Enrico Chiesa

Enrico Chiesa (Italian pronunciation: [enˈriːko ˈkjɛːza; ˈkjeːza]; born 29 December 1970) is an Italian football coach and former striker.

Chiesa played for several Italian clubs throughout his career, and performed regularly in Serie A for over a decade, winning titles with Sampdoria, Parma, and Fiorentina; he later also spent a spell with Lazio. He moved to Siena where he became a household name and, thanks to his goals, the Tuscan side stayed in the top division for many seasons. He retired with Figline in 2010, the club with which he subsequently began his coaching career. He won the 1998–99 UEFA Cup and Coppa Italia with Parma, finishing the former tournament as the top scorer, with 8 goals. At international level, he played for the Italy national team on 17 occasions between 1996 and 2001, scoring 7 goals, and was also part of the Italian squads that took part at UEFA Euro 1996 and the 1998 FIFA World Cup.

He is father to Federico Chiesa, who is also a professional footballer.

Club career

Born in Genoa, Chiesa made his early playing footsteps at amateur club Pontedecimo (1986–87). He then moved to Sampdoria, for which he made his debut on 16 April 1989 in a 1–0 loss at Roma in the 1988–89 Serie A. He then played for Teramo of Serie C2 and successively Chieti of Serie C1 before returning to Sampdoria in 1992. Failing to impress, he then joined Modena in Serie B for the 1993–94 season, and later Cremonese during the 1994–95 season, where he scored 14 goals in their Serie A campaign. In 1995, he returned again with the blucerchiati, forming a notable attacking duo with Roberto Mancini, and scoring 22 goals in 27 matches in Serie A.