Serie B side Palermo has just signed one of the most promising goalkeepers in the world: Italian youth international and Golden Glove winner Sebastiano Desplanches. It cost just €3 million to sign the 20-year-old from Serie C side Vicenza.
Desplanches starred in the under-20 World Cup last month, helping Italy reach the final and allowing just eight goals in seven games. He made 23 saves total, including six against Colombia, and was awarded the tournament’s Golden Glove for best goalkeeper despite defeat in the final to Uruguay.
The Italian goalkeeper originally played for Inter Milan’s academy before switching to rivals AC Milan at a young age. After starring for the Primavera side for years, Desplanches left the club in 2022 to join Vicenza in Italy’s third tier to earn more minutes.
He didn’t play any league matches with Vicenza, although he did appear three times in the Coppa Italia Serie C, and was sent out on loan to another Serie C club, Trento, in January. He played ten matches and kept three clean sheets to help the club avoid relegation.
Next season he will likely be a backup for Palermo, who are attempting to return to the Serie A. Veteran Mirko Pigliacelli will remain the club’s starter, while backup Samuele Massolo is heading the opposite way, joining Vicenza.
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Image Courtesy of Jimmy Baikovicius from Montevideo, Uruguay, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.