Gianluca Frabotta becomes the third Italian to represent the Baggies following his transfer from European giants Juventus.
The left-back joins Enzo Maresca and Mario Bortolazzi in pulling on the navy-blue-and-white of Albion, and he’ll be hoping the first switch overseas of his career can be a fruitful one.
Rome-born Frabotta grew up in a good nation for defenders, and although he couldn’t fulfil a childhood dream of signing for Roma at the start his footballing education, the left-sided defender plied his trade at Consalvo and Savio prior to a career-changing move to Bologna.
The seven-time Serie A winners provided Gianluca with a solid grounding as a 16-year-old, staying at the Renato Dall’Ara for four years developing in their youth teams - in addition to building his CV in senior football.
Loan moves in Italy’s Serie C with Renate and Pordenone were good signs of the defender’s pathway moving in the right direction, particularly during his second spell with Pordenone - where he helped them claim two trophies during a successful stint at the third-tier outfit.
Frabotta’s desire to play first-team football, along with his progressive attributes, saw the full-back catch the eye of top-tier giants Juventus in 2019. A move to the Allianz followed, along with focused progression in an elite environment at the Old Lady.
Naturally, Gianluca began representing Juve in the development team and as a result of his hard work over the the course of the 2019/20 campaign, the left-back was rewarded with a maiden senior appearance in August 2020.
There would have been mixed emotions for Frabotta - starting his first match for Juventus, but ending his maiden 90 minutes in black-and-white on the end of a 3-1 defeat to his boyhood club Roma.
Nevertheless, the defeat didn’t prevent the Old Lady and Gianluca lifting the Serie A title on home soil after his senior bow but following his breakthrough into the senior fold, the following season had more trophies in-store for the full-back.
Frabotta enjoyed more outings in the Juve first team - tallying 17 appearances in total, taking his first steps into Europe with a substitute appearance against Hungarian side Ferencvaros in the UEFA Champions League, as well as adding two more accolades to his collection in the form of the Italian Cup and Italian Super Cup.
His time in Turin also helped the 6ft 2in defender earn recognition on the intentional stage for Italy, representing as high as the Under-21s team following previous call-ups to the U18, 19 and 20s teams.
After a successful 2021, Gianluca proceeded to find first-team minutes away from the Allianz Arena over the following three campaigns, in a series of loan moves at Hellas Verona and Frosinone - who he helped win Serie B in 2023/23 - as well as Bari and Cosenza.
Now, Frabotta will prepare for a new way of life, style of football, and journey with the Baggies.
