Thiago Motta born 28 August 1982 is a Brazilian-born Italian footballer who plays for F.C. Internazionale Milano in Serie A, as a central midfielder.
Having spent his early career at FC Barcelona, his main traits are physical presence, good passing, and a powerful mid-range shot, but he is also known to be injury-prone.
Motta made his debut for Brazil as invitee in the 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup, as part of the de facto U-23 team. He went on to collect two international caps in the tournament, and previously represented the nation at the 1999 South American Under-17 Football Championship.
Motta missed the 2004 CONMEBOL Men Pre-Olympic Tournament due to injuries,[14] but appeared for the U23 team in November 2003 against Santos FC. Subsequently, reported claims that he wanted to be called up for Italy and possibly to the 2010 FIFA World Cup, as he possessed dual nationality – his grandfather being Italian. FIFA granted players to have one chance to change their representing nation if they had dual nationality, but not for players who have already played in a competitive "A" match (non-friendly).
On 6 February 2011, Motta received his first call-up from Italy, for a friendly against Germany, but an official statement from the Italian Football Federation declared it subject to FIFA clearance,which was granted two days later.He was replaced in the 63rd minute of the 1–1 draw by Alberto Aquilani.
THIAGO MOTTA PROFILE
Full name: Thiago Motta
Date of birth: 28 August 1982
Place of birth: São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil
Height: 1.87 m (6 ft 1 1⁄2 in)
Playing position: Midfielder
Club information
Current club: Inter
Number: 8
Youth career
1997–1999 Juventus-SP
Senior career
1999–2002 Barcelona B 84 (11)
2001–2007 Barcelona 96 (6)
2007–2008 Atlético Madrid 6 (0)
2008–2009 Genoa 27 (6)
2009– Inter 40 (8)
National team
1999 Brazil U17 3 (1)
2003 Brazil 2 (0)
2011– Italy 1 (0)