# Giovanni Di Lorenzo
**Giovanni Di Lorenzo** (born 1993 in Castelnuovo di Garfagnana, province of Lucca) is an Italian footballer who plays as a defender, mainly at right-back, and captains [SSC Napoli](https://www.edgepedia.org/ssc-napoli). He won the [Coppa Italia](https://www.edgepedia.org/coppa-italia) with Napoli in 2020 and the Scudetto in 2023, and with the Italy national team, which he joined in 2019, he won [UEFA Euro 2020](https://www.edgepedia.org/uefa-euro-2020) and took bronze at the UEFA Nations League Finals in 2021 and 2023.[1](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/giovanni-di-lorenzo/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | Castelnuovo di Garfagnana, Lucca, 1993[1](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/giovanni-di-lorenzo/) |
| Position | Defender, right-back; physically resistant and strong in the air[1](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/giovanni-di-lorenzo/) |
| Clubs | Lucchese and Reggina youth, Reggina, Cuneo, Matera (2015–2017), Empoli (2017–2019), Napoli from 2019[1](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/giovanni-di-lorenzo/) • [2](https://www.figc.it/en/national-teams/news/giovanni-di-lorenzos-journey-from-serie-d-to-victory-at-wembley-the-secret-is-never-giving-up-lynex36z) |
| Napoli record | 305 appearances and 20 goals in all competitions; two Scudetti, one Coppa Italia, one Italian Super Cup; captain since his fifth season at the club[3](https://sscnapoli.it/auguri-a-di-lorenzo-4/) |
| Italy | Senior international since 2019, 50 caps; European champion 2021, Nations League bronze 2021 and 2023[1](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/giovanni-di-lorenzo/) • [2](https://www.figc.it/en/national-teams/news/giovanni-di-lorenzos-journey-from-serie-d-to-victory-at-wembley-the-secret-is-never-giving-up-lynex36z) |
| Career path | Serie B debut at 17 with Reggina in 2011; Serie A debut only at 24; signed by Empoli for 600,000 euro and by Napoli for about 10 million[4](https://sport.sky.it/calcio/serie-a/2019/05/30/chi-e-di-giovanni-di-lorenzo-napoli) • [2](https://www.figc.it/en/national-teams/news/giovanni-di-lorenzos-journey-from-serie-d-to-victory-at-wembley-the-secret-is-never-giving-up-lynex36z) |
## Early career in the lower divisions
Di Lorenzo grew up in the youth systems of Lucchese and then Reggina, and made his professional debut in [Serie B](https://www.edgepedia.org/serie-b) against Sassuolo on 29 May 2011, aged 17.[1](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/giovanni-di-lorenzo/) • [4](https://sport.sky.it/calcio/serie-a/2019/05/30/chi-e-di-giovanni-di-lorenzo-napoli) He became a regular at Reggina, but the club went bankrupt, and in 2015 he found himself without a team, a period he later described as difficult.[4](https://sport.sky.it/calcio/serie-a/2019/05/30/chi-e-di-giovanni-di-lorenzo-napoli) • [2](https://www.figc.it/en/national-teams/news/giovanni-di-lorenzos-journey-from-serie-d-to-victory-at-wembley-the-secret-is-never-giving-up-lynex36z)
**The move to Matera changed his career.** He joined Matera on a free transfer in 2015 and spent two seasons in [Serie C](https://www.edgepedia.org/serie-c) there, where the coach Pasquale Padalino, struck by his speed and technical quality, moved him from central defense to the flank. Di Lorenzo had begun as a forward, earning the nickname Batigol, and later said that staying in central defense would have cost him, in his own words, 70 percent of his potential.[4](https://sport.sky.it/calcio/serie-a/2019/05/30/chi-e-di-giovanni-di-lorenzo-napoli) • [2](https://www.figc.it/en/national-teams/news/giovanni-di-lorenzos-journey-from-serie-d-to-victory-at-wembley-the-secret-is-never-giving-up-lynex36z)
## Empoli and Serie A
Empoli signed him in 2017 for 600,000 euro. Over two seasons he made 76 appearances and scored 6 goals, winning promotion to [Serie A](https://www.edgepedia.org/serie-a) as champion of Serie B in 2018.[1](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/giovanni-di-lorenzo/) • [4](https://sport.sky.it/calcio/serie-a/2019/05/30/chi-e-di-giovanni-di-lorenzo-napoli) In his first Serie A season, 2018–19, he scored 5 goals and provided 3 assists from right-back, though Empoli was relegated on the final day. His form attracted Napoli, who signed him in 2019 for a fee of about 10 million euro.[4](https://sport.sky.it/calcio/serie-a/2019/05/30/chi-e-di-giovanni-di-lorenzo-napoli)
## Napoli captaincy and titles
At Napoli, Di Lorenzo established himself as one of the most durable players in the squad. In the 2022–23 Scudetto-winning season he played more games and more minutes than any other teammate, and scored in the week 36 match against Inter, a 3–1 win, with a curling finish into the top corner.[5](https://sscnapoli.it/di-lorenzo-lo-stakanovista-azzurro-nessuno-ha-giocato-piu-minuti-di-lui-questanno-nel-napoli/) Napoli sealed that title with five games to spare after a 1–1 draw with Udinese on 4 May 2023, the club's first championship in 33 years, and Di Lorenzo, as club captain, spoke of the pride of bringing the title back to Naples.[6](https://sscnapoli.it/di-lorenzo-scudetto-super-meritato-siamo-orgogliosi-di-averlo-riportato-a-napoli-dopo-33-anni/)
By his eighth season at the club, his fifth as captain, he had made 305 appearances and scored 20 goals in all competitions for Napoli, winning two Scudetti, a Coppa Italia, and an Italian Super Cup.[3](https://sscnapoli.it/auguri-a-di-lorenzo-4/) His first trophy with the club was the 2020 Coppa Italia.[1](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/giovanni-di-lorenzo/)
## Italy national team
Six years passed between his appearances for the Italy Under-20 and Under-21 sides and his first senior call-up, which came in October 2019 and, he said, was a surprise to him.[2](https://www.figc.it/en/national-teams/news/giovanni-di-lorenzos-journey-from-serie-d-to-victory-at-wembley-the-secret-is-never-giving-up-lynex36z) At UEFA Euro 2020, played in 2021, he started the tournament on the bench, replaced the injured [Alessandro Florenzi](https://www.edgepedia.org/alessandro-florenzi) in the opening match against Turkey, and kept the place for the rest of the tournament, finishing as a European champion at Wembley.[2](https://www.figc.it/en/national-teams/news/giovanni-di-lorenzos-journey-from-serie-d-to-victory-at-wembley-the-secret-is-never-giving-up-lynex36z) He also won bronze with Italy at the 2021 and [2023 UEFA Nations League Finals](https://www.edgepedia.org/2023-uefa-nations-league-finals).[1](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/giovanni-di-lorenzo/) By September 2025 he had 50 caps and was among the senior members of the squad under head coach [Gennaro Gattuso](https://www.edgepedia.org/gennaro-gattuso), who had also coached him at Napoli.[2](https://www.figc.it/en/national-teams/news/giovanni-di-lorenzos-journey-from-serie-d-to-victory-at-wembley-the-secret-is-never-giving-up-lynex36z)
## Playing style
Treccani describes him as a physically resistant defender, capable in aerial play.[1](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/giovanni-di-lorenzo/) His career is defined by the climb through the Italian lower divisions: from [Serie D](https://www.edgepedia.org/serie-d) and Serie C levels to a European Championship and two league titles as a captain, a progression he attributes to consistency and to never giving up.[2](https://www.figc.it/en/national-teams/news/giovanni-di-lorenzos-journey-from-serie-d-to-victory-at-wembley-the-secret-is-never-giving-up-lynex36z)
## References
1. [Di Lorenzo, Giovanni, Treccani Enciclopedia on line](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/giovanni-di-lorenzo/)
2. [Giovanni Di Lorenzo's journey from Serie D to victory at Wembley, FIGC](https://www.figc.it/en/national-teams/news/giovanni-di-lorenzos-journey-from-serie-d-to-victory-at-wembley-the-secret-is-never-giving-up-lynex36z)
3. [Happy birthday, Giovanni!, SSC Napoli](https://sscnapoli.it/auguri-a-di-lorenzo-4/)
4. [Di Lorenzo, scalata da 10: dalla Serie C al Napoli in 2 anni, Sky Sport](https://sport.sky.it/calcio/serie-a/2019/05/30/chi-e-di-giovanni-di-lorenzo-napoli)
5. [Di Lorenzo the Napoli player with the most minutes, SSC Napoli](https://sscnapoli.it/di-lorenzo-lo-stakanovista-azzurro-nessuno-ha-giocato-piu-minuti-di-lui-questanno-nel-napoli/)
6. [Di Lorenzo: Proud to bring the title back to Naples after 33 years, SSC Napoli](https://sscnapoli.it/di-lorenzo-scudetto-super-meritato-siamo-orgogliosi-di-averlo-riportato-a-napoli-dopo-33-anni/)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Association football › Football people and teams › People › Men's footballers of continental Europe › Italian footballers born before 1995 › Surnames A to Ma*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license