 | At first glance Gianluca Zambrotta seems a man of few words, quite shy and reserved and at times even a bit aloof. Those who know him though are aware that nothing could be further from the truth: he is in fact a bit of a joker and very sociable. |
 | He shares a room with French World champion Zinedine Zidane - himself a man of few words. They obviously get on like a house on fire. |
 | Zambrotta has a girlfriend called Valentina, whom he met at a former team-mate�s wedding. Although she is from Napoli she is often in Turin. The young couple spend a lot of their free time with the young families of Gianluca Pessotto and Alessandro Birindelli. |
 | He likes nothing more than to spend an evening dining in a restaurant with friends followed by a good film, possibly a Mafia movie starring Robert De Niro. |
 | One of his childhood passions was reading and it is one he is eager to rekindle. His favourite book is I Promessi Sposi (The betrothed) by Alessandro Manzoni. |
 | In his younger years he loved wrestling though the only poster up on his wall was that of Roberto Baggio in a Juventus shirt. |
 | He gained a diploma from the Institute of Textile Design. As tradition has it in Como, his sister worked in a textile factory before getting married - to a footballer no less. Zambrotta�s brother-in-law plays for Juve Stabia. |
 | Gianluca�s parents are naturally very proud of their boy, although his father is his fiercest critic. Zambrotta Senior never misses an opportunity to watch his son. Similarly, whenever he has a spare moment, Gianluca returns to Como to visit his family and friends. |
 | His hobbies include listening to Eighties music and water-skiing, an interest he has pursued since childhood, on Lake Ceresio near Lugano. |
 | He started kicking a football around very early and began his career with home town club, Como. He played for the Lakesiders for three seasons before the step up in to Serie A with Bari where he made his debut in September 1997, and for whom he played two seasons. His move to Juventus, combined with excellent form for the Bianconeri, has earned him a call-up to the Italy squad. At only 23 years of age he has established himself as an integral part of both Carlo Ancelotti and Dino Zoff�s plans. |
