Francesco Benussi (born 15 October 1981) is a retired Italian footballer who played as a

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

Club career

Venezia

Benussi started his career at

Venezia Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The islan ...

, After he made his team debut in 1999–2000 season. He was loaned to Serie C1 clubs likes

Lumezzane Lumezzane (Brescian: ; locally ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Brescia, in Lombardy. With a population of 22,255 () it is one of the largest towns in the province of Brescia. It is situated in the Gobbia Valley, which is a side val ...

and

Ascoli Ascoli may refer to: Places in Italy *Ascoli Satriano, a town and ''comune'' in the province of Foggia in the Apulia region *Province of Ascoli Piceno, a province of the Marche region ** Ascoli Piceno, a city which is the seat of the province above ...

. After played as a backup of

Giovanni Indiveri Giovanni may refer to: * Giovanni (name), an Italian male given name and surname * Giovanni (meteorology), a Web interface for users to analyze NASA's gridded data * ''Don Giovanni'', a 1787 opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, based on the legend of ...

, he returned to Venice and played as a backup of

Salvatore Soviero Salvatore may refer to: * Salvatore (name), a given name and surname, including a list of people with the name * "Salvatore" (song), by Lana Del Rey, 2015 * Salvatore (band), a Norwegian instrumental rock band * '' Salvatore: Shoemaker of Dreams' ...

before left on loan again for

Arezzo Arezzo ( , , ) , also ; ett, 𐌀𐌓𐌉𐌕𐌉𐌌, Aritim. is a city and ''comune'' in Italy and the capital of the province of the same name located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about southeast of Florence at an elevation of above sea level. ...

of Serie C1. Benussi became first choice after Soviero departed for

Reggina Reggina 1914 S.r.l., commonly referred to as Reggina, is an Italian football club based in Reggio Calabria. Founded in 1914, they currently play in Serie B, and play their home matches at the 27,763 seater Stadio Oreste Granillo. They are n ...

Lecce

After Venezia bankruptcy and relegated, Benussi was signed by Lecce, as first a backup to Vincenzo Sicignano in August 2005. But due to injury of Sicignano, he played 15 Serie A games. Lecce failed to protect her place in Serie A, and saw Sicignano left the club. Benussi became the first choice at the start of 2004–05 season, before left on loan to A.C. Siena as player exchange with Nicola Pavarini. At

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 failed to challenge

Alex Manninger Alexander Manninger (born 4 June 1977) is an Austrian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He played internationally for the Austria national team on 33 occasions, including at UEFA Euro 2008, and has represented footbal ...

for the first choice, and Siena has not decided to bought Benussi outright. Returned to Lecce for another Serie B season, his first choice place was challenged by

Antonio Rosati Antonio Rosati (born 26 June 1983) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Career Lecce Rosati's career began at Cisco Calcio Roma. He moved to Lecce in the 2002–03 season, making his first team debut in Feb ...

but Benussi played 23 Serie B games and all 4 promotion playoffs, to win promotion for the

Apulia it, Pugliese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographic ...

club in June 2008.

Livorno

On 12 August 2009

Livorno Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 158,493 residents in December 2017. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn (pronou ...

have signed the goalkeeper on loan from

U.S. Lecce Unione Sportiva Lecce, commonly referred to as Lecce (), is an Italian football club based in Lecce, Apulia. The club play in Serie A in the 2022–23 season, the top level of the Italian football pyramid, having been promoted from Serie B. ...

. He played as an unused substitute on 9 August, in the

Coppa Italia The ("Italy Cup") is an annual knockout cup competition in Italian football organized by the FIGC until the 2009–10 season and the Lega Serie A ever since. History The beginning of the tournament was turbulent, due to the complexity of ...

match that Lecce won 4–0 over

Vico Equense Vico Equense is a coastal town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Naples, in southern Italy. Geography Vico Equense is part of the greater Bay of Naples metropolitan area and is a tourist destination. Located on a tuff cliff, it i ...

. On 25 October 2009, he played his first match for Livorno, substituted

Nico Pulzetti Nico Pulzetti (born 13 February 1984) is an Italian association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder for S.S.D. Calcio San Donà, Sandonà. He also played for A.C. Cesena, Cesena, U.S. Castelnuovo Garfagnana, Castelnuovo, Hellas Verona ...

after goalkeeper

Alfonso De Lucia Alfonso De Lucia (born 12 November 1983) is an Italian football coach and a former player who played as a goalkeeper. Career Parma De Lucia was signed by Parma A.C. from S.S.C. Napoli, as part of the deal of Paolo Cannavaro. De Lucia made his ...

was sent off. He played as starter in the subsequent 3 league matches and 2

games.

Palermo and loan to Torino

On 1 February 2010 Benussi agreed for a loan transfer to

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...

, with Rubinho making the opposite move, reunited with former Venezia owner

Maurizio Zamparini Maurizio Zamparini (9 June 1941 – 1 February 2022) was an Italian businessman. He was the owner and director of football club U.S. Città di Palermo between July 2002 – February 2017 and from July 2017 – December 2018. Biography Zampari ...

. After Palermo signed Giacomo Brichetto permanently, Benussi also signed permanently from Lecce a week later, on 22 July 2010. He signed a 3-year contract. Constantly a second choice behind Italian international

Salvatore Sirigu Salvatore Sirigu (, ; born 12 January 1987) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Fiorentina and the Italy national team. Sirigu began his career with Venezia, and then Palermo. In 2011, he moved to Paris Sa ...

, Benussi has since played only at

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...

level during his period while at Palermo. Initially confirmed as second goalkeeper following the departure of Sirigu to

Paris Saint-Germain F.C. Paris Saint-Germain Football Club (), commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain, Paris, Paris SG or simply PSG is a professional football club based in Paris, France. They compete in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. As ...

and the signing of Greek international

Alexandros Tzorvas Alexandros Tzorvas ( el, Αλέξανδρος Τζόρβας; born 12 August 1982) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Club career Early career Ηe began his career as a member of the renowned (domazos academy) ...

as a replacement, he successively became the first choice under new head coaches

Devis Mangia Devis Mangia (; born 6 June 1974) is an Italian association football manager, most recently in charge of the Malta national football team. Managing career Early years Mangia started his coaching career at age 30, working alongside Sean Sogliano ...

and

Bortolo Mutti Bortolo Mutti (born 11 August 1954 in Trescore Balneario, Bergamo) is an Italian football manager and a former player, who was most recently manager of Livorno. His older brother Tiziano Mutti also played football professionally. To distinguish ...

. Following the acquisition of Italy international

Emiliano Viviano Emiliano Viviano (; born 1 December 1985) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Turkish Süper Lig club Fatih Karagümrük. Club career Brescia Born in Florence, Viviano is a product of Fiorentina and Brescia youth ...

, Palermo opted to send Benussi on loan 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 ...

in the

Serie B The Serie B (), currently named Serie Balkrishna Industries, BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 ...

league.

Udinese

On 24 July 2013, his contract with Palermo was cancelled and he moved to

Udinese Udinese Calcio, commonly referred to as Udinese, is a professional Italian football club based in Udine, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, that currently plays in Serie A. It was founded on 30 November 1896 as a sports club, and on 5 July 1911 as a ...

Verona

On 30 August 2014 Benussi was signed by

Hellas Verona F.C. Hellas Verona Football Club, commonly referred to as Hellas Verona or simply Verona, is a professional Italian football club based in Verona, Italy, that currently plays in Serie A. The team won the Serie A Championship in 1984–85. His ...

Carpi

On 9 July 2015 Benussi was signed by Serie A newcomer

Carpi F.C. 1909 A.C. Carpi is an Italian professional football club based in Carpi, a city in the province of Modena. The club was founded in 1909, re-founded in 2000 and 2022. Carpi's colours are white and red, hence the nickname "Biancorossi". At the end o ...

. On 27 January 2016 Benussi was released.

Vicenza

Benussi joined

Vicenza Calcio L.R. Vicenza, commonly referred to as Vicenza, is an Football in Italy, Italian football club based in Vicenza, Veneto. Founded in 1902 as Associazione del Calcio in Vicenza, they became Lanerossi Vicenza in 1953, then Vicenza Calcio from 1990 ...

in a -year contract on 27 January 2016 on a free transfer. He received no.1 shirt from departing Richard Marcone.

International career

Benussi has been capped for the Italy U20 side in 2000 at the

Toulon Tournament The Toulon Tournament (officially the Festival International "Espoirs" – Tournoi Maurice Revello) is a football (training match) tournament, which traditionally features invited national teams composed of youth players from U-17 to U-23 level. ...

, behind

Generoso Rossi Generoso Rossi (born 3 January 1979) is an Italian former professional association football, footballer who played as a goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. Club career Rossi started his career at A.S. Bari. he was on loan to Serie C ...

as 2nd choice goalkeeper. He played once at the tournament.

Honours

;Lecce *

Third-Place: 2007–08 ;Ascoli *

Serie C1 Lega Pro Prima Divisione was the third highest football (soccer), football league in Italy. It consisted of 33 teams, divided geographically into two divisions of 16 and 17 teams for group A and B respectively. Until 2008 it was known as Serie C1 ...

Champions: 2001–02

References

External links

Francesco Benussi Interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Benussi, Francesco 1981 births Living people Italian footballers Italy youth international footballers Venezia F.C. players Ascoli Calcio 1898 F.C. players S.S. Arezzo players U.S. Lecce players A.C.R. Siena 1904 players U.S. Livorno 1915 players Palermo F.C. players Torino F.C. players Udinese Calcio players Hellas Verona F.C. players A.C. Carpi players Serie A players Serie B players Serie C players Men's association football goalkeepers Footballers from Venice People from Mestre