Francesco Antonioli

Francesco Antonioli

Antonioli with Milan in 1988
Personal information
Date of birth	(1969-09-14) 14 September 1969
Place of birth	Monza, Italy
Height
Position(s)	Goalkeeper
Youth career
	Milan
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1986–1988	Monza	23	(0)
1988–1994	A.C. Milan	13	(0)
1990	→ Cesena (loan)	0	(0)
1990–1991	→ Modena (loan)	30	(0)
1993–1994	→ Pisa (loan)	26	(0)
1994–1995	Reggiana	30	(0)
1995–1999	Bologna	103	(0)
1999–2003	Roma	102	(0)
2003–2006	Sampdoria	104	(0)
2006–2009	Bologna	119	(0)
2009–2012	Cesena	106	(0)
Total		656	(0)
International career‡
1989–1992	Italy U21	23	(0)
1992	Italy Olympic team	6	(0)
2000	Italy	0	(0)
Medal record Representing Italy Association football UEFA European Football Championship Belgium-Netherlands 2000
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of end of 2009/10 season ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 00:00, 3 July 2000 (UTC)

Francesco Antonioli (born 14 September 1969) is an ex-Italian footballer and goalkeeper. He was the oldest Footballer in Serie A until Cesena were relegated to Serie B at the end of the 2011–12 season. Despite never being capped at senior international level, he was an unused member of the Italy squad the took part at Euro 2000, reaching the final.

Club career

Grown as a player in the ranks of AC Milan, Antonioli was brought to the starting lineup at the start of the 1992–93 season. However, a string of mistakes, including a dreadful fumble in the Milan derby which gifted Luigi de Agostini a soft goal, allowed Sebastiano Rossi to reclaim his starting spot. Milan won the league title that season, also reaching the final of the UEFA Champions League.

Joining Bologna in 1995, he was the undisputed first-choice (except in 1997–98, where he backed up Giorgio Sterchele), helping Bologna to win the 1998 UEFA Intertoto Cup, and reach the semi-finals of the 1998–99 UEFA Cup and the Coppa Italia. In 1999 he joined Roma for 10 billion Italian lire and in 2001, he won a Scudetto and a Supercoppa Italiana with AS Roma, also reaching the final of the Coppa Italia in 2003.

In the summer of 2003, Antonioli joined U.C. Sampdoria on a free transfer. In 2006–07, with Luca Castellazzi's emergence between the posts, Antonioli left for former club Bologna on another free transfer.

He led Bologna to win Serie A promotion once again in mid-2008.

After the end of 2008–09 season, he was released and replaced by U21 internationals Emiliano Viviano. Antonioli then joined Serie B newcomer A.C. Cesena in July and the club sent the former first choice Nicola Ravaglia to lower division. He was the first choice ahead Michele Tardioli. Antonioli was also protagonist of the club's second consecutive promotion in 2010, thus having another chance of top flight football at the age of 41 in the 2010–11 Serie A season. The team survived from relegation battle by finished 15th and he was offered a new 1-year contract.

International career

Antonioli never debuted for the senior side, but was selected in the Italy squad that finished second at Euro 2000, as third-choice goalkeeper, behind Christian Abbiati and Francesco Toldo, but only because Italy's number one goalkeeper, Gianluigi Buffon, had injured himself in an international friendly warm-up a few days before the beginning of the tournament.

Antonioli was the first-choice goalkeeper of the Italy national under-21 football team that won the 1992 UEFA European Under-21 Championship; with the Italian squad, he also took part in the 1992 Olympic Games.

Honours

Club

A.S. Roma

• Serie A: 2000–01
• Supercoppa Italiana : 2001

Orders

5th Class / Knight: Cavaliere Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana: 2000

External links

• (Italian) Bologna F.C. Player Profile
• (Italian) Francesco Antonioli National Team Stats at FIGC.it
• Francesco Antonioli career statistics at Soccerbase