Piotr Zieliński

Piotr Zieliński
Zieliński with Inter Milan in 2024
Personal information
Full name Piotr Sebastian Zieliński[1]
Date of birth (1994-05-20) 20 May 1994 (age 30)[1]
Place of birth Ząbkowice Śląskie, Poland
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[2]
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Inter Milan
Number 7
Youth career
2003–2007 Orzeł Ząbkowice Śląskie
2007–2011 Zagłębie Lubin
2011–2012 Udinese
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2012–2016 Udinese 19 (0)
2014–2016 → Empoli (loan) 63 (5)
2016–2024 Napoli 281 (37)
2024– Inter Milan 8 (2)
International career‡
2009 Poland U15 5 (1)
2009–2010 Poland U16 6 (0)
2010–2011 Poland U17 10 (1)
2012 Poland U18 5 (1)
2011–2012 Poland U19 15 (5)
2012–2013 Poland U21 3 (1)
2013– Poland 99 (14)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:37, 10 November 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 18 November 2024

Piotr Sebastian Zieliński (Polish pronunciation: [ˈpjɔtr ʑɛˈlij̃skʲi] ⓘ; born 20 May 1994) is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Serie A club Inter Milan and the Poland national team. During his senior career, he previously played for Udinese, Empoli and Napoli.

Zieliński was selected to represent Poland at UEFA Euro 2016 in France, as well as the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, the pan-European UEFA Euro 2020, the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and the UEFA Euro 2024 in Germany. He has two brothers who are also professional footballers – Paweł and Tomasz Zieliński. He is often regarded as one of the greatest Polish footballers of all time.[3]

Club career

[edit]

Early career

[edit]

Zieliński started his career at his local club, Orzeł Ząbkowice Śląskie, where he was coached by his father.[4] At the age of 14, he joined Zagłębie Lubin, even though he was wanted by Bayer Leverkusen and Liverpool and also had trials at Feyenoord and Heerenveen.[4] He rose through the ranks and started training with the first team at the age of 15, under Franciszek Smuda.[4]

At 17, he moved abroad to join Udinese after they scouted him on international youth tournament.[4]

Udinese

[edit]

Zieliński made his debut in Serie A on 2 November 2012 when he replaced Antonio Di Natale in 91st minute of a match against Cagliari.[5]

Empoli (loan)

[edit]

In 2014, Zieliński joined Empoli on loan.[6]

Napoli

[edit]
Piotr Zieliński (right) in a UEFA Champions League match against Red Bull Salzburg, 2019.

On 4 August 2016, after months of transfer speculation, Zieliński moved from Udinese to Napoli for a reported €16 million.[7] He scored his first goal with Partenopei's shirt on 3 December, in a 3–0 home win against Inter Milan;[8] he ended his first season with six goals. On 31 August 2020, he signed new contract with Napoli until June 2023. On 31 October 2021, not only did he decide the derby between Salernitana and Napoli, scoring the only goal of the game, but with 32 goals he also became the second best Polish goal-scorer in Serie A's history (behind Arkadiusz Milik), beating Zbigniew Boniek's record.[9] On 17 February 2022, he scored a goal for Napoli in a Europa League match against Barcelona which ended in a 1–1 draw.[10] On 7 September 2022, he scored two goals and had one assist in a Champions League match against Liverpool, which concluded in a 4–1 victory for Napoli.[11]

At the end of June 2024, It was announced on the official website that Zieliński along with five other players left the club, following the contract expiration.[12]

Inter Milan

[edit]

On 3 July 2024, Zieliński signed for the fellow Serie A club Inter Milan following the expiration of his Napoli contract.[13] On 27 October 2024, Zieliński scored two goals in a 4–4 draw against Juventus.[14] The two goals were his first goals scored for Inter Milan.[15]

International career

[edit]
Zieliński with Poland at the 2018 FIFA World Cup playing against Japan.

On 4 June 2013, Zieliński made his senior international debut for the Poland national team in a friendly match against Liechtenstein.[16] In May 2018, he was named in Poland's preliminary 35-man squad for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.[17] He provided an assist in the Euro 2024 group stage match against the Netherlands. On 15 October 2024, he scored a goal in a 3–3 draw against Croatia in the group stage of the UEFA Nations League.[18]

Personal life

[edit]

His older brothers Tomasz and Paweł are also footballers.[19] On 15 June 2019, Zieliński married Laura Słowiak[20] with whom he has a son, Maksymilian (born 2021).[21] In 2021, he passed an Italian language exam at the B2 level at the University of Naples.[22] On 6 October 2023, Zieliński formally also received the Italian citizenship.[23]

Career statistics

[edit]

Club

[edit]
As of match played 10 November 2024[24]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Coppa Italia Europe Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Udinese 2012–13 Serie A 9 0 0 0 0 0 — 9 0
2013–14 Serie A 10 0 0 0 1[a] 0 — 11 0
Total 19 0 0 0 1 0 — 20 0
Empoli (loan) 2014–15 Serie A 28 0 2 0 — — 30 0
2015–16 Serie A 35 5 1 0 — — 36 5
Total 63 5 3 0 — — 66 5
Napoli 2016–17 Serie A 36 5 4 1 7[b] 0 — 47 6
2017–18 Serie A 36 4 2 0 9[c] 3 — 47 7
2018–19 Serie A 36 6 1 0 12[d] 1 — 49 7
2019–20 Serie A 37 2 5 0 7[b] 0 — 49 2
2020–21 Serie A 36 8 4 0 6[a] 2 1[e] 0 47 10
2021–22 Serie A 35 6 0 0 7[a] 2 — 42 8
2022–23 Serie A 37 3 1 0 10[b] 4 — 48 7
2023–24 Serie A 28 3 0 0 6[b] 1 1[e] 0 35 4
Total 281 37 17 1 64 13 2 0 364 51
Inter Milan 2024–25 Serie A 8 2 0 0 4[b] 0 0 0 12 2
Career total 371 44 20 1 69 13 2 0 462 58
  1. ^ a b c Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa League
  2. ^ a b c d e Appearance(s) in UEFA Champions League
  3. ^ Seven appearances and two goals in UEFA Champions League, two appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa League
  4. ^ Six appearances in UEFA Champions League, six appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa League
  5. ^ a b Appearance in Supercoppa Italiana

International

[edit]
Zieliński with Poland in 2019.
As of match played 18 November 2024[25]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Poland 2013 7 3
2014 1 0
2015 3 0
2016 10 0
2017 8 0
2018 12 3
2019 10 0
2020 5 0
2021 10 1
2022 12 3
2023 8 0
2024 13 4
Total 99 14
Scores and results list Poland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Zieliński goal.
List of international goals scored by Piotr Zieliński[25]
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 14 August 2013 Stadion Gdańsk, Gdańsk, Poland  Denmark 3–2 3–2 Friendly
2 10 September 2013 San Marino Stadium, Serravalle, San Marino  San Marino 1–0 5–1 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
3 4–1
4 27 March 2018 Stadion Śląski, Chorzów, Poland  South Korea 3–2 3–2 Friendly
5 8 June 2018 Stadion Poznań, Poznań, Poland  Chile 2–0 2–2 Friendly
6 7 September 2018 Stadio Renato Dall'Ara, Bologna, Italy  Italy 1–0 1–1 2018–19 UEFA Nations League A
7 8 June 2021 Stadion Poznań, Poznań, Poland  Iceland 1–1 2–2 Friendly
8 29 March 2022 Stadion Śląski, Chorzów, Poland  Sweden 2–0 2–0 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
9 11 June 2022 De Kuip, Rotterdam, Netherlands  Netherlands 2–0 2–2 2022–23 UEFA Nations League A
10 26 November 2022 Education City Stadium, Al Rayyan, Qatar  Saudi Arabia 1–0 2–0 2022 FIFA World Cup
11 21 March 2024 Kazimierz Górski National Stadium, Warsaw, Poland  Estonia 2–0 5–1 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying
12 7 June 2024 Kazimierz Górski National Stadium, Warsaw, Poland  Ukraine 2–0 3–1 Friendly
13 12 October 2024 Kazimierz Górski National Stadium, Warsaw, Poland  Portugal 1–2 1–3 2024–25 UEFA Nations League A
14 15 October 2024 Kazimierz Górski National Stadium, Warsaw, Poland  Croatia 1–0 3–3 2024–25 UEFA Nations League A

Honours

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Napoli

Poland U21

  • Four Nations Tournament: 2014–15[28]

Individual

References

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  1. ^ a b "FIFA World Cup Russia 2018: List of players: Poland" (PDF). FIFA. 15 July 2018. p. 22. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 December 2019.
  2. ^ https://www.inter.it/it/squadra/prima-squadra/piotr-zielinski
  3. ^ Barnes, Jakob (20 May 2024). "The greatest Poland players in history have been ranked". GiveMeSport. Retrieved 15 August 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d "Skąd się wziął w Udinese Piotr Zieliński?" [How did Zielinski came to Udinese?] (in Polish). Weszło!. 18 April 2013. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
  5. ^ "Debiut Piotra Zielińskiego w Serie A" [Piotr Zieliński debuts in Serie A] (in Polish). Interia. 2 December 2012. Retrieved 2 December 2012.
  6. ^ "Empoli, dall'Udinese Zielinski in prestito". www.tuttosport.com (in Italian). 1 September 2014. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  7. ^ "Official: Zielinski joins Napoli". Football Italia. 4 August 2016. Retrieved 23 May 2018.
  8. ^ "Le pagelle di Napoli-Inter: Zielinski dominatore, Perisic non pervenuto". La Repubblica (in Italian). 2 December 2016. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  9. ^ "Gol Zielińskiego! Polak wyprzedził legendę [WIDEO]" (in Polish). 31 October 2021. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  10. ^ "Barcelona 1 1 Napoli". Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  11. ^ "Liverpool thrashed by Napoli in Champions League". BBC Sport. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
  12. ^ "Club statement". SSC Napoli. 30 June 2024. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  13. ^ "Inter secure signing of Piotr Zieliński on free transfer". Yahoo Sports. 3 July 2024. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  14. ^ "Zielinski's two penalties help Inter Milan draw 4-4 with Juventus in Serie A thriller". telegraphindia.com. 29 October 2024. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
  15. ^ Michał Karaś (27 October 2024). "Dublet Zielińskiego w Derby d'Italia, Juventus uratował najwyższy remis w historii". flashscore.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 29 October 2024.
  16. ^ "Zieliński: Lewandowski powiedział, że lubi takie piłki". Wprost (in Polish). 5 June 2013. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
  17. ^ "Revealed: Every World Cup 2018 squad - Final 23-man lists". Goal. 4 June 2018. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  18. ^ Tommy Lund (15 October 2024). "Poland fight back to snatch 3-3 draw with Croatia". reuters. Retrieved 17 October 2024.
  19. ^ "Zielińscy. Rodzina, która zawsze pomoże". sportowefakty.wp.pl (in Polish). 12 April 2020. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  20. ^ "Kolejny ślub polskiego piłkarza! Piotr Zieliński powiedział "tak" Laurze Słowiak". 15 June 2019. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  21. ^ "Piotr Zieliński został ojcem. Pokazał pierwsze zdjęcia dziecka". Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  22. ^ "Piotr Zieliński ubiega się o włoskie obywatelstwo" (in Polish). 27 February 2021. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  23. ^ "Zielinski ha ottenuto la cittadinanza italiana" (in Italian). RAI News. 6 October 2023. Retrieved 7 October 2023.
  24. ^ "Piotr Zieliński". Soccerway. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  25. ^ a b "Zieliński, Piotr". National Football Teams. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
  26. ^ "Napoli win Serie A for first time in 33 years". BBC Sport. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  27. ^ "Coppa: Napoli beat Juventus on penalties". Football Italia. 17 June 2020.
  28. ^ "Turniej Czterech Narodów U-21: Niemcy 1-2 Polska. Polska zwycięzcą rozgrywek" [Four Nations Tournament U-21: Germany 1-2 Poland. Poland is the winner of the competition]. 90minut.pl (in Polish). 27 March 2015. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  29. ^ "Lewandowski zdetronizowany. Oto najlepszy polski piłkarz 2023!". sport.tvp.pl (in Polish). 24 December 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
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