| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | February 15, 1983 | ||
| Place of birth | Lovere, Italy | ||
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Striker | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Torino | ||
| Number | 9 | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2000–2005 | Atalanta | 21 | (0) |
| 2004–2005 | → Cagliari (loan) | 39 | (4) |
| 2005–2007 | Reggina | 46 | (19) |
| 2007–2008 | Manchester City | 19 | (4) |
| 2008 | → Lazio (loan) | 15 | (4) |
| 2008– | Torino | 114 | (57) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2003–2006 | Italy U-21 | 13 | (7) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 21:58, 5 November 2011 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). |
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Rolando Bianchi (born February 15, 1983 in Lovere, Bergamo) is an Italian footballer, currently playing for Torino F.C.. His position is centre forward. He was widely considered as one of the brightest promises of Italian football, notably scoring 19 goals in the 2006–2007 season playing with Calabrian club Reggina.
Bianchi began his career in 2000 with Atalanta. He played twenty games for the first team, without scoring, despite being a prolific scorer in the youth ranks. He was loaned to Serie B team Cagliari in January 2004, where he played 14 matches and scored 2 goals helping them gain promotion to Serie A. The 2004–05 was a poor one for the forward, and saw him score only 2 goals in 25 matches.
Bianchi was promptly sold to Reggina in 2005, where his first season was hampered by a serious knee injury suffered early on in the season. He recovered to play 9 games late in the season, scoring one goal.
That summer, Bianchi was called up the Italy U-21 squad for the 2006 U-21 Championships in Portugal, where he appeared 3 times and scored once.
The 2006–07 season saw the forward in superb form for Reggina, notching 18 goals in 37 games. Due to their indictment for sporting fraud, the club had started the season with an 11-point deduction and seemed destined for relegation. They managed to save themselves, however, with Bianchi's performances considered a key part of Reggina's Serie A survival. He finished the season 4th in the league's goal scoring table. Rolando Bianchi has often stated that he would like to return back to Reggina anytime, and that he misses the support from the Reggina fans.
This form unsurprisingly attracted the attention of suitors throughout Europe, and in July 2007 Bianchi moved to Manchester City for a fee of £8.8 million (€13m), where he was given the number 10 shirt. Bianchi scored on his debut for City, slotting home a pass from Elano against West Ham. Bianchi's second goal came in a 2-1 victory in the Carling Cup 2nd round against Bristol City F.C. The goal was a sweetly struck 25 yard finish that ultimately sealed the win for City. Bianchi moved on to score his third goal in English football in a 2-1 defeat against a defiant Spurs side on 9 December 2007. Then on the following Saturday he scored the first goal against Bolton in a 4-2 Manchester City win.
In January 2008, Manchester City manager Sven-Göran Eriksson informed Bianchi that he will be allowed to leave the club. On January 23, 2008 Bianchi finalised a loan move to Lazio after not being able to settle in England.[1] In his debut with Lazio, Bianchi was sent off after 2 yellow cards in just 5 minutes. He scored his first goal for Lazio against former club Reggina from a penalty kick in a 1-0 victory.[2] In spite of Bianchi's hope that Lazio would make his move permanent, he had in fact been asked to return to Manchester City.
On August 23, 2008, after a summer of much speculation about a possible move, it was officially announced by Manchester City that Bianchi had signed for Italian club Torino on a five-year deal.[3]
On August 2011 Bianchi was linked with a move to Scottish Club Celtic F.C [4]. He has also been linked with Galatasaray of Turkey.
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