and Juventus teammates Claudio Marchisio and Paolo De Ceglie were named in the squad for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. On 7 August 2008, he scored the opening goal in a 3–0 win against Honduras in the first match of the competition where he struck the ball from outside of the box with his weaker left foot; Italy were eliminated in the quarter-finals of the competition, following a 3–2 loss to Belgium on 16 August. In the summer of 2009, Giovinco was called up to the U-21 side for the European Championships in Sweden after playing a part in their successful qualifying campaign. Giovinco started in every single match at the tournament, but Italy lost to eventual winners Germany 1–0 in a tightly contested semi-final. Due to his performances throughout the European Championship, he was named to the Team of the Tournament, and was also included in the list of the top ten players of the competition. Senior debut, Euro 2012 and 2013 Confederations Cup Giovinco was called up for International duty for the first time in nearly two years while on loan at Parma, earning his first senior call-up for Italy on 6 February 2011; he made his Italy senior team debut on 9 February, in a friendly match against Germany in Dortmund, which ended in a 1–1 draw, coming on as a second-half substitute for Stefano Mauri. In his second international appearance, against Ukraine, he provided an assist from a back-heel for Alessandro Matri's goal as Italy won the match 2–0 in Kiev. After some promising substitute appearances, manager Cesare Prandelli stated that he would give Giovinco his full international debut as a starter alongside Antonio Cassano, which came later that year on 11 October, in a 3–0 home win over Northern Ireland in a European qualifier. Giovinco was named part of Italy's 23-man squad for UEFA Euro 2012. Giovinco appeared as a substitute in the two opening group matches of the tournament against Spain and Croatia, almost assisting a goal against Spain in the opening match, as the earlier goalscorer Antonio Di Natale put his lobbed pass over the bar. Italy finished as runners up to Spain in the final in a 4–0 loss. Giovinco started in the first game of Italy's 2014 World Cup Qualification campaign against Bulgaria in Sofia, wearing the number 10 jersey; the match ended in a 2–2 draw. He scored