November 10, 2022 – United Soccer League Championship (USL) – Miami FC News Release
Miami, Fla. – The Miami Football Club announces the retirement of defender Luca Antonelli. The Italian international made 19 appearances for Miami FC across two USL Championship seasons, helping the side to back-to-back playoff appearances.
Born in Monza, Italy, Antonelli began his career at Italian giant A.C. Milan, working his way up the youth ranks until reaching the first team. Despite not making an appearance in his first season, Antonelli was on the bench in two 2006-07 UEFA Champions League matches. A.C. Milan went on to defeat Liverpool 2-1 in the final, making the Italian a Champions League winner. A year later, he was loaned out to Serie B club Bari. There, he made 20 appearances in his six months at the club.
His impressive performances earned him another loan spell, this time with fellow Serie A club Parma. After featuring in eight matches, Parma acquired Antonelli permanently in June 2008 to help the club’s fight for promotion after being relegated in the 2007-08 campaign.
The 2008-09 season in Serie B saw him feature in 16 fixtures, helping Parma return to Serie A. The club secured Antonelli’s remaining rights from A.C. Milan towards the end of the 2009 season. The left-back remained at Parma until the end of 2010, having played 61 matches. He scored one goal and added two assists to his goal-contribution tally. Towards the end of his time at Parma, Antonelli caught the eye of the Italian national team. As a result, he made his senior debut in the UEFA Euro 2012 Qualifiers against the Faroe Islands.
His success at Parma earned him a transfer to Genoa, where in a short time he earned the starting spot over left-back Domenico Criscito. Antonelli spent nearly five seasons at Genoa, making 109 appearances for the club while netting eight goals and recording ten assists.
In February 2015, Antonelli rejoined his childhood club A.C. Milan. A year later, he played a part in the club’s 2016 Supercoppa Italiana victory against Juventus. In four seasons at one of Italy’s most prominent clubs, the defender played in 69 matches, scoring five goals and notching five assists. Following the 2017-18 campaign, he departed Milan to join FC Empoli, where he would feature until the end of the 2020 season.
In total, Antonelli made 13 appearances for the Italian national team from 2010 to 2016, while also playing in 215 Serie A and 42 Serie B matches.
Miami FC wishes Luca all the…