Lorenzo Insigne

Early career

In 2006, at age 15, Insigne was signed by Napoli from Olimpia Sant'Arpino for €1,500. In 2008, he made his debut for the Primavera team, with whom he scored 15 goals in the 2009–10 season. He was first called up to the first team under Roberto Donadoni, playing some friendlies in the summer of 2009, before making his Serie A debut under Walter Mazzarri, on 24 January 2010, in a 2–0 win away to Livorno. He played the remainder of the season on loan at Cavese in Lega Pro Prima Divisione, where he made 10 appearances.

Loans to Foggia and Pescara

The following season, Insigne was loaned to Foggia in Lega Pro Prima Divisione. He scored his first professional goal on 14 August, in the Coppa Italia Lega Pro match against L'Aquila, while on 29 August, he scored his first league goal in a 2–3 home defeat to Lucchese. Under the manager Zdeněk Zeman, he totalled 19 goals in the league, in addition to seven goals scored in Coppa Italia Lega Pro. On 8 July 2011, he was loaned to Pescara in Serie B, now managed by Zeman. He made his debut in the Italian second division on 26 August 2011 in the opening round against Hellas Verona, and on 4 September scored his first goal for Pescara away against Modena. Insigne finished the season with 18 goals, making him the second top-scorer of the season behind teammate Ciro Immobile, and 14 assists. Among the key players of Pescara's title-winning season and promotion to Serie A, Insigne was subsequently awarded the…

Youth

A regular member of the Italy under-21 squad, Insigne made 15 appearances for the "Azzurrini", scoring seven goals. He made his debut with the under-21 side on 6 October 2011 in a European qualifying match against Liechtenstein, scoring two goals and providing two assists in a 7–2 victory. With the under-21 team, he participated in the 2013 UEFA European Under-21 Championship under manager Devis Mangia, playing an important role in Italy's tournament run. On 5 June 2013, he made his tournament debut against England, scoring a goal from a free-kick in Italy's 1–0 opening victory. On 9 June, in Italy's second match against hosts Israel, Insigne began the play which led to Italy's first goal of the match in the 18th minute, which was scored by Riccardo Saponara. He injured himself later during the match and was forced to come off, although Italy won the match 4–0. Insigne was able to recuperate in time for the semi-final match against the Netherlands, and he came on to set up Fabio Borini's winner which sent the Italians into the final. On 18 June, Italy was defeated 4–2 against Spain in the final, although Insigne was able to set up Italy's second goal of the match, which was scored by Borini.

Senior

At the age of 21 in September 2012, Insigne received his first call-up to the Italian senior team by coach Cesare Prandelli for its 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches against Bulgaria and Malta. He made his senior debut on 11 September during the same…

Nicknamed "Lorenzo Il Magnifico" ("Lorenzo the Magnificent", in Italian), Insigne is a fast, talented, skillful and diminutive right footed winger, with an eye for the goal, who is usually deployed on the left in a 4–3–3 or in a 4–2–3–1 formation, which allows him to utilise his acceleration to cut inside and curl shots on goal with his stronger foot, in particular from outside the penalty area. Due to his penchant for scoring goals in his manner, which according to Insigne was inspired by his "idol" Alessandro Del Piero's trademark goals, in 2021, the neologism tiraggiro – derived from "tir a gir" ("tiro a giro", in Italian, or "curling shot", in English) in Insigne's native Neapolitan dialect – was coined and included in the Italian encyclopedia Treccani. Although his preferred role is on the left flank, he is a hard-working, tactically intelligent, and versatile forward, capable of playing in any offensive position on either side of the pitch, or even through the centre; he is also known for his defensive contribution and ability to cover a lot of ground during matches, in addition to his offensive capabilities, despite his lack of physicality. He has often operated in deeper, more creative positions, either in a free role in the centre as an attacking midfield playmaker behind the strikers, or as a supporting forward, due to his passing ability and vision, which enable him to link-up with midfielders, create chances, and provide assists for teammates. Insigne stated in…

Lorenzo Insigne has three brothers, all of whom are footballers: his younger brother Roberto, as well as Marco and Antonio. Lorenzo married Genoveffa "Jenny" Darone on 31 December 2012; they have three children together: Carmine, born on 4 April 2013, Christian, born on 13 March 2015, and Mattia, born on 29 May 2024.