Manuel Locatelli

Manuel Locatelli is an Italian midfielder whose game connects the work of recovering possession with moving it forward. He can drop towards the defence to help build attacks, then look for an early forward pass. His role depends on where he receives the ball as much as how accurately he distributes it.

His football education took him through Atalanta and AC Milan's youth systems before his Serie A debut for Milan on 21 April 2016. A goal against Juventus later that year brought sudden attention. Looking back in 2021, he said the expectations that followed had been difficult to handle.

Sassuolo became an important stage in that development. Locatelli credited the club with helping him find his feet again and Roberto De Zerbi's detailed coaching with expanding his technical understanding. That progress came in a career already attracting attention for spectacular goals.

Juventus announced his arrival from Sassuolo on 18 August 2021. At his presentation, Locatelli explained that Massimiliano Allegri wanted him to move the ball forward quickly. He first wore Juventus's captain's armband against Cagliari on 11 November 2023, adding a different kind of responsibility to his midfield duties.

He made his senior Italy debut on 7 September 2020 and was part of the team that won EURO 2020, played in 2021. His two goals in the 3–0 group-stage victory over Switzerland on 16 June helped Italy secure a place in the knockout rounds.

The first of those goals shows how his passing can connect with movement: he sent the ball out to Domenico Berardi, followed the attack and arrived to finish the return ball. His second came from outside the penalty area. The sequence illustrates a midfielder who can start an attack and then join its decisive phase.

That balance requires judgment. After Italy beat Northern Ireland in March 2026, Gennaro Gattuso said Locatelli had dropped too deep during the first half, when the build-up became predictable. Locatelli also started the subsequent play-off final against Bosnia and Herzegovina on 31 March. Italy lost the penalty shoot-out after a 1–1 draw and missed the 2026 World Cup. In September 2026 he sprained his right knee against AC Milan and needed surgery on the lateral meniscus.