ROLANDO BIANCHI

'Rolando Bianchi' (born February 15, 1983 in Albano Sant'Alessandro, Bergamo) is an Italian footballer, currently playing for Manchester City. His position is centre forward. He is widely considered as one of the brightest promises of Italian football, and during the 2006-2007 season he showed why he is so highly regarded having been one of the only bright spots for Reggina. His nickname is Rolandinho, a play on Ronaldinho who is considered one of the world's best players.

Contents

Career

External links

Career

Bianchi began his career in 2000 with Atalanta. He played twenty-one games for the first team, without scoring, despite being a prolific scorer in the reserves. He was loaned to Serie B team Cagliari on January 2004, where he played 14 matches and scored 2 goals helping them gain promotion to Serie A.In the 2004-2005 season 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. His performances were key to his club's Serie A survival and also placed him 4th in the League's goal scoring tables.
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.

External links

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★ Goal.com profile