Samuele Locatelli

Samuele Locatelli is an Italian flanker who has emerged as one of the loose-forward options in the Azzurri's wider squad. Born on 30 July 2001, Locatelli typifies the modern openside: a relentless tackler and breakdown competitor whose value lies in disrupting opposition possession and winning turnover ball. His involvement in the Italy set-up reflects the steady progress of a forward whose game is built on effort, low body height in the contact area and a high work rate across eighty minutes. As Italian rugby continues to develop its forward stocks, players in Locatelli's mould — combative, fit and defensively committed — are central to the national side's ambitions of becoming more competitive in the Six Nations and beyond. His role is to be a defensive pillar and a nuisance over the ball, the kind of unglamorous work that underpins a functioning back row. Still establishing himself at the top level, Locatelli has the engine and the appetite for the contest that mark out an effective international flanker.