# Nicola Zalewski

Nicola Zalewski (born 23 January 2002) is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a full-back or wing-back for Serie A club Inter Milan, on loan from Roma. Born and raised in Italy to Polish parents, he opted to play for the Poland national team at international level.

## Club career
### Roma

Zalewski made his professional debut for Roma on 6 May 2021 in the Europa League semi-final against Manchester United, replacing Pedro at the 76th minute and being instrumental to the winning goal, an own goal by Alex Telles, seven minutes later. He made his Serie A debut three days later, on 9 May, during a home game against Crotone. On 29 December, Roma announced his contract had been extended until 2025.
On 28 February 2022, he first played as a starter for Roma in their 1–0 win against Spezia. On 12 March 2023, he scored the first goal in his senior career in a 3–4 loss against Sassuolo Calcio. On 3 June 2023, he scored a goal in a 2–1 victory over Spezia. On 12 December 2024, he played the full 90 minutes and registered an assist in a Europa League group stage match against Braga, which concluded in Roma's 3–0 victory.

#### Loan to Inter Milan

On 1 February 2025, Zalewski joined fellow Serie A team Inter Milan on loan, with an option to make the deal permanent at the end of the season. The initial loan was reported to be a fee of €600,000, with the buy option at €6.5m. The following day, Zalewski made his debut for the club in the Milan derby, coming on as a substitute for Federico Dimarco in the 76th minute. He later assisted Stefan de Vrij’s equaliser in stoppage time.

## International career

Zalewski was born in Italy but he is not an Italian citizen due to the country's jus sanguinis nationality law. He was first selected by the youth selections of the Poland national team after being discovered by Zbigniew Boniek, head of the Polish Football Association and former Roma player. He made his debut for the senior team on 5 September 2021, in the World Cup Qualifier against San Marino where he came on in 66th minute and assisted Adam Buksa in the 94th minute who made it 7–1 for Poland.
On 7 June 2024, Zalewski was called up for UEFA Euro 2024. Three days later, he scored his first goal for Poland in a friendly against Turkey, dribbling down from the wing past two defenders and hitting a strike inside the box in the 90th minute to set the final score to 2–1.
On 5 September 2024, Zalewski scored a last-gasp penalty against Scotland in the group stage of the UEFA Nations League to win the game 3–2 in Poland's favour. The following month, he also scored in a 3–3 draw against Croatia in the same competition.

## Personal life

Zalewski was born in Tivoli to Polish parents and grew up in Poli. He has a sister, Jessica, born in 1992. His father, Krzysztof Zalewski, died of cancer on 24 September 2021.

## Career statistics
### Club

    As of match played 16 February 2025
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition :
| Club | Season | League | League | League | Coppa Italia | Coppa Italia | Europe | Europe | Total | Total |
| Club | Season | Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Roma | 2020–21 | Serie A | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Roma | 2021–22 | Serie A | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 24 | 0 |
| Roma | 2022–23 | Serie A | 33 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 47 | 2 |
| Roma | 2023–24 | Serie A | 22 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 33 | 0 |
| Roma | 2024–25 | Serie A | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 17 | 0 |
| Roma | Total | Total | 84 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 33 | 0 | 123 | 2 |
| Inter Milan (loan) | 2024–25 | Serie A | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Career total | Career total | Career total | 87 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 33 | 0 | 126 | 2 |
* 1 2 3 4 Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa League
* ↑ Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League

### International

    As of match played 18 November 2024
Appearances and goals by national team and year :
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
| Poland | 2021 | 1 | 0 |
| Poland | 2022 | 8 | 0 |
| Poland | 2023 | 5 | 0 |
| Poland | 2024 | 13 | 3 |
| Total | Total | 27 | 3 |
Scores and results list Poland's goal tally first.
List of international goals scored by Nicola Zalewski :
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
| 1 | 10 June 2024 | Kazimierz Górski National Stadium, Warsaw, Poland | 18 | Turkey | 2–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 2 | 5 September 2024 | Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland | 22 | Scotland | 3–2 | 3–2 | 2024–25 UEFA Nations League A |
| 3 | 15 October 2024 | Kazimierz Górski National Stadium, Warsaw, Poland | 25 | Croatia | 2–3 | 3–3 | 2024–25 UEFA Nations League A |

## Honours

Roma
* UEFA Europa Conference League: 2021–22
Individual
* Polish Newcomer of the Year: 2022
* Golden Boy Web: 2022