We take a look at Brendan Rodgers’ first signing as Liverpool manager, Italian striker Fabio Borini.
“Brendan Rodgers is a good manager and a great person who knows me very well. He is like an uncle because he helped me a lot when I was at Chelsea.”
Born: Bentivoglio, Italy // 29 March 1991 (Age 21)
Height: 5ft 11
Previous clubs: Chelsea, Swansea (loan), Parma, Roma (loan)
Borini joined Chelsea from Bologna in 2007, aged 16, and worked under Rodgers in the reserves – where he later scored five goals in one game in 2010. Hugely admired by then Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelloti, he was included in their Champions League squad aged just 18, having scored 10 goals in 11 appearances for the reserves. Ancelotti handed him his debut in September 2009 and was likened to Filippo Inzaghi by Ancelotti.
The following season Borini went on loan to Rodgers’ Swansea side and scored six goals in nine appearances, helping the team to promotion to the Premier League.
With his Chelsea contract having expired that summer, he opted to return to Italy, having signed a pre-contract agreement with Parma. Chelsea were disappointed to lose the player, and received €360,000 in compensation.
Parma then loaned the player to Roma, with an option to buy. He scored ten goals in 26 games for Roma last season, and they took up the option to buy him permanently – knowing that they could then make a profit by selling him to Liverpool.
Italian football expert Mina Rzouki on Borini
Borini is the poster child for dedication and commitment. For him, football is simply not a game to enjoy but rather a profession to master. It is this precise determination to succeed that has seen Borini establish himself both at club and international level.
Tactically flexible, he can play any position in attack, on the left, through the middle or on the right. He can play as the centre forward or as a second striker as he can exploit his pace and willingness to uncover space when deployed in a more withdrawn role. Additionally, his sacrificial nature sees him eager to provide for the side when out of possession whilst statistically, he produced more tackles than any other attacking player for Roma last season.
Fiercely competitive and eager to impose himself, Borini is curiously calm under pressure and hardly ever intimidated regardless of the amount of stars he has played alongside. Aware of his quality, his insatiable right foot and the ability to score goals, he finished last season as Roma’s second highest goal-scorer.
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