↑ "Raków Czestochow 0-4 Atalanta: results, summary and goals". AS.com. 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "Marco Palestra loaned to Cagliari". Atalanta BC. 26 August 2025.
- ↑ "Fiorentina 1–2 Cagliari". ESPN. 24 January 2026.
- ↑ Millar, Colin (1 July 2026). "Chelsea complete Marco Palestra transfer from Atalanta on seven-year contract". The New York Times.
- ↑ Drury, Jack (10 October 2026). "What sources close to Chelsea have said about Marco Palestra as he makes Blues debut". The Chelsea Chronicle. Retrieved 10 October 2026.
- ↑ "Marco Palestra nell'Italia U18 - Zonamista Magazine". 15 September 2022.
- ↑ "Il cammino dei campioni d'Europa parte dalla Svezia: i 20 Azzurrini scelti da Bernardo Corradi". Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio. 10 November 2023.
- ↑ "Marco Palestra". Soccerway. 8 February 2026.
- ↑ Marco Palestra at National-Football-Teams.com
- ↑ "Atalanta 3–0 Leverkusen: Lookman treble brings UEFA Europa League glory to Bergamo". Union of European Football Associations. 22 May 2024. Archived from the original on 22 May 2024. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
- ↑ "The MVPs of the Serie A 2025/2026". Serie A. 22 May 2026. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
- ↑ "EA Sports FC 26 – Serie A Team of the Season". Serie A. 17 May 2026. Retrieved 21 May 2026.
- ↑ "Gran Galà del Calcio AIC 2026: Ecco tutti i vincitori" (in Italian). Gran Galà del Calcio. 2 September 2026. Retrieved 2 September 2026.
External links
- Profile at the Chelsea F.C. website
- Marco Palestra FIGC Italy profile (in Italian)
- Marco Palestra – UEFA competition record (archive)
- Marco Palestra at Soccerway
- Marco Palestra at TuttoCalciatori.net (in Italian)
