Fabio Daprelà

Fabio Daprelà (Italian pronunciation: [ˈfabjo dapreˈla]; born 19 February 1991 in Zurich) is a Swiss football defender currently playing for Carpi in Serie A. He is a former Switzerland U21 international.

Club career

Early career

Daprelà was eight when he was spotted by SC Young Fellows Juventus and signed for them. After three years at SC Young Fellows Juventus, Daprelà joined Grasshoppers at the age of 12. Aged 16, Daprelà was promoted to first team squad and made his Grasshoppers debut on 2 February 2008, playing 90 minutes in place of the suspended Yassin Mikari. In the Swiss Cup, Daprelà scored his first goal for Grasshopper in a 2–2 draw against FC Chiasso on 26 October 2008.

West Ham United

In July 2009, Daprelà signed for West Ham United from Grasshoppers for a nominal fee joining fellow Swiss international, Valon Behrami who had been signed from Lazio in the summer of 2008. Daprelà signed a five-year deal after moving from the Zurich club and arrived as cover for first choice Hérita Ilunga. Replacing the injured Ilunga, Daprelà made his first-team debut for West Ham on 3 January 2010 in their 2–1 home defeat to Arsenal in the FA Cup third round. The highly rated Switzerland Under-19 left-back had worn the armband for Alex Dyer's reserves team. On 13 March 2010 Daprelà made his Premier League debut in a 4–1 away defeat to Chelsea. Daprelà made eight appearances in all competitions for West Ham United, leaving at the end of the 2009–10 season. Following the sacking of manager Gianfranco Zola's, who signed him, West Ham United's new manager Avram Grant rarely used Daprelà' in the first team.