Sergio Pellissier

Sergio Pellissier (born 12 April 1979) is an Italian footballer who plays as a striker and captains Italian club Chievo Verona.
He started his club career playing for Torino's youth team, having been called up once as part of Torino's senior team. After two years at Torino, Pellissier moved to A.S. Varese 1910 in 1998, and subsequently to Chievo in 2000. He was promptly loaned for two seasons to SPAL 1907. Upon his return to Chievo in 2002, Pellissier established himself as a first team player. He helped Chievo to qualify for both the UEFA Europa League and the UEFA Champions League, and represented the team in both those competitions. He remained at the club after Chievo were relegated to Serie B at the conclusion the 2006–07 season, and became the squad's captain in the following one, helping the team to win the league title and earn promotion to Serie A. Throughout his career, Pellissier has achieved several historical records for the club, which have seen him become an idol of the Chievo fans; he is currently the club's all-time top goalscorer.
At international level, Pellissier has played five times for Italy's national under-17 youth squad, and appeared in a single match for the Italy senior team in 2009, scoring a goal.

Early career

Pellissier was born in Aosta, and started playing football in the region of Aosta Valley. He was 12 when he scored three goals against Torino F.C. on a tournament in Nus and Fénis for the local team Fenusma, and Torino showed interest on him. He then moved alone to Turin but after some time he wanted to return to his home; when Pellissier was 14 he returned definitively to Torino. He made his senior debut and played one match in Serie B during the 1996–97 season against Salernitana. In 1998, Pellissier was on the team that won the under-21 tournament Torneo di Viareggio, and also appeared in a match of 1998–99 Coppa Italia. He moved on loan to the Serie C1 side Varese, where he made 53 appearances and scored nine goals between September 1998 and 2000. He was then signed by Chievo, but was loaned in his first year to Ferrara-based club SPAL, for which he scored 17 goals in 44 appearances during one and a half seasons.

Chievo

2002–2008

Pellissier returned to Chievo for the 2002–03 season, making his Serie A debut on 22 September 2002, when he played for 46 minutes in a 2–1 loss against Brescia Calcio. On 3 November, Pellissier played as a 63rd-minute substitute for Luigi Beghetto and scored his first goal—the only in that match—against Parma F.C. During that season, he played 25 matches in the league and scored five goals—two of which were scored in consecutive matches against Piacenza and Como. Outside the Italian League, Pellissier appeared four times in the Coppa Italia, and once in the 2002–03 UEFA Cup as a 79th minute for Massimo Marazzina in the second match against Red Star Belgrade.

The following season, Pellissier made 27 league appearances, scored three goals—two of which were scored against Siena in a 2–1 victory. During the 2004–05 season, he scored seven times in 34 appearances. He scored twice in a 3–1 victory against Brescia. 2005–06 was Pellissier's breakout season; he made a significant contribution to Chievo's campaign, scoring 13 of Chievo's 54 league goals. Among them, Pellissier scored in four consecutive matches and twice in the matches against U.S. Lecce and Reggina Calcio. The season was an important one; the 2006 Italian football scandal ensured that Chievo finished in fourth place because of various points deductions to other sides, qualifying Chievo for the 2006–07 UEFA Champions League.

In the Champions League, Chievo were eliminated by Levski Sofia after losing two matches 2–0 and 2–2; Pellissier played these matches and did not score in either. Chievo were also knocked out of the UEFA Cup by Sporting Braga in two matches, in which Pellissier was not on the team's lineup. The 2006–07 season was a successful one for Pellissier from a personal standpoint; he was voted Chievo's best player by the club's supporters, winning the "Cangrande del Bentegodi". He scored 9 league goals in 36 appearances, but on the final day, Chievo were relegated to Serie B for the first time. Pellissier chose to stay with Chievo despite their relegation and was made the team's captain in the 2007–08 season. He was a key player for the club and played a pivotal role in Chievo's Serie B title victory and return to Serie A, scoring a career best 22 goals for the 2007–08 season, and winning the Cangrande award once again. His tally of 22 goals surpassed Raffaele Cerbone's club record of 20 goals in a single season for Chievo.

2008–present

In 2008–09, Pellissier played all of Chievo's 38 Serie A matches and scored 13 goals, including two on 15 March 2009 in a 3–0 victory over Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico. Three weeks later, on 5 April, he scored the first hat-trick of his career in a 3–3 draw against Juventus in Turin; this was followed on 19 April by a brace in a match against Siena. Pellissier's 2008–09 performance won him the Cangrande award for the third consecutive season. He played 35 matches and scored 11 goals in the 2009–10 season, with consecutive scores in the third and fourth round, in the 21st and 22nd, and in the 34th and 35th. In 2010–11, Pellissier made the same numbers of appearances and scored the same number of goals as in the previous season. He scored two braces in the season—the first in a 3–1 win against Napoli and the other in a 3–0 win against Brescia. He made his 100th appearance for Chievo on 6 February 2011 in a 2–1 loss against Lazio.

In a 2–1 victory against Novara Calcio on 2 February 2012, Pellissier scored his 100th goal for Chievo. On 18 February, he was accused of being involved on the 2011–12 Italian football scandal, which affected his performance. Nevertheless, he also scored in consecutive matches against Fiorentina and Catania Calcio, and a brace in a 4–4 draw against Palermo. He scored 8 league goals in 35 appearances in the 2011–12 season, when he won his fourth Cangrande award. On 26 August 2012, in his 300th Serie A match for the gialloblù, he scored his first goal of five in his 24 appearances of the 2012–13 season.

In July 2013, Pellissier renewed his contract with Chievo for two years. Starting the 2013–14 campaign as a first-team man, he eventually became a substitute under the coach Eugenio Corini. He made 22 appearances in the season and scored his only goal in a 2–1 victory over Udinese Calcio on 21 September 2013. On 22 August 2014 in a 1–0 defeat by Pescara during the Coppa Italia, Pellissier reached 400 appearances for Chievo. During the 2014–15 season, he played 27 matches and score seven goals in Serie A; among them, on 9 November 2014, Pellissier came as 46th-minute substitute and scored two goals on a 2–1 victory against Cesena after more than a year of his last goal.

On 11 December 2016, Pellissier scored his 100th Serie A goal, all of which came with Chievo, in a 2–0 away win over Palermo.

Pellissier made five appearances for the Italy national under-17 football team between April and May 1997; he scored no goals for the Italian under-17 side. In May 2009, Pellissier received his first call up to the Italian senior national team by coach Marcello Lippi to play in a friendly against Northern Ireland. In the match, on 6 June, he entered as a substitute for Giampaolo Pazzini in the 62nd minute and scored a goal 11 minutes later in the 3–0 win. Regarding his debut with the national squad, he stated, "It's a dream that came true. L'azzurra is the cherry on the cake of an extraordinary season. However the merit is not mine, but all Chievo's." This was Pellissier's only senior appearance for Italy.

In 2001, during the time Pellissier was playing for SPAL in Ferrara, he met Gian Micaela Viadana in a restaurant she worked. After some time exchanging e-mails with Micaela, they started a relationship. Since 19 June 2004 he is married to Micaela, and he is the father of a son, Matteo, and a daughter, Sofia.

Club

Statistics updated up to 9 April 2016.

International

International goals

Scores and results list Italy's goal tally first.

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	6 June 2009	Arena Garibaldi, Pisa, Italy	Northern Ireland	3–0	3–0	Friendly

Club

Chievo

• Serie B: 2007–08