External links
- Profile at the Liverpool F.C. website
- Giovanni Leoni FIGC Italy profile (in Italian)
- Giovanni Leoni – UEFA competition record ( archive )
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Giovanni Leoni [1] | ||
| Date of birth | 21 December 2006 [2] | ||
| Place of birth | Rome, Italy | ||
| Height | 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) [3] | ||
| Position(s) | Centre-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Liverpool | ||
| Number | 15 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Vigontina | |||
| 2015–2019 | Cittadella | ||
| 2019–2023 | Padova | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2023–2024 | Padova | 1 | (0) |
| 2024 | → Sampdoria (loan) | 12 | (1) |
| 2024 | Sampdoria | 0 | (0) |
| 2024–2025 | Parma | 17 | (1) |
| 2025– | Liverpool | 0 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2024– | Italy U18 | 1 | (0) |
| 2024– | Italy U19 | 7 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 18 May 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 25 March 2025 | |||
Giovanni Leoni (born 21 December 2006) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Premier League club Liverpool.
Leoni was born in Rome, in Italy [4] and moved to Padua at the age of 5. He began playing football with Vigontina before moving to Cittadella, and finished his youth development at Padova. [5] He made his senior and professional debut with Padova as a late substitute in a 3–2 Serie C win over AlbinoLeffe on 19 March 2023 at the age of 16 years and 3 months, making him the youngest professional footballer in Italy that season. [6]
On 1 February 2024, he joined Sampdoria on loan until June 2026 with an option to buy for €1.5 million. [7] On 25 June 2024, he signed a three-year contract with Sampdoria. [8]
On 27 August 2024, Leoni moved to Parma in Serie A. On 9 February 2025, he scored his first goal for Parma, a powerful header against Cagliari in a 2–1 loss. [9]
On 15 August 2025, Leoni completed a permanent transfer to Premier League club Liverpool for a reported fee of £26 million on a deal until June 2031. [10] [11] He made his debut for the club on 23 September, starting in a 2–1 win against Southampton in the EFL Cup third round. [12] During this match, he suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury, sidelining him for "about a year" as advised by Arne Slot, which would rule him out for the remainder of the season. [13]
Leoni is a youth international for Italy, having been called up to the Italy U17s in March 2024. [14] He received his first call-up to the senior side for their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches against Estonia and Israel on 29 August 2025. [15]
A tall, strong and two-footed centre-back, Leoni can play in the centre or in the right side of a three-man defense. He is very agile and skilled with his head. He is also a modern defender who is skilled in the build up game, and in covering spaces tactically. [7]
| Club | Season | League | National cup [a] | League cup [b] | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Padova | 2022–23 | Serie C | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | ||||
| 2023–24 | Serie C | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 3 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | |||||
| Sampdoria (loan) | 2023–24 | Serie B | 12 | 1 | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | 12 | 1 | |||
| Parma | 2024–25 | Serie A | 17 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 17 | 1 | ||||
| Liverpool | 2025–26 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |
| Career total | 30 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 2 | ||
