Simone Zaza

Simone Zaza (born 25 June 1991) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a striker, most recently for club Torino.

Born in Policoro in the Province of Matera, Zaza grew up in Metaponto and began his youth career with Stella Azzurra from Bernalda in 1997.

He remained with the organization until 2002, when he moved to the youth academy of Valdera at the age of 11.

He remained until 2006, when he was scouted by Serie A side Atalanta, whom he joined shortly after.

Zaza began his professional club career with Atalanta in 2008, where he remained for two seasons.

He remained within the club's youth team for four years and even began to earn senior call-ups towards the end of the 2008–09 Serie A campaign.

He made his Serie A debut on 1 March 2009 in a 0–2 home defeat to Chievo Verona as an 86th-minute substitute for Ferreira Pinto.

He made two further substitute appearances for Atalanta that season, though he remained within the club's youth setup for the entire 2009–10 Serie A campaign.

In 2010, he moved to Sampdoria, where he was sent on loan spells to Juve Stabia, Viareggio and Ascoli.

In July 2010, Zaza transferred from Atalanta to fellow Serie A side Sampdoria on a four-year contract.

With the Genoa-based club, he was enlisted in the club's Primavera (under-20) youth team for the 2010–11 season, though he also earned several first team callups, including two substitute appearances against Genoa and Fiorentina during the 2010–11 Serie A campaign.

He was promoted to the first team at the conclusion of that season.

On 14 July 2011, Zaza was officially sent out on loan to Juve Stabia in Serie B on what was set to be a season-long deal.

After just four appearances and no goals for the club, Sampdoria opted to recall the player during the 2012 January transfer window.

On 7 January 2012, the club loaned the player to Lega Pro Prima Divisione side, Viareggio on a six-month deal to provide the youngster with regular first team experience.

His stint with the third-division club turned out to be very successful; he managed 11 goals in 18 league appearances, 17 as a starter.

After returning to Sampdoria on 30 June 2012, Zaza joined Ascoli on another season-long loan deal ahead of the 2012–13 Serie B campaign.

He officially joined the club on 16 July and made his debut in a 1–3 home loss to Bari on 1 September.

Zaza went on to score 18 league goals in 35 Serie B appearances (30 as a starter) en route to becoming the sixth top goalscorer for the season.

His goals were unable to prevent Ascoli's relegation as they finished the season 20th in the league table.

In 2013 he joined Sassuolo, and in 2015 Juventus.

In his first season with the latter club he immediately won a domestic double.

He returned to Sampdoria on 30 June 2013.

On 9 July 2013, Juventus purchased him outright from Sampdoria for €3.5 million.

Simultaneously, he transferred to Sassuolo from Juventus in a co-ownership deal for €2.5 million.

He returned to play in Serie A in the first round of the league, with Sassuolo losing to Torino 2–0.

On 1 September 2013, during the second round of the league, he scored his first goal in Serie A as the team lost 4–1 to Livorno.

Thanks to his effort, Sassuolo secured their first point in the Italian top flight, with the goal scored in the fifth day against Napoli, 1–1.

At the international level, Zaza made his senior debut for Italy in 2014, and went on to represent his nation at UEFA Euro 2016.

On 20 June 2014, Sassuolo bought Zaza outright from Juventus for another €7.5 million.

Juventus, however, retained the right to re-purchase Zaza for a reported €15 million by 30 June 2015 and €18 million by 30 June 2016.

On 7 July 2015, Juventus announced that they had exercised their option to sign Zaza for €18 million from Sassuolo.

It was reported that the return of Domenico Berardi to Sassuolo for a €10 million fee was part of the deal.

On 23 September 2015, Zaza opened the scoring in the 50th minute on his debut, a 1–1 draw against Frosinone.

On 30 September 2015, he scored the final goal against Sevilla in the UEFA Champions League group stage to secure a 2–0 win; this was his first Champions League goal.

He scored the opening two goals of a 4–0 win over cross-city rivals Torino in the Coppa Italia on 16 December.

On 28 August 2016, West Ham United announced that they had loaned Zaza for a €5 million loan fee, with a €20 million permanent obligation to buy after a certain number of Premier League appearances, plus €3 million in bonuses.

He made his debut with the club on 10 September, in a 4–2 home defeat to Watford in the Premier League.

Zaza made 11 appearances for West Ham, eight in the Premier League and three in the EFL Cup, all without scoring.

His last game came on 30 November, in a 1–4 away defeat to Manchester United in the EFL Cup.