Domenico Criscito
Criscito with Genoa in 2018
Personal information
Full name Domenico Criscito[1]
Date of birth (1986-12-30) 30 December 1986 (age 36)[1]
Place of birth Cercola, Italy
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[2]
Position(s) Left-back
Youth career
1996–2002 Sporting Volla
2002–2004 Genoa
2004–2006 Juventus
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2003–2004 Genoa 1 (0)
2004–2009 Juventus 8 (0)
2006–2009 → Genoa (loan) 87 (7)
2009–2011 Genoa 65 (2)
2011–2018 Zenit Saint Petersburg 156 (15)
2018–2022 Genoa 104 (17)
2022 Toronto FC 15 (1)
2023 Genoa 16 (1)
Total 452 (43)
International career
2003 Italy U17 5 (0)
2003–2004 Italy U18 5 (0)
2004–2005 Italy U19 6 (1)
2005–2006 Italy U20 4 (1)
2006–2009 Italy U21 26 (1)
2008 Italy Olympic 4 (0)
2009–2018 Italy 26 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Domenico "Mimmo" Criscito (Italian pronunciation: [doˈmeːniko ˈmimmo ˈkriʃʃito]; born 30 December 1986) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a left-back. A versatile player, Criscito was effective both offensively and defensively[3] and was also capable of playing as a wing-back or centre-back, a position which he often occupied in his early career.[4][5]

Criscito played for Serie A clubs Genoa and Juventus, making over 200 appearances across four spells for the former. He also played for seven years in the Russian Premier League for Zenit Saint Petersburg, making 225 total appearances and winning two league titles for the team. A full international from 2009 to 2018, he played for the Italy national team at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Club career

Early career

A native of southern Italy, Criscito moved up north at age 13 to pursue his football career.[6][7] He started his professional career at Genoa, for whom he made his debut in Serie B in June 2003 at the age of 16. In the summer of 2004, Genoa sold 50% of Criscito and Francesco Volpe contracts to Juventus for €1.9 million, with 50% contract of Antonio Nocerino was sold to Genoa for €450,000.[8]

Juventus

Criscito played for Juventus's Primavera team alongside Italy U-21 teammates Claudio Marchisio, Paolo De Ceglie and Sebastian Giovinco, and together they won the 2005–06 Campionato Nazionale Primavera. In the 2006–07 season, he returned to Genoa and established himself as one of the top young defenders in Serie B. In January 2007, Juventus bought his remaining 50% registration rights for €7.5 million. This was paid by the co-ownership of Masiello and Konko to Genoa, and €5.25 million cash.[9] He also signed a new contract with Juventus that would last until 30 June 2011 and remaining on loan at Genoa.

Criscito made his Serie A debut for Juventus on 25 August 2007, in Juve's comeback game in Serie A versus Livorno, a crushing 5–1 victory. However, he endured a difficult time at the Turin club. He was deemed "too soft" to be a centre-back after Francesco Totti scored twice in six minutes in the September game, a 2–2 draw, against Roma from his side of the pitch. Criscito was substituted at half-time.[6] After that, he found himself behind Nicola Legrottaglie and Giorgio Chiellini in the pecking order due to their outstanding form.

Return to Genoa

Not happy to remain on the bench, Criscito opted to return to Genoa on loan in the opening days of the 2007–08 winter transfer window. On 3 July 2008, he was sent on loan to Genoa again for €1 million[10] with the Ligurian club having the option to purchase half of his contract for €5.5 million. In February 2009, he scored his first goal since returning to Genoa, the winner against Palermo. In June 2009 Genoa excised the option to sign him in a co-ownership for pre-agreed price.[11] He was very impressive after re-joining Genoa, who were back in Serie A by then, and he retained a place in the starting line-up as Gian Piero Gasperini's first choice left-back.[12] However, he did not rule out a return to Juventus after being linked to a permanent return to replace Fabio Grosso.[13] In September against Napoli, Criscito was shown a straight red card for allegedly swearing at the referee after being penalized for a foul on Christian Maggio, but Gasperini later defended the 23-year-old saying that he was angry at himself, not the referee. The appeal to rescind the red card was turned down, but his ban was reduced to two to three matchdays.[14]

On 25 June 2010, Juventus announced that the Criscito's remaining 50% registration rights were sold for another €6 million fee.[15] However co-currently 50% registration rights of Leonardo Bonucci was signed from Genoa via Bari for €8 million.

Zenit

Criscito with Zenit in 2014

On 27 June 2011, Criscito signed for Russian Premier League club Zenit for €11 million fee.[16] He penned a five-year contract with the club.[17] He made his debut for the club on 6 August in a 2–0 away victory against CSKA Moscow, providing an assist for teammate Aleksandr Kerzhakov. He ended the season as a league champion, his first career silverware.

On 12 July 2015, he scored the winning penalty in a 4–2 shoot-out victory in the 2015 Russian Super Cup over Lokomotiv Moscow.[18]

On 8 May 2018, he announced that he will be leaving Zenit upon the expiration of his contract at the end of the 2017–18 season. A game against FC SKA-Khabarovsk was his official farewell game for Zenit.[19]

Third spell in Genoa

In May 2018, it was reported that Criscito had announced to sign for his former club Genoa via his personal Instagram account.[20][21] His return was officially announced by the club on 24 May.[22] A few days later he was assigned number 4 shirt.[23]

Criscito's contract with Genoa was terminated by mutual consent on 24 June 2022.[24]

Toronto FC

On 29 June 2022, Toronto FC announced the signing of Criscito on a TAM contract.[25] The signing followed the arrival of former Italy teammate and good friend, Lorenzo Insigne. A move to the club was initially speculated in March 2022, but fell through.[26] Despite receiving offers to join other Italian clubs, Criscito opted for a move to Canada to avoid playing against Genoa in the future.[27] He made his debut for Toronto FC on 9 July against the San Jose Earthquakes in a 2–2 home draw.[28] In the 2022 Canadian Championship Final against Vancouver Whitecaps FC on 26 July at BC Place, following a 1–1 draw, he converted a penalty in the resulting shoot-out, although Toronto ultimately lost 5–3.[29] He scored his first goal for the club on 17 August, the equalizing goal, from a volley, of a 2–2 home draw against New England Revolution.[30][31] In November 2022, he announced his retirement.[32]

Fourth spell at Genoa and retirement

On 27 December 2022, Genoa announced that Criscito would come out of retirement and return to the club on 2 January 2023.[33] On 19 May 2023, after the 4-3 match win over Bari, he announced his retirement from football at the age of 36, after scoring the winning goal from a penalty kick in the 94th minute and securing Genoa’s promotion to Serie A.[34][35]

International career

On 14 November 2006, Criscito made his debut for the Italy Under-21 squad in a match against the Czech Republic. He appeared in two European Under-21 Championships, in 2007 and 2009, reaching the semi-finals of the latter tournament. In 2008, he also represented Italy at the Summer Olympics.

On 12 August 2009, he made his senior national team debut in a friendly against Switzerland in Basel.[36] After a promising season, he was named in Marcello Lippi's 23-man squad for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, where he was the starting left-back; Italy were eliminated in the first round of the tournament following a 3–2 loss to Slovakia in their final group match on 24 June.[37]

Criscito was named to Italy's Euro 2012 squad by Cesare Prandelli, but withdrew from the team after he came under investigation due to the Scommessopoli match fixing scandal.[38] Criscito went on to criticize the Italian FA for the decision to drop him despite the limited selection of left-backs.[39] Several months later he was cleared of all charges.[40]

Criscito was unused by Italy between March 2014 and May 2018, when he returned in a 2–1 friendly win over Saudi Arabia under Roberto Mancini.[41][42] On 4 June, he was sent off for a foul on Ryan Babel in a 1–1 friendly draw with the Netherlands in Turin.[43]

Style of play

Criscito was a tactically versatile player, who was capable of being both an effective attacking and defensive threat as a full-back.[3] He began his career as a left-footed centre-back, but he was moved to the position of left-back while playing for Genoa, where he was also employed as a wing-back or as a wide midfielder on occasion under manager Gian Piero Gasperini in Genoa's 3–4–3 formation.[4] Criscito was described as a quick defender, with good technique, distribution, and man-marking ability.[5]

Personal life

Criscito is married to Pamela Chiccoli and they have two sons and one daughter.[44][45][46]

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Genoa 2002–03 Serie B 1 0 0 0 – – 1 0
Juventus 2005–06 Serie A 0 0 0 0 0 0 – 0 0
2007–08 8 0 1 0 – – 9 0
Total 8 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 9 0
Genoa (loan) 2006–07 Serie B 36 4 3 0 – – 39 4
2007–08 Serie A 16 0 – – – 16 0
2008–09 35 3 2 0 – – 37 3
Total 87 7 5 0 0 0 0 0 92 7
Genoa 2009–10 Serie A 29 2 0 0 6 1 – 35 3
2010–11 36 0 1 0 – – 37 0
Total 65 2 1 0 6 1 0 0 72 3
Zenit Saint Petersburg 2011–12 Russian Premier League 25 1 1 0 7 0 – 33 1
2012–13 12 2 1 1 4 0 1[a] 0 18 3
2013–14 18 1 1 0 7 0 – 26 1
2014–15 25 2 1 0 14 1 – 40 3
2015–16 23 1 5 0 6 0 1[a] 0 35 1
2016–17 25 4 0 0 7 1 1[a] 0 33 5
2017–18 28 4 0 0 12 2 – 40 6
Total 156 15 9 1 57 4 3 0 225 20
Genoa 2018–19 Serie A 35 2 1 0 – – 36 2
2019–20 26 8 2 2 – – 28 10
2020–21 23 1 1 0 – – 24 1
2021–22 20 6 1 1 – – 21 7
Total 104 17 5 3 0 0 0 0 109 20
Toronto FC 2022 Major League Soccer 15 1 1 0 – – 16 1
Genoa 2022–23 Serie B 16 1 1 0 – – 17 1
Career total 452 43 23 4 63 5 3 0 541 52
  1. ^ a b c Appearance in Russian Super Cup

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year[47]
National team Year Apps Goals
Italy 2009 4 0
2010 8 0
2011 6 0
2012 2 0
2013 1 0
2014 1 0
2018 4 0
Total 26 0

Honours

Zenit Saint Petersburg[48]

Italy U21

References

  1. ^ a b "FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010: List of Players: Italy" (PDF). FIFA. 4 June 2010. p. 15. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 April 2020.
  2. ^ "Domenico Criscito". Toronto FC. Retrieved 21 August 2022.
  3. ^ a b "domenico criscito". Retrieved 17 September 2014.
  4. ^ a b "Domenico Criscito". vivoazzurro.it. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
  5. ^ a b Stefano Bedeschi. "Gli eroi in bianconero: Domenico CRISCITO" (in Italian). Tutto Juve. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
  6. ^ a b "Criscito e Marchisio come Cabrini-Tardelli". La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). 11 August 2009.
  7. ^ "Criscito torna a Napoli. Per il matrimonio". Corriere del Mezzogiorno (in Italian). 8 July 2009.
  8. ^ "Reports and Financial Statements at 30 June 2005" (PDF). Juventus F.C. 25 October 2005. Retrieved 22 January 2017.
  9. ^ "Agreements with Genoa C.F.C. S.p.A." (PDF). Juventus FC. 25 January 2007. Retrieved 14 September 2009.
  10. ^ "Agreements with Genoa C.F.C. S.p.A." (PDF). Juventus F.C. 3 July 2008. Retrieved 4 March 2017.
  11. ^ "Criscito al Genoa anche la prossima stagione" (in Italian). Corriere dello Sport. 24 June 2009.[permanent dead link]
  12. ^ "Criscito: "Giusto lasciarla, ma per lo scudetto tifo Juve"" (in Italian). Tuttosport. 2 September 2009. Archived from the original on 5 October 2009.
  13. ^ "Criscito: "La Juve è sempre una grande"" (in Italian). Corriere dello Sport. 10 February 2010.[permanent dead link]
  14. ^ "Genoa, per Criscito squalifica confermata" (in Italian). Corriere dello Sport. 17 September 2009.[permanent dead link]
  15. ^ "Agreements with Genoa C.F.C S.p.A" (PDF). Juventus FC. 25 June 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 June 2015. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
  16. ^ Genoa C.F.C. S.p.A. bilancio (financial report and accounts) on 31 December 2011, PDF purchased in Italian C.C.I.A.A. (in Italian)
  17. ^ "Official: Zenit St Petersburg sign Domenico Criscito from Genoa". goal.com. 27 June 2011. Retrieved 27 June 2011.
  18. ^ Report
  19. ^ «Не уверен, что смогу сдержать слезы»: Доменико Кришито попрощается с «Зенитом» 13 мая (in Russian). FC Zenit Saint Petersburg. 8 May 2018.
  20. ^ "Criscito: "Genoa rieccomi"". La Repubblica (Genoa edition) (in Italian). GEDI Gruppo Editoriale. 16 May 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2018.
  21. ^ Criscito, Domenico (16 May 2018). "Domenico criscito on Instagram: "7 giugno 2003: esordivo con questa maglia a 16 anni.. una maglia che è sempre rimasta nel mio cuore, un club che mi ha dato la possibilità…"" (in Italian). Instagram. Archived from the original on 24 December 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2018.
  22. ^ "CRISCITO DAL RITORNO AL GENOA ALLA NAZIONALE" (Press release) (in Italian). Genoa C.F.C. 24 May 2018. Retrieved 12 June 2018.
  23. ^ IL GENOA PER GENOVA, CON MIMMO CRISCITO (video) (in Italian). hosted in youtube. Genoa C.F.C. 6 June 2018. Retrieved 8 June 2018.((cite AV media)): CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  24. ^ "Il Genoa Cfc comunica la risoluzione consensuale del contratto con Mimmo Criscito" (in Italian). Genoa C.F.C. 24 June 2022. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
  25. ^ "Toronto FC sign veteran Italian defender Domenico Criscito". Major League Soccer. 29 June 2022. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
  26. ^ "Genoa's Domenico Criscito Will Not Join MLS Side Toronto FC — At Least For Now". Forbes. 7 March 2022. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
  27. ^ "Criscito raggiunge Insigne: l'ex difensore del Genoa ha firmato con il Toronto" (in Italian). Tutto Mercato. 24 June 2022. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
  28. ^ Grossi, James (10 July 2022). "Reds take lessons from home draw vs. San Jose".
  29. ^ "Vancouver Whitecaps beat Toronto FC on penalties to lift Canadian Championship". 90min. 27 July 2022. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  30. ^ Khoury, Anthony (17 August 2022). "Recap: Domenico Criscito stunner salvages point for Toronto FC against New England Revolution". Waking the Red.
  31. ^ "Criscito scores 1st goal as TFC, Revolution play to draw". The Score. 17 August 2022.
  32. ^ "Domenico Criscito announces retirement". Toronto FC. 15 November 2022. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
  33. ^ "Bentornato Mimmo!" (in Italian). Genoa. 27 December 2022. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  34. ^ "Genoa, Criscito dice addio al calcio: saluta Marassi col gol vittoria". 19 May 2023. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
  35. ^ "Genoa-Bari 4-3, le pagelle: festival del gol a Marassi. Criscito saluta in grande stile". 20 May 2023. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
  36. ^ "Nazionale: c'è Marchisio, Fuori Toni e Montolivo" (in Italian). Gazzetta dello Sport. 8 August 2009.
  37. ^ "Slovakia 3 Italy 2: match report". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 25 September 2010.
  38. ^ "Italy's Euro 2012 camp hit by dawn police raid". The Guardian. 29 May 2012.
  39. ^ "Criscito: I should have gone to Euro 2012". Goal.com. 1 June 2012. Retrieved 11 June 2012.
  40. ^ "Criscito anger missed Euro chance". espn.com. 12 September 2012. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  41. ^ Curro, Enrico (25 May 2018). "Nazionale, la terza vita in azzurro di Criscito: Una ferita aperta, ora una sfida da vincere". La Repubblica (in Italian). Retrieved 21 April 2020.
  42. ^ "Mancini, partenza ok: Italia-Arabia Saudita 2-1, riecco Criscito" (in Italian). Primo Canale. 28 May 2018. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
  43. ^ "Netherlands score late to draw with Italy 1-1 in Turin". USA Today. Associated Press. 4 June 2018. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
  44. ^ "Criscito, un difensore col cuore a tre punte" (in Italian). sport.sky.it. 23 April 2010. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  45. ^ "Pamela Criscito: "Mimmo – Peter Pan"" (in Italian). fc-zenit.ru. 25 April 2014.
  46. ^ "Fiocco rosa in casa Criscito, dopo due maschietti è arrivata la piccola Alice - Genova 24". 26 December 2021.
  47. ^ "Domenico Criscito". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
  48. ^ "D. Criscito". Soccerway. Retrieved 21 December 2015.
  49. ^ "Regulations of the UEFA" (PDF). UEFA. September 2007. Retrieved 18 August 2023.

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