Salvatore Bocchetti is on course to break a whole raft of records. A central defender who started out as a full-back, the Naples native and former Ascoli youth player was called up by Marcello Lippi after contesting a mere 25 Serie A matches, including 23 with Genoa at the start of the 2008\/09 season.<\/P>
The defender first began enjoying competitive action on loan at Lanciano in Serie C, but after returning to Ascoli in 2006\/07 he made just two top-flight appearances before being rapidly loaned out again, this time to Serie B outfit Frosinone.<\/P>
His displays nonetheless caught the eye of club officials at Genoa, and the young left-footed player seemed the perfect match for the Rossoblu’s system of play, built upon a trio of central defenders at the back.<\/P>
After joining Genoa in summer 2008, Bocchetti was quick to tie down a starting berth and began to progress at an astonishing rate. “It makes all those sacrifices worthwhile,” he said. “It’s difficult to express my emotion, but I still have everything to prove.” Impressive at the Toulon Tournament for Under-21 sides, he was awarded his senior Italy debut in the Azzurri's penultimate 2010 FIFA World Cup™ qualifier against Republic of Ireland, when he replaced Fabio Grosso in the second half. Four days later, he was a starter against Cyprus and he has been a fixture in Lippi’s squads ever since.<\/P>","FA149E2002A43ED77C24C62CDFF094A5":"4","82CBDCB828DBDF896209A361CA981BCF":"","A7F9B63E25A659E5":"Salvatore Bocchetti","8DC362CCE065919BCF40467C0DE6A7E8":"","DA5E7C1A0F1CB829A66A16651D2472FD":"Italy","2B5572269355781B0007104B7181FA88":"1986-11-30","18E9F76C307DDD99":"3175","0A9B0394F31973591937C38F2F471911":"Hellas Verona FC","4678B5349347B7EB":"81kg","A16D5E6475634BB126EF698FB3550B8C":"1000000.00","5E8F53D0A504BF86":"Salvatore Bocchetti","e_index":1};