Alessandro Birindelli

Birindelli was a hard-working, tenacious, and versatile player, who was capable of playing as a full-back or wide midfielder on either flank, although he often played on the right side of the pitch. He was mainly known for his speed, stamina, and consistency, as well as his sportsmanship, which enabled him to cover the flank effectively.

Birindelli represented Italy's under-17s at the 1991 FIFA World Championship, but did not start in any of the team's three games. His first start in a national jersey was as part of the Marco Tardelli-led under-23 squad that competed in the 1997 Mediterranean Games, held in Bari: the nation went on to win the gold medal, with him featuring in three of the four matches including the final against Turkey. Birindelli's full debut came with Giovanni Trapattoni on 20 November 2002, a 1–1 friendly draw with Turkey. He went on to gain a further five caps in nearly two years, the last being the 2–0 loss in Iceland, and was not summoned for UEFA Euro 2004. In July 2010 Birindelli retired from active football, immediately being named assistant coach in the Zambia national team led by countryman Dario Bonetti. He resigned from his position in February 2011, due to misunderstandings.

Early years

Born to Paolo and Erminia Birindelli in Pisa as the second of two children, Birindelli started playing football at the age of eight for the local team of San Frediano (an area of Pisa not far from his boyhood home and the church of the same name). A longtime Juventus fan, being an admirer of Michel Platini, he was also influenced by Paolo Maldini's professionalism and sportsmanship, and entered Empoli FC's youth academy, beginning his career as a right winger before moving into defence. In 1996, he won the Coppa Italia Serie C, as the team finished second in its group in Serie C1, thus earning Serie B promotion; Empoli followed this with another climb, now to Serie A, after collecting 64 points which trailed only Brescia Calcio's 66.

Juventus

After nearly 150 official matches, Birindelli ended his career with Empoli and moved to Juventus in 1997, managed at the time by Marcello Lippi, joining an already strong squad – which featured young prodigies Alessandro Del Piero and Zinedine Zidane – and arriving alongside Edgar Davids and Filippo Inzaghi. He made his league debut in a 2–0 victory over US Lecce on 31 August, but his first competitive appearance had taken place in the Supercoppa Italiana defeat of Vicenza Calcio. In his first season Birindelli won the Scudetto over Inter Milan, by five points. He was an unused substitute as the club lost the UEFA Champions League for the second consecutive time, now to Real Madrid. Birindelli won two more…

Birindelli served as assistant coach to the Zambia between 2010 and 2011. On 19 September 2011, Birindelli was appointed head coach at US Pistoiese 1921 in Serie D, leaving his post the following month. He successively worked as an assistant coach at Dinamo București (2012), then joined as head of youth development at Pisa (2013-2014) and Trapani (2014-2016). From 2016 to 2017, Birindelli worked as a coaching member of Empoli FC Youth Sector, in charge of the Under-17 team. He successively moved to Pisa SC, spending four years with the youth teams of the Nerazzurri, before returning to Empoli in 2021 as a youth coach. On 17 June 2025, Birindelli took over at Serie C club Pianese. On 5 June 2026, Birindelli was hired by Novara in Serie C for two seasons. On 28 September 2026, he was dismissed by Novara after starting the season with one win in 7 matches.