The Italian international winger found in Stade Toulousain, which he joined this summer from Pro D2, the weight of history, the culture of winning and an identity of game compatible with his qualities.

It only took a couple of Top 14 matches and a try on the counter on the night of his first start at Ernest-Wallon, against Racing 92 (37-10, 4th day) for Ange Capuozzo, 23, to get the Toulouse public on his side. Just arrived from Grenoble (Pro D2), the winger or back of the Italian selection was expected. He did not go through the Welsh defense as he did during the last Six Nations Tournament in Cardiff, offering the winning try to Edoardo Padovani (21-22), without raising some expectations. So far, the adaptation is going well. He told us recently after a training session, in a corner of the Ernest-Wallon stadium.

His origins - "I have always supported the Nazionale".

"My paternal grandparents were born in Italy and moved to Grenoble at a very early age. They are from Naples, but I also have family in Rome and Bologna. So, if I am French and proud of it, I have also been immersed in an Italian culture. I have always supported the Nazionale, both in soccer and in rugby. I have snatches of memories of the 2006 World Cup. I was 7 years old. I know that this World Cup brings back very bad memories to many French people (Italy beat Les Bleus in the final, 1-1, 5 tab to 3), but I loved it. Italy is also a vacation with cousins, the music of our grandparents ... I never felt like a stranger there, even if I do not yet speak the language fluently.

His choice of the Italian selection - "It seemed obvious to me".

"It's a mixture of luck and audacity. The luck is having played a friendly match in 9 against the Italian U20s in the fall of 2018 with the Espoirs de Grenoble. The audacity is that I had gone to find the Italian staff with my father after the match to say that I was selectable for Italy and that I was ready to defend its colors. A few months later, they called me back for the Under-20 World Cup in Argentina. They just asked me if I was ready to play at the back. I said fire! I don't regret anything. Italy is a country I love. It's definitely not a choice I made lightly."

His first steps in rugby - "I saw my first game in Bourgoin".

"I did soccer, a year and a half of boxing, two years of judo... But it's rugby that hooked me the most. What is certain is that my father has always been a fan of this sport, as have my two grandfathers. Grenoble is also a land of rugby. When I was 4 or 5 years old, I was already taken to see matches at the Lesdiguières stadium in Grenoble. But it was in Bourgoin, at Pierre-Rajon, that I saw my first rugby match: Bourgoin-Toulouse, in the Top 16. I was immediately hooked. I then started to play at the age of 7 at the US deux Ponts, in Pont-de-Claix, just outside Grenoble. Then I joined Grenoble in the under 13 age group.