By Alex RobertsThe drop off from Francesco Totti and Alessandro del Piero has been a harsh one, but it’s not going to last forever. In fact, Italy may have finally found the heir. Francesco Pio Esposito doesn’t just look the part; he walks the walk.Esposito comes from a footballing family. His father was a centre back, who made it to the third tier of Italian football before turning to coaching, while his older brothers, Salvatore and Sebastiano, play for Sampdoria and Cagliari, both on loan.Neither have reached the hights of the youngest Esposito, which one may assume makes for a few interesting family dinners, but there appears to be a deep level of support amongst the family.Esposito player traits compared with other strikers in Top 5 leagues“We grew up in an area where there was only the football field,” Salvatore, the eldest Esposito, explained in an interview with Che Fatica La Vita Da Bomber. “There were loads of other good kids, but we were lucky that we had the support of our family and the desire to get where we wanted to go. There was a lot of competition, also between us.”The three brothers signed for Inter in 2014. Salvatore left in 2014 for SPAL without making an appearance, but Sebastiano, who made his debut as a 16-year-old in the Europa League against Eintracht Frankfurt is still contracted to the club.Francesco, or Pio as he is increasingly better known by, was handed a new contract in 2023 and shipped out to Spezia on a two-year loan. His first season was poor, scoring just three goals in his 39 games across all competitions, but he really came into his own in 2024/25.He ended his second season at Spezia with 19 Serie B goals, the second most in the division. Inter decided to keep him rather than send him back out on loan, and Esposito has grasped that opportunity with both hands.The optics are almost perfect; Esposito is everything we imagine a proper Italian number nine to be. He’s 6’2”, incredibly passionate, but perhaps most importantly, he has great hair. He wouldn’t have looked out of place with the 2006 World Cup squad!Esposito senior career summaryEsposito isn’t fazed by anything. He’s a bit of a throwback striker, very physical and not afraid to throw down with defenders ten years his senior in a league that is famous for pragmatic football.“I must admit that he is surprising me with how well he’s doing, as he plays for the team and knows how to do certain things, is not afraid of anything, and always keeps a cool head in front of goal,” Christian Chivu told DAZN after Inter’s 2-0 win over Cagliari.“Despite being so young, he handles the pressure well. He can also handle the physical duels on the pitch and works hard for the team. I’m very pleased with how he is doing.”That fearlessness is so obvious on the pitch. In Inter’s 3-1 Champions League round of 16 first leg defeat to Bodø/Glimt, while his teammates were flailing, Esposito, who scored Inter’s goal, remained calm and kept going.More recently, Esposito opened the scoring in the first minute in Inter’s 1-1 draw with Fiorentina, and he would have won it if it wasn’t from a fantastic David de Gea save in the dying seconds of injury time. The numbers back it all up. Esposito has won 85 duels at a success rate of 49.7%, he also remarkably strong in the air, winning 35 aerial duels at a 50% success rate, and won possession in the final third nine times in the Serie A.Esposito possession stats in Series A this seasonOf course, because Italian football can’t have anything nice anymore, Esposito has been heavily linked with a move to the Premier League. Man United and Arsenal are both reportedly keen, with Chelsea also said to be circling.In the here and now, Esposito is excelling on the international stage having scored three goals in five appearances for Italy since being handed his international debut by Gennaro Gattuso last September. He has started one of those games, the 4-1 defeat to Norway, in which he scored the opener.Just like at club level in Italy, the national side play a back three, it’s beyond an obsession at this point. Esposito played alongside Mateo Retegui in the Norway loss, and it’s expected that the Inter ace will be benched for Moise Kean in their World Cup play-off against Northern Ireland.Hearing praise from Luca Toni, who had a very similar profile to Esposito, during a post-game interview with for DAZN on Sunday, the striker said that such words “counted double.” Reflecting on De Gea’s late save he added: “If it wouldn’t go in today, let’s hope it’s just waiting for Thursday.”A striker like Esposito, who handles pressure like none they’ve had for quite some time is a huge asset for a nation that failed to score in their previous two World Cup qualifiers against Sweden and North MacedoniaFour-time winners Italy haven’t qualified for the biggest spectacle in sports since Brazil 2014, missing out on a third consecutive tournament, especially when it’s the biggest in history, is simply unthinkable. There is a very fine line that needs to be walked upon. Esposito is 20-year-old, the powers shouldn’t be putting too much pressure on the lad, but at the same time, it’s important to recognise he’s a rare talent that Italy hasn’t seen for years.Esposito shooting stats in Serie A this seasonGattuso spoke about that, saying: “Pio’s main quality is humility. I’ll even go out on a limb and say that it’s difficult for someone like him to get too big for his boots or have a negative attitude.“The way he thinks, the way he trains, and the way he does make him seem like a 30-year-old: like everyone else, he’ll have his bad moments, but he works, he keeps quiet, he pushes, and he wants to improve.”It’s been a long time coming, but the future is bright for Italy up top.(Images from IMAGO)You can follow every game World Cup playoff game on FotMob – with in-depth stat coverage, xG, and player ratings, where available. Download the free app here.