Cristian Molinaro

{{short description|Italian footballer (born 1983)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2018}}

{{Infobox football biography

| name = Cristian Molinaro

| image = Torino-Zenit_(7).jpg

| image_size = 170px

| caption = Molinaro playing for Torino in 2015

| fullname =

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1983|7|30|df=y}}

| birth_place = Vallo della Lucania, Italy

| height = 1.82 m

| currentclub = Venezia (technical director)

| clubnumber =

| position = Full-back

| youthyears1 = 1989–1996

| youthclubs1 = Gelbison

| youthyears2 = 1996–2002

| youthclubs2 = Salernitana

| years1 = 2002–2005

| clubs1 = Salernitana

| caps1 = 77

| goals1 = 1

| years2 = 2005–2007

| clubs2 = Siena

| caps2 = 56

| goals2 = 0

| years3 = 2007–2010

| clubs3 = Juventus

| caps3 = 65

| goals3 = 0

| years4 = 2010

| clubs4 = → VfB Stuttgart (loan)

| caps4 = 17

| goals4 = 0

| years5 = 2010–2014

| clubs5 = VfB Stuttgart

| caps5 = 76

| goals5 = 0

| years6 = 2014

| clubs6 = Parma

| caps6 = 16

| goals6 = 2

| years7 = 2014–2018

| clubs7 = Torino

| caps7 = 81

| goals7 = 1

| years8 = 2018–2019

| clubs8 = Frosinone

| caps8 = 14

| goals8 = 0

| years9 = 2020–2022

| clubs9 = Venezia

| caps9 = 36

| goals9 = 0

| totalcaps = 438

| totalgoals = 4

| nationalyears1 = 2004–2005

| nationalteam1 = Italy U21 "B"{{cite news|url=http://archiviostorico.gazzetta.it/2004/marzo/31/Grieco_extremis_Belgio_vittoria_ga_10_0403316842.shtml|title=Grieco in extremis In Belgio è vittoria|date=31 March 2004|accessdate=24 June 2010|language=Italian|work=La Gazzetta dello Sport}}{{cite news|url=http://archiviostorico.gazzetta.it/2005/marzo/18/Italia_diverte_Brilla_Vantaggiato_ga_10_0503186255.shtml|title=L' Italia si diverte Brilla Vantaggiato|date=18 March 2005|accessdate=1 September 2010|work=La Gazzetta dello Sport|language=Italian|last=Di Ragogna|first=Dante}}

| nationalcaps1 = 2

| nationalgoals1 = 0

| nationalyears2 = 2010

| nationalteam2 = Italy

| nationalcaps2 = 2

| nationalgoals2 = 0

| manageryears1 = 2022–

| managerclubs1 = Venezia (technical director)

| club-update =

| ntupdate =

}}

Cristian Molinaro ({{IPA|it|ˈkristjam mɔliˈnaːro}}; born 30 July 1983) is an Italian professional football official and a former full-back. He works as a technical director for {{Italian football updater|Venezia}} club Venezia. He represented the Italy national team.

Club career

=Early career=

Molinaro started playing at age 5 for Gelbison, in Vallo della Lucania, before growing up in the various Salernitana youth teams.

In 2002–03 he made his league debut in Serie B. This marked the beginning of the two competitive seasons he played as a starter in Salerno, that included his first professional goal in 2004–05 in a match against Bari. In 2005, he moved to Siena, a club that he played for two seasons.

=Siena and Juventus=

In 2005, he was noticed by the dense network of observers of Juventus and signed, who decided to sell him in co-ownership to Siena, in which Juventus already had several players on loan. He made his debut in Serie A on 18 September 2005 in Siena - Palermo 1–2 and his first season in the top flight was characterised by ups and downs; losing the role of starting left-back to the more experienced Gianluca Falsini.

For 2006–07, Juventus, relegated to Serie B by the 2006 Italian football scandal, allowed Molinaro to remain at Siena (who sold Falsini), relying on him to cover the role of left-back. He collected 36 appearances out of 38 league games and two appearances in 2 rounds of Coppa Italia.

On 20 June 2007, shortly before the transfer window deadline, Juventus redeemed him for a sum of €2.5 million. During 2007–08, at age 24, he carved out a starting spot on the left wing of the defence of Juventus, thanks to the movement of companion Giorgio Chiellini to central defence.

In his second season at Juventus he debuted 13 August 2008 in the first leg of the third qualifying round of the Champions League, won 4–0 against Petržalka, which also represented his debut in European competition. On 28 November 2008 he extended his contract with Juventus until 2013. He finished the 2008–09 season prematurely because of a perirenal hematoma.

=Stuttgart=

With the arrival of Italy international Fabio Grosso and Uruguayan Martín Cáceres in the summer, Molinaro signed a loan deal with VfB Stuttgart on 5 January 2010 which initially saw him stay at the club until the end of the 2009–10 season.{{cite web|url=http://vfb.de/archiv/en/aktuell/news/2009/34797.php |title=VfB sign Cristian Molinaro |accessdate=5 January 2010 |date=5 January 2010 |publisher=vfb.de |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110816155116/http://www.vfb.de/archiv/en/aktuell/news/2009/34797.php |archivedate=16 August 2011 |df=dmy }} On 1 June 2010, VfB Stuttgart took advantage of a contract option and signed Molinaro permanently until June 2014.{{cite web |url=http://www.gfdb.com/Player.4963.Cristian-Molinaro.aspx |title=Cristian Molinaro – VfB Stuttgart |publisher=gfdb.com |accessdate=18 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141214160049/http://www.gfdb.com/Player.4963.Cristian-Molinaro.aspx |archive-date=14 December 2014 |url-status=usurped |df=dmy-all }} Juventus announced that on 14 June they received €3.9 million transfer fees and the deal was completed.{{cite news|url=http://www.juventus.com/wps/wcm/connect/7e9a8e6a-1a80-4428-8c48-cfb190b73be0/comunicato_14062010_molinaro_eng.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&CACHEID=7e9a8e6a-1a80-4428-8c48-cfb190b73be0 |title=Agreement with VfB Stuttgart 1893 for the definitive transfer of the registration rights of the player Cristian Molinaro |date=14 June 2010 |accessdate=27 November 2011 |work=Juventus FC official site }}{{dead link|date=December 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

During the first round of the 2013–14 Bundesliga season, Molinaro only played once. Kicker and other media reported that VfB Stuttgart sought to offload him.{{cite news|url=https://www.kicker.de/schneider-setzt-auch-in-suedafrika-auf-die-jugend-596758/artikel|title=Schneider setzt auch in Südafrika auf die Jugend |date=18 December 2013|access-date=30 January 2014|work=Kicker|language=German}}

=Parma=

On 30 January, Parma announced that they had signed Cristian Molinaro.{{cite web | url = http://fcparma.com/news/cristian-molinaro-nuovo-giocatore-del-parma?lang=it | title = Dallo Stoccarda arriva Cristian Molinaro. Da oggi è un giocatore del Parma | language = Italian | publisher = fcparma.com | accessdate = 30 January 2014 | url-status = usurped | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20140202145518/http://fcparma.com/news/cristian-molinaro-nuovo-giocatore-del-parma?lang=it | archivedate = 2 February 2014 | df = dmy-all }} On 16 February 2014, he scored his first goal with the shirt of Parma, as well as first in Serie A, against Atalanta for the momentary 0–1. Shortly afterwards, in his first game against his former team, Juventus, he scored his second goal in Serie A.

=Torino=

On 16 June 2014, Molinaro was signed by Torino on an annual contract.{{cite news|url=http://torinofc.it/news/13/06/2014/molinaro-al-toro_5111|title=Molinaro al Toro|date=16 June 2014|accessdate=16 June 2014|publisher=Torino FC|language=Italian}} He made his debut with the Granata in the third round of the 2014–15 Europa League against Brommapojkarna.{{cite web|title=BROMMAPOJKARNA VS. TORINO 0 - 3|url=https://int.soccerway.com/matches/2014/07/31/europe/uefa-cup/ildrottsforening--brommapojkarna/torino-fc/1802667/|website=soccerway.com|accessdate=2 August 2014}} On 25 June 2015, Torino exercised the option to extend his contract. He played a total of 38 games and scored one goal, in a 2–1 victory against Inter Milan.

On 18 September 2016, he ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament in a home game against Empoli. He returned on 13 March 2017, during a match against Lazio.{{Cite web|url=http://www.toronews.net/toro/toro-frattura-al-perone-per-molinaro/|title=Toro, frattura alla testa del perone per Molinaro|date=23 February 2018 }} After renewing his contract with Torino until June 2018, he continued to play for Torino until he fractured the head of his fibula in February. After the injury, he played his hundredth game for Torino on 29 April away against Lazio. At the end of the season he was released on a free transfer.

=Frosinone=

On 12 July 2018, Christian Molinaro joined Serie A club Frosinone on a free transfer.{{cite web|url=https://it.eurosport.com/calcio/calciomercato-frosinone-ufficiale-tesserato-molinaro-fino-al-30-giugno-2019_sto6845374/story.shtml|title=Molinaro signed with Frosinone|access-date=13 July 2018|website=Eurosport.com|date=12 July 2018}}

=Venezia=

After not playing in the first half of the 2019–20 season, he signed with Serie B club Venezia on 15 January 2020 for the remainder of the season.{{cite press release|publisher=Venezia|url=https://www.veneziafc.it/news/ufficiale-cristian-molinaro-in-arancioneroverde/|title=Ufficiale: Cristian Molinaro in arancioneroverde|date=15 January 2020|language=Italian}}

International career

Molinaro received his first international call-up on 6 August 2010 under new head coach Cesare Prandelli.{{cite news|url=http://www.figc.it/it/204/25569/2010/08/News.shtml|title=L'Italia di Prandelli: 8 novità, tra cui Balotelli e Amauri. Torna Cassano|date=6 August 2010|accessdate=10 August 2010|work=FIGC|language=Italian|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131028015658/http://www.figc.it/it/204/25569/2010/08/News.shtml|archive-date=28 October 2013|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}} He made his debut on 10 August 2010, starting in the match against Ivory Coast. He was also called up for the games against Estonia and Faroe Islands in the Euro 2012 qualifiers.

Post-playing career

On 13 June 2022, Venezia announced Molinaro's retirement from playing and his appointment to the position of the team's technical director.{{cite web|publisher=Venezia|url=https://www.veneziafc.it/en/news/cristian-molinaro-named-venezia-fc-first-team-technical-director|title=CRISTIAN MOLINARO NAMED VENEZIA FC FIRST TEAM TECHNICAL DIRECTOR|date=13 June 2022|access-date=20 June 2022}}

Career statistics

=Club=

{{updated|1 July 2022}}{{Soccerway|cristian-molinaro/4315}}

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
rowspan=2|Club

!rowspan=2|Season

!colspan=3|League

!colspan=2|Cup

!colspan=2|Europe

!colspan=2|Other

!colspan=2|Total

DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
rowspan=4|Salernitana2002–03rowspan=3|Serie B5000colspan=2|—colspan=2|—50
2003–0433010colspan=2|—colspan=2|—340
2004–0539150colspan=2|—colspan=2|—441
colspan=2|Total||77||1||6||0||colspan=2|—||colspan=2|—||83||1
rowspan=3|Siena2005–06rowspan=2|Serie A20000colspan=2|—colspan=2|—200
2006–0736020colspan=2|—colspan=2|—380
colspan=2|Total||56||0||2||0||colspan=2|—||colspan=2|—||58||0
rowspan=4|Juventus2007–08rowspan=3|Seria A31051colspan=2|—colspan=2|—361
2008–09290209Two appearances during the preliminaries0colspan=2|—400
2009–10500000colspan=2|—50
colspan=2|Total||65||0||7||1||9||0||colspan=2|—||81||1
rowspan=1|VfB Stuttgart (loan)2009–10rowspan=5|Bundesliga170colspan=2|—20colspan=2|—190
rowspan=4|VfB Stuttgart

|2010–11

27030110colspan=2|—410
2011–1223040colspan=2|—colspan=2|—270
2012–132504070colspan=2|—360
2013–14100010colspan=2|—20
colspan=3|Total||93||0||11||0||21||0||colspan=2|—||125||0
rowspan=1|Parma2013–14Serie A162colspan=2|—colspan=2|—colspan=2|—162
rowspan=5|Torino2014–15rowspan=4|Serie A24010131colspan=2|—381
2015–1627120colspan=2|—colspan=2|—291
2016–1710000colspan=2|—colspan=2|—100
2017–1820040colspan=2|—colspan=2|—240
colspan=2|Total||81||1||7||0||13||1||colspan=2|—||101||2
Frosinone2018–19Serie A14010colspan=2|—colspan=2|—150
rowspan=4|Venezia2019–20rowspan=2|Serie B120colspan=2|—colspan=2|—colspan=2|—120
2020–2116010colspan=2|—4{{efn|name=Serie B–Promotion play-offs|Appearances in Serie B – Promotion play-offs}}0210
2021–22Serie A8010colspan=2|—colspan=2|—90
colspan=2|Total||36||0||2||0||colspan=2|—||4||0||42||0
colspan=3|Career total||438||4||36||1||43||1||4||0||521||6

{{notelist}}

=International=

{{updated|match played 13 June 2015}}{{cite web|url=http://www.figc.it/nazionali/DettaglioConvocato?codiceConvocato=3521&squadra=1|title=Molinaro, Cristian|publisher=FIGC|language=Italian|accessdate=17 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170914081844/http://www.figc.it/nazionali/DettaglioConvocato?codiceConvocato=3521&squadra=1|archive-date=14 September 2017|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
colspan=3|Italy
YearAppsGoals
201020
Total||2||0

Honours

VfB Stuttgart

References

{{reflist}}