Cesare Natali (born 5 April 1979) is an Italian former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played as a

centre-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

Club career

Atalanta

Natali started his career at

Atalanta Atalanta (; grc-gre, Ἀταλάντη, Atalantē) meaning "equal in weight", is a heroine in Greek mythology. There are two versions of the huntress Atalanta: one from Arcadia, whose parents were Iasus and Clymene and who is primarily known ...

. He scored the opening goal in the relegation playoffs second legs in June 2003, but Atalanta eventually lost 2–1 and relegated to Serie B. On 30 August 2003, Natali and

Fausto Rossini Fausto Rossini (born 2 March 1978) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a striker. Career Atalanta Rossini started his career at Atalanta. In 2003, he joined Bologna along with Cesare Natali in a co-ownership deal, but ...

were sold to

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nat ...

in co-ownership deal. In June 2004, Natali and Rossini were re-signed by Atalanta. He was the regular of the team, partnered again with

Gianpaolo Bellini Gianpaolo Bellini (born 27 March 1980) is an Italian former professional Football player, footballer who played as a Defender (association football), defender. Bellini is a List of one-club men in association football, one-club man; he spent his ...

and

Luigi Sala Luigi Sala (born 21 February 1974) is a former Italian football defender. He played as a central defender. Club career In June 2001, Sala was sold to Atalanta for 7 billion lire, along with Gianni Comandini (30 billion) and Luca Saudati (18 bil ...

. Atalanta relegated again in June 2005.

Udinese

On 29 June 2005, he was signed by Udinese in a five-year contract, to rejoin teammate

Piermario Morosini Piermario Morosini (5 July 1986 – 14 April 2012) was an Italian professional footballer who played as a midfielder. On 14 April 2012, during a match between Pescara and Livorno, Morosini suffered a fatal cardiac arrest on the pitch. Early life ...

(50% for undisclosed fee), Massimo Gotti (undisclosed fee),

Marco Motta Marco Motta (; born 14 May 1986) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a right back. Motta is a former Italy international and made his senior international appearance in 2010; at youth level, he participated in the 2008 Summer ...

(50% for €2.05 million),

(50% for €450,000). However, Atalanta also signed

Thomas Manfredini Thomas Manfredini (born 27 May 1980) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. Career SPAL Udinese Atalanta Manfredini was signed by Serie B club Atalanta B.C. on 27 June 2005 for €1.2 million.Atalanta B.C. ...

and

Antonino D'Agostino Antonino D'Agostino (born 8 October 1978) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for ASD Monastir Kosmoto. He played in Serie A for Atalanta and Cagliari. Career D'Agostino started his career at CND team ''Lascaris'', ...

from Udinese for a total of €2 million. He was the regular of the team but suffered from fractured left ankle in September. He made 32 starts during the 2006–07 season.

Torino

Since the signing of

Aleksandar Luković Aleksandar Luković (Serbian Cyrillic: Александар Луковић; born 23 October 1982) is a Serbian football manager and a former player who played as a defender. He is the manager of Serbia national under-16 football team. He appea ...

, In July 2007, he was sold to

Torino Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. T ...

, signed a 4-year contract. He was the regular until injured in March 2008.

Fiorentina

On 4 July 2009, he was signed by

ACF Fiorentina ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as Fiorentina (), is an Italian professional football club based in Florence, Tuscany, Italy. The original team was founded by a merger in August 1926, while the actual club was refounded in August 2002 fo ...

from relegated Torino, for €2.8 million, concurrently Torino signed

Simone Loria Simone Loria (born 28 October 1976) is an Italian former footballer who played as a centre-back. Loria is known for having scored a spectacular bicycle kick from the edge of the penalty area against Chievo while playing for Atalanta. Career Lor ...

as replacement. He signed a three-year contract. On 20 October 2009, he played his first game for Fiorentina, at UEFA Champions League 2009–10 versus

Debreceni VSC Debreceni Vasutas Sport Club is a professional football club, based in Debrecen, Hungary, that competes in the Nemzeti Bajnokság I, the first tier of Hungarian football. They are best known internationally for reaching the group stages of the ...

, replacing

Dario Dainelli Dario Dainelli (; born 9 June 1979) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a defender. Club career Early career Born in Pontedera, Province of Pisa, Dainelli started his professional career at Empoli. He spent his early ...

at half time. After the departure of Dainelli to Genoa in January, and the fitness problems of

Alessandro Gamberini Alessandro Gamberini (; born 27 August 1981) is an Italian former former professional footballer who played as a central defender. He is working as assistant coach for Virtus Verona. He spent most of his professional career with Fiorentina, app ...

Per Krøldrup Per Billeskov Krøldrup (born 31 July 1979) is a Danish former professional footballer who played as a defender. He has played 33 games for the Denmark national football team, and was part of their squad for the 2004 European Championship. Cl ...

and new signing Felipe, along with tactical rotation, he earned more chances to play, including the Champions league match against

FC Bayern Munich Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), also known as FC Bayern (), Bayern Munich, or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional men's football team, which play ...

. Natali scored his first goal for Fiorentina on 29 January 2012, netting the second in a 2–1 victory over derby rivals

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centuri ...

. He scored his second soon after on 25 March against

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

in the

Stadio Luigi Ferraris The Stadio comunale Luigi Ferraris, also known as the Marassi from the name of the neighbourhood where it is located, is a multi-use stadium in Genoa, Italy. The home of Genoa C.F.C. and U.C. Sampdoria football clubs, it opened in 1911 and is ...

. His header put Fiorentina 2–1 in front, however the match ended in a 2–2 draw.

Bologna

On 26 July 2012, Natali returned to Bologna for a second spell on a two-year contract.

Sassuolo

On 3 March 2015, he was signed by

Sassuolo Sassuolo (; egl, label=Modenese dialect, Modenese, Sasól ) is an Italian town, ''comune'', and industrial centre of the Province of Modena in Emilia-Romagna. Standing on the right bank of the river Secchia some southwest of Modena, the town ...

as a free agent.

International career

Along with his Atalanta teammate

, Natali was called up to the Italy under-21 squad for the

2002 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship UEFA European Under-21 Championship 2002 was the 13th staging of UEFA's European Under-21 Championship. The final tournament was hosted by Switzerland between 16 and 28 May 2002. Czech Republic U-21s won the competition for the first time. Qua ...

. They partnered together in all three group matches (including one substitute appearance) at the tournament as Italy reached the semi-finals. In March 2004, he received his only international call-up to the senior Italian national team, to replace injured Marcello Castellini.

Career statistics

Club

References

External links

Profile at ACF Fiorentina official site

FIGC
{{DEFAULTSORT:Natali, Cesare 1979 births Living people Italian men's footballers Italy men's under-21 international footballers Serie A players Serie B players Serie C players Atalanta BC players Calcio Lecco 1912 players AC Monza players Bologna FC 1909 players Udinese Calcio players Torino FC players ACF Fiorentina players US Sassuolo Calcio players Men's association football central defenders Footballers from Bergamo