Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
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Date of birth | 6 April 2007 | ||||||||||||||||
Place of birth | Carate Brianza, Italy | ||||||||||||||||
Height | 1.69 m (5 ft 7 in) | ||||||||||||||||
Position(s) | |||||||||||||||||
Team information | |||||||||||||||||
Current team | Catanzaro | ||||||||||||||||
Number | 14 | ||||||||||||||||
Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
2013–2014 | Aquile della Brianza | ||||||||||||||||
2014–2015 | La Dominante | ||||||||||||||||
2015–2025 | AC Milan | ||||||||||||||||
Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
2024–2025 | Milan Futuro | 8 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
2024–2025 | AC Milan | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
2025– | Catanzaro | 0 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||
2022 | Italy U15 | 6 | (4) | ||||||||||||||
2022–2023 | Italy U16 | 10 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
2023–2024 | Italy U17 | 28 | (6) | ||||||||||||||
2024– | Italy U19 | 10 | (4) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23:45, 5 January 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 25 March 2025 |
Mattia Liberali (born 6 April 2007) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder and winger for Serie B club Catanzaro.
In October 2024, Liberali was included in The Guardian 's list of the 60 best talents in the world born in 2007. [1]
Liberali was born in Carate Brianza, Italy. [2]
In 2013, the manager of local amateur side Rhodense , Alberto Bianchi, spotted Liberali and invited him to play in a youth tournament with a view to later sign him. [3] However, he would participate at the tournament with Aquile della Brianza from Muggiò instead, spending a year with the side before joining La Dominante, who he would train during the week with, while playing with professional side AC Milan on weekends. [3]
After a year of this arrangement, Liberali made the switch to AC Milan permanent. [3] During the 2021–22 under-16 Scudetto tournament, he finished second-top scorer behind Francesco Camarda with nine goals, as AC Milan went on to win the competition. [3] He was called up to train with the first team for the first time, alongside Camarda and Nirash Perera, in December 2022. [4] The following year, in July 2023, he signed his first professional contract with the club through 2027. [5]
Liberali joined AC Milan for their 2024–25 pre-season, displaying impressive performances during the friendly matches, including the headlining assist for a 1–0 win against Spanish La Liga club Real Madrid at the Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois, United States, the club's third friendly match on 31 July 2024. [6] He made his professional debut on 10 August 2024, starting for the newly created reserve team Milan Futuro, and scoring the first goal of a 3–0 away win Coppa Italia Serie C first round match against Lecco. [7]
Liberali made his debut with AC Milan on 15 December 2024, starting on a 0–0 home draw Serie A match against Genoa, simultaneously celebrating the club's 125th anniversary. [8]
He was one of the players that were called up by AC Milan head coach Massimiliano Allegri, for the 2025 AC Milan Asia-Pacific Tour pre-season matches against English Premier League clubs Arsenal and Liverpool, as well as Australian A-League Men club Perth Glory on 23, 26 and 31 July 2025, respectively. [9]
On 8 August 2025, Liberali joined Serie B club Catanzaro on a free transfer, signing a contract until 2029. [10] [11]
Liberali has represented Italy at the under-15, under-16, under-17 and under-19 levels. [12]
Initially a central defender while playing at 7-a-side level, Liberali was moved up the pitch in the academy of AC Milan, settling at left-wing, with Italy under-17 coach Massimiliano Favo also utilising him as an attacking midfielder. [3] Former AC Milan defender and current football pundit, Alessandro Costacurta, compared him with English international Phil Foden for their similar playing style. [13]
Club | Season | League | National cup | Europe | Total | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Milan Futuro | 2024–25 | Serie C | 8 | 0 | 2 [a] | 1 | — | 10 | 1 | |
Total | 8 | 0 | 2 | 1 | — | 10 | 1 | |||
AC Milan | 2024–25 | Serie A | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Total | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
Career total | 9 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1 |
Italy U17
Individual