The 16-year-old player broke the record of more than 100 years in the Italian national team
In a friendly win 3-1 at Air Albania on the evening of November 16, Pafundi replaced Marco Verratti in the 90th minute. At 16 years and 247 days, he became the first player to make his Italy debut before the age of 17 in more than a century. via.
However, Pafundi is not the youngest player to ever play for the Azzurri. This record still belongs to Pietro Antonio Gavinelli - who played in a 2-2 draw with France on April 9, 1911 at the age of 16 years and 97 days. Behind is Renzo De Vecchi - who made his debut in the 1-6 defeat against Hungary on May 26, 1910 at the age of 16 years and 111 days.
Born in Monfalcone, Pafundi began his football career with his hometown club UFM Monfalcone in 2011, then joined Udinese's youth system three years later.
In the 2021-2022 season, Pafundi made a splash when he took the main kick of the U19 Udinese team, scoring 6 and assisting 7 goals in 16 matches at Campionato Primavera 2 at the age of 16. During this time, he signed his first professional contract with Udinese and was promoted to the first team for the first time.
In May 2022, Pafundi played his first professional match when he replaced Roberto Pereyra from the 69th minute in a 4-0 win at Salernitana in the final round of Serie A. As a result, he became the first player born in 2006 to compete in the Premier League. Serie A. This is also Pafundi's only match for the Udinese first team.
Pafundi played for Italy U16 and U17, before being called up to the national team by coach Roberto Mancini in May 2022 and made his debut yesterday. According to Football Italy, the 16-year-old plays the role of "trequartista", right behind the striker, and has been compared to Lionel Messi for his style of play. Specialized site Transfermarkt valued Pafundi at more than $1.5 million.
Yesterday, Albania opened the scoring in the 16th minute thanks to a header from central defender Ardian Ismajli. But Vincenzo Grifo's double and Giovanni Di Lorenzo's goal helped Italy win 3-1. After the game, Mancini saw Italy have many bright spots, including Grifo, Nicolo Zaniolo playing well and Federico Chiesa re-appearing after nearly a year because of ligament injuries. He also revealed that Sandro Tonali - the player who had to leave the field on a stretcher at the end of the first half because of a challenge in the air - had no serious problems.
Grifo is proud to be given the opportunity by Mancini and affirms that he will devote himself to continuing to play for Italy. The 29-year-old striker, currently on the Freiburg staff, has only made seven appearances for the Azzurri, scoring four goals in all friendlies. He also scored twice in a friendly against Estonia 4-0 in November 2020. This season, Grifo has created three assists and scored 11 goals in 23 matches in all competitions, including nine in the Bundesliga and two in the Europa League.
On November 20, Italy continued to play a friendly match with Austria at Ernst Happel stadium, in the capital Wien, Austria.
