Pellegrini is an academy graduate of Roma, having joined the club in 2007, and made his senior debut in 2015. He departed for Sassuolo later that year, where he made over fifty appearances across all competitions, before returning to Roma in July 2017.
On 30 June 2015, Pellegrini signed for fellow Serie A side Sassuolo for a fee of €1.25 million.[9] In terms of the transfer agreement, Roma retained a buy-back-clause which afforded the club the opportunity to re-purchase Pellegrini at a future stage.[10][11] He made his debut for the club on 8 November 2015, starting in a 1–0 league win over Carpi,[12] and scored his first goal the following month when he netted in a 3–0 win over Sampdoria.[13] He ultimately made 20 appearances for the season, including one in the Coppa Italia, and scored three goals. During the 2016–17 season, Pellegrini became the youngest player to have a hand in 10 goals in a single Serie A campaign, having registered six goals and four assists by 10 April 2017.[14] He made 34 appearances across all competitions for the campaign, scoring eight goals registering seven assists, before re-signing for Roma at the end of the season.[15]
On 30 June 2017, Roma exercised the buyback clause of €10 million, which was included in Pellegrini's transfer agreement with Sassuolo, to bring him back to Rome on a five-year deal.[15][16] On the same day Roma youth product Federico Ricci joined Sassuolo outright,[16] for a €3 million fee.[17] Pellegrini scored his first-ever goal for the club on 1 December 2017, netting Roma's third goal in a 3–1 league win over SPAL.[18]
On 25 May 2022, Pellegrini captained Roma in the inaugural Europa Conference League final, which his team won 1–0 against Feyenoord.[19] He was also named Player of the Season in that competition.[20] On 31 May 2023, he captained his team in the Europa League final which they lost 4–1 on penalties against Sevilla following a 1–1 draw after extra time.[21]
International career
Pellegrini has represented Italy at various youth levels. He made his debut for the U19 side against Germany in March 2014.[7] He then enjoyed a brief spell with the U20's in 2015 before making his U21 debut against France on 2 June the following year.
He made his first appearance for the senior side in an 8–0 victory over San Marino in an unofficial friendly match on 31 May 2017, coming on as a half time substitute for Daniele Baselli.[22] His official debut followed on 11 June when he appeared in Italy's 5–0 home win over Liechtenstein in a 2018 World Cup qualifier.[23]
In June 2024, Pellegrini was included by manager Luciano Spalletti in Italy's squad for UEFA Euro 2024,[33] and was later assigned the number ten shirt.[34] In June 2024, Bastoni was included in Italy's final squad for UEFA Euro 2024 by manager Luciano Spalletti.[35] On 15 June, in Italy's opening group match of the tournament against Albania, he set-up Alessandro Bastoni's temporary equaliser as Italy came from behind to win the match 2–1.[36] Italy were eliminated from the tournament in the round of 16 following a 2–0 loss to Switzerland.[37]
Style of play
Regarded as a promising young player, from a tactical standpoint, Pellegrini's natural role is that of a central midfielder, who can be deployed in any position in a three-man midfield, although he is also capable of playing as an attacking midfielder and as a defensive midfielder. A tall, physically strong, yet agile, dynamic, energetic, and hard-working midfielder, his main characteristics are his stamina, ball control, movement, flair, and ability to make attacking runs into the penalty area from behind, as well as his eye for goal, and his striking ability from distance with either foot, despite being naturally right-footed. A former central defender in his youth, he is also an effective ball-winner, which enables him to break down possession, while his vision and technical skills allow him subsequently to carry or distribute the ball and provide assists for his teammates. His wide range of skills thus enable him to contribute at both ends of the pitch, and make him effective in linking both the defensive and offensive aspects of the game in a box-to-box role.[5][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45]
^Luciano Canepari. "Pellegrini". DiPI Online (in Italian). Retrieved 27 October 2018.
^ abNewman, Blair; Hodges-Ramon, Luca; Hall, Richard; Ficetola, Franco; Neale, Mark; Gates, Emmet (24 January 2017). "The 50 best young footballers in Italy". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 April 2017.
