Legend of Calcio: Giuseppe Meazza

Date: 11th July 2015 at 3:04pm
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One of the true legends of Calcio, Giuseppe Meazza is widely regarded as one of the best players not only of his generation but of all time, with leadership, versatility and supreme skill helping to inspire a nation.

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Born in Porto Vittoria, Milan, he grew up with his mother, helping her sell fruit at the local market to scrape a living. His mother disapproved of his love for football and hid his shoe’s, so Meazza learned to play barefoot using a ball of rags as a football when playing in the streets near his home.

At the age of 12 his mother gave him her blessing to pursue a career in football and he signed for Gloria FC where a fan bought him his first pair of football boots.

After being turned down by AC Milan for being too skinny he was signed by Inter at the age of 13, who fed him steaks to bulk him up. Promoted to the first team at the age of 17 teammate Leopoldo Conti believed him too young and famously remarked that the club was recruiting players from the local nurseries.

Giuseppe-Meazza

Meazza destroyed Conti’s perceptions by scoring two on his debut in a 6-2 victory over Milanese Unione Sportiva. Meazza won acclaim from the papers after his debut in the Italian Championship in 1927, a rarity at the time.

In that debut season at the age of 18 Meazza scored 38 goals in 29 games. In the season of 1928/29 he scored five goals in a game twice, and he racked up six against Venezia. That season Inter played AS Roma for the first time in their history and Meazza scored four in a 6-0 demolition, bagging a hat-trick in just three minutes. With the formation of Serie A in 1929/30 Meazza hit a record 31 goals in a season leading Inter to the title.

Meazza’s technical ability was second to none and coupled with his dazzling dribbling he menaced every team he played against. In the role of inside forward his trademark goal was to pick up the ball on the half way line, dribble past three or four defenders using sublime shuffles and turns before inviting the keeper to advance, faking a shot to send the keeper the wrong way, dribbling past him and then slotting home.

This coined the phrase ‘Gol alla Meazza’ which is now used to describe a truly outstanding goal involving a series of dribbles.

Giuseppe Meazza

The intelligence of his game gave him the edge over the opposition, who would often resort to kicking him in an effort to save themselves from embarrassment. For a short man – 168cm – he possessed an exceptional ability to head the ball.

Along with his eye for a pass he was the complete player, his versatility was evident when he was interchangeable between forward and midfielder. His two footed ability coupled with brilliant spacial awareness helped him create many goals for his teammates.

Meazza’s passion for the game was matched only for his passion for women – he was infamous for visiting brothels the night before a game. He loved champagne and a smoke and was one of the first footballers to become world famous and to agree a sponsorship deal. His sexual appetite frequently got him in hot water with directors but never had a negative effect on his performance.

In 1937 the day of the game against Juventus Meazza was nowhere to be found and with an hour to go a search party found him in bed snoring after a night of debauchery. Without even washing his face they dragged him out of bed and piled him into a car to the stadium, with Meazza lying on the back seat informing them of the previous night’s lovemaking.

Fortunately for Meazza he scored a brace and was the best player on the field as Inter won 2-1 and the incident was ignored.

Throughout the 30s Meazza scored goals for fun but an injury ruled him out for most of the 1938/39 season and in November 1940 he was transferred to AC Milan, becoming one of the few players to cross the divide and not inspire hatred amongst supporters. In February 1941 before the derby with Inter Meazza cried in the dressing room but went on to score an equalizer in a 2-2 draw.

Giuseppe Meazza Inter

In 1942 he moved to Juventus which led to a downward spiral in his career. Making his debut he looked overweight and untrained, and an expectant crowd waited for a moment of magic that never came. Things picked up when he was moved to the centre of attack and he began to find his shooting boots although he never truly regained the form he had shown at Inter.

In the mid 1940s he briefly played for Varese and Atlanta before returning to Inter for the 1946 season helping them to avoid relegation. He made 17 appearances for Inter scoring two goals before he hung up his boots at the end of the 1947 season.

Representing his country Meazza became the first player to captain a winning World Cup side when the tournament was not won by the hosting nation in 1938 and along with three of his teammates became the first players to win consecutive World Cups.

giuseppe meazza Italy

He made his international debut in February 1930 against Switzerland at the age of 19 and scored twice to help Italy to a 4-2 win. Meazza frequently hit the back of the net over the next year showcasing his famous dribbling moves to opposing teams.

In 1933 coach Vittorio Pozzo moved him to inside forward, a move that would help Italy win the World Cup the next year. Hosted by Italy in 1934 the Azzurri eased their way to the semi-finals where they faced a well fancied Austria side.

Heavy rain before kick off made the pitch at the San Siro a bog, but Meazza was so accustomed to playing there that he had no problems in carving apart the Austrian defence.

The final was against Czechoslovakia and after 56 minutes Meazza was injured by a hard tackle which restricted his influence on the game. Finishing 1-1 the game went to extra time where a moment of sheer magic by Meazza unlocked the Czech defence. Drifting on the wing Meazza picked out a peach of a pass to a teammate and then blocked off several defenders allowing Schavio to hit the winner and deliver the World Cup to the home fans. Meazza picked up the Golden Ball and was in the team of the tournament.

Giuseppe Meazza Inter

In 1938 Meazza again captained the Azzurri at the World Cup in France. Urged on by Mussolini who had sent a telegram to him stating ‘win or die!’ the pressure was on for the Azzurri to deliver.

After a tough opener against Norway in which they won 2-1 the Azzurri progressed through to the semi finals in which Meazza scored a memorable goal against Brazil. Lining up a penalty his shorts fell down due to the elastic in his waistband snapping, the Brazilian goalkeeper couldn’t stop laughing but Meazza seized the moment and pulled up his shorts before smacking the penalty home.

In the final the Azzurri defeated Hungary with Meazza responsible for creating dynamic assists for his teammates to finish, running out 3-1 victors.

He played his last match for the Azzurri in 1939, having played 54 games, loosing just the six and scoring 33 goals in the process.

Meazza was one of the finest footballers to grace the world stage and his sublime skill and love of living the good life made him a legend in the history of Italian football. He died in August 1979 aged 68, two days before his 69th birthday.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9dQ81W91GM[/youtube]

 

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