Biography
Young Italian goalkeeper Vito Mannone joined Hull City in October 2010 for a two month loan spell. This spell was cut short by a thigh injury but he was soon back at the KC Stadium for the remainder of the season, resuming his first team duties in March 2011. Although young and occasionally shaky under the high ball, Vito was clearly a talented shot stopper and possessed decent distribution with the ball at his feet. Mannone returned to City for the second half of the 2012/13 season and enhanced his reputation further with some fine displays for Nick Barmby’s side.
Hailing from Desio on the outskirts of Milan, Vito Mannone switched from Atalanta to Arsenal in July 2005 at the age of 17. He was loaned to Championship side Barnsley at the start of the 2006/07 season and made his senior debut in an August 2006 League Cup tie against Blackpool. However after four senior appearances in three months he returned to Arsenal, waiting until May 2009 to make his Gunners debut in the last day of the Premier League season against Stoke City. In the 2009/10 season Vito made eight senior appearances for Arsenal, including three Champions League appearances, before his two loan spells at Hull City during the 2010/11 season.
A solitary senior appearance for Arsenal in a December 2011 Champions League tie against Olympiakos preceded his third loan spell at Hull City, then in the 2012/13 season he was an occasional first team choice, adding 13 appearances to take his Arsenal tally to 23 over an eight year spell at the Emirates Stadium.
In July 2013 Mannone switched to Premier League side Sunderland, where he was initially managed by fellow Italian Paolo di Canio. After his Black Cats debut in an August 2013 League Cup tie against Milton Keynes Dons, Vito had to wait until di Canio was replaced by Uruguayan manager Gus Poyet in October 2013 before he had a run in the Sunderland first team. He added 35 senior appearances during the remainder of his first season at the Stadium of Light but over the subsequent three seasons his first team exposure was more limited – by the time he left the club in July 2017 he had made 80 senior appearances for the club.
In July 2017 he moved to Championship side Reading for a £2 million fee, establishing himself as permanent first choice in his first season. He started the first League six games of the 2018/19 season, after which manager Paul Clement preferred other options and Mannone fell out of favour. In February 2019 Vito was loaned to US Major League Soccer side Minnesota United for the 2019 season where he made 40 starts and ended the season Goalkeeper of the Year for the entire MLS. He returned to Reading in November 2019 but two months later he was loaned to Danish Superliga side Esbjerg FB for the rest of the 2019/20 season, making 13 starts in a season curtailed by the COVID 19 pandemic.
Mannone’s contract at Reading expired during the 2020 close season and in September 2020 he signed a two year contract at French Ligue 1 side AS Monaco. He made his debut for Monaco in November 2020 against Nice but in two seasons he made just 11 appearances, regularly sitting on the bench. On expiry of his Monaco contract Mannone joined up-and-coming Brittany-based Ligue 1 rivals Lorient and started the 2022/23 season once again in the role of bench-sitting reserve goalkeeper. he broke into the first team in November 2022 and ended the season with 20 senior appearances.
In late August 2023 Mannone transferred to Ligue 1 rivals Lille for a 200,000 euro fee, making his debut for Les Dogues in an October 2023 Europa Conference League tie against Faroe Isles side KI Klaskvik and spending practically the entire season on the substitute’s bench, making just 6 senior appearances.
Mannone was selected for the Italian under-21 side for the first time in November 2009 and made his debut against Hungary’s under-21 side. By October 2010 he had taken his tally of Italy under-21 caps to eight when he made his final appearance against Belarus under-21s.
Details
Nationality: Italy
Date/Place of Birth: 2 March 1988, Desio (Italy)
Hull City First Game: 12 November 2010, Preston North End A (Championship), 22 years, 255 days old
Hull City Final Game: 28 April 2012, West Ham United A (Championship), 24 years, 57 days old
Clubs
Atalanta (2004-2005), Arsenal (2005-2013), Barnsley (2006, loan), Hull City (2010-2011, loan), Hull City (2011, loan), Hull City (2012, loan), Sunderland (2013-2017), Reading (2017-2020), Minnesota United (2019, loan), Esbjerg FB (2020, loan), AS Monaco (2020-2022), Lorient (2022-2023), Lille (2023-current)
Hull City Record
Career: 33 apps, 0 goals
Vito Mannone| Season | LGE App | LGE Gls | FAC App | FAC Gls | FLC App | FLC Gls | EUR App | EUR Gls | OTH App | OTH Gls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010/11 | 10 (0) | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2011/12 | 21 (0) | 0 | 2 (0) | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |