 Mazzola withInter Milan in 1971 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Alessandro Mazzola | |||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1942-11-08)8 November 1942 (age 83) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Turin, Italy | |||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||
| 1960–1977 | Internazionale | 417 | (116) | |||||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1963–1974 | Italy | 70 | (22) | |||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||||||
Alessandro "Sandro"Mazzola (Italian pronunciation:[ˈsandromatˈtsɔːla]; born 8 November 1942) is an Italian former professionalfootballer, who played as aforward orattacking midfielder forInternazionale and theItaly national team. He has worked also as a football analyst and commentator on the Italian national television stationRAI.
He is widely regarded as one of the greatest Italian football players of all time, and as one of the best players of his generation, due to his speed, work-rate, creativity, technical skills and eye for goal;[1][2] he placed second in the1971 Ballon d'Or.[3] Having spent his entire 17 season career with Inter, he holds the honour of being aone-club man. With the club, he won fourSerie A titles (1963,1965,1966 and1971), twoEuropean Cups (1964 and1965) and two Intercontinental Cups (1964 and1965), also winning theSerie A top scorer award during the 1964–65 season, in which he also reached theCoppa Italia final, narrowly missing out on atreble with the club. With theItaly national side, Mazzola won theUEFA European Championship in1968, being named to theTeam of the Tournament, and reached thefinal of the1970 FIFA World Cup; he also took part in the1966 and1974 FIFA World Cups with Italy.
He is the son of Italian footballerValentino Mazzola, player of theGrande Torino who died in theSuperga air disaster. Sandro Mazzola's younger brother,Ferruccio Mazzola, was also a footballer, who died in 2013.[1]
Sandro Mazzola was born inTurin a few weeks after his father,Valentino Mazzola, joinedTorino fromVenezia. His younger brother,Ferruccio, who was named after the clubpresident of Torino, was born two years later. Their parents divorced in 1946 but their father gained custody of Sandro, who was six years old when his father died in theSuperga air disaster.[2][4]
Although their father Valentino had played forTorino F.C., Sandro Mazzola and his brother Ferruccio signed forInternazionale. Unlike his younger brother, Sandro Mazzola spent his entire career with Inter, scoring 116Serie A goals for the club in 417 league appearances. He made his Serie A debut under managerHelenio Herrera during the1960–61 season, along with many other youngsters, againstrivalsJuventus on 10 June 1961, scoring his team's only goal from a penalty in a 9–1 loss; this was his only appearance of the season. Herrera had joined Inter a year earlier, from Spanish sideBarcelona, along with his midfield generalLuis Suárez, who would serve as Inter's main playmaker during the 1960s.
Herrera's Inter side during that period also featuredTarcisio Burgnich andGiacinto Facchetti as his fullbacks, BrazilianJair as his winger,Mario Corso as the left midfielder,Armando Picchi as hissweeper, and Mazzola, who eventually played in the inside-right offensive position under Herrera. Together, they would transform the club into the best team in Italy, Europe, and the world during the 60s, which came to be known asGrande Inter. They were known for their infamous defensive "catenaccio" tactics and ability to score from swift and sudden counterattacks. Mazzola won fourSerie A titles with Inter, including two consecutive titles in1965 and1966, finishing as the league'stop scorer in the former season, with 17 goals, and narrowly missing out on a treble in the same year.
In 1964, Mazzola scored twice to help Inter defeatReal Madrid in the1964 European Cup Final to help the club emulatecross-city rivalMilan's feat of the previous season; he finished the tournament as the joint top scorer with seven goals.[5] Inter defended their European title again the following season by beatingBenfica in theFinal. Inter were eliminated in the semi-finals of the European Cup during the1965–66 season by eventual champions Real Madrid, while in the1966–67 season, Inter reached their thirdEuropean Cup Final, but lost 2–1 toCeltic despite Mazzola scoring the opening goal of the match from the penalty spot in the seventh minute.[6] Mazzola also won two consecutiveIntercontinental Cups with Inter in1964 and1965, and reached the 1964–65Coppa Italia final, as well as managing a third-place finish in theCoppa Italia during the 1967–68 season; he reached yet anotherEuropean Cup final with Inter in1972, only to lose 2–0 toAjax.[2][4]
In 1971, following his finalSerie A title and his performances inEurope, he placed second in theBallon d'Or, behindJohan Cruyff. This was the closest he ever came to winning theaward, and the first time he was shortlisted as a finalist.[2][4][7]
"I played against your father. You did him proud, and I want to give you my shirt."
Mazzola retired from professional football in the summer of 1977, having served as Inter'scaptain from 1970 until his retirement. By the end of his career, he had won four Serie A titles (1963, 1965, 1966 and 1971), twoEuropean Cups (1964 and 1965), two Intercontinental Cups (1964 and 1965), oneEuropean Championship (1968) and was top scorer during the 1964–65 Serie A season.[4][7] He was also Inter's all-time top scorer in theEuropean Cup/Champions League untilLautaro Martinez surpassed his record on 5 March 2025.[9]
_-_Mazzola_and_Rivera.jpg)
Mazzola played 70 times forItaly between 1963 and 1974, scoring 22 goals.[10] His debut for the national side was againstBrazil on 12 May 1963, when he was aged only 20, and he marked the occasion by scoring a goal from a penalty. Mazzola later played for his country at the1966 FIFA World Cup underEdmondo Fabbri, appearing in all three of Italy's group matches, and scoring in his nation's opening fixture, a 2–0 win overChile, as Italy were eliminated in the first round; he later took part at the next two editions of the tournament with Italy. His biggest achievement with the national side came in 1968, however, when Italy won the1968 European Championship on home soil under managerFerruccio Valcareggi, and Mazzola was named as a member of the Team of the Tournament for his performance.[2][4][7][11]
Two years later, however, although Italy arrived atthe World Cup in Mexico as defending European champions, there was much turmoil within the team, as the Italian national team's coach, Valcareggi, believed that Mazzola could not play alongside the other Italian creative star playerGianni Rivera, who played in a similar position for Mazzola's rival club Milan, as it would offset the balance within the team; Mazzola was therefore chosen to start in all three of Italy's first round matches, due to his superior athleticism and work-rate.[12][13] As the Italians had difficulty scoring during the group stage, and Mazzola had struggled to regain match fitness after coming down with a stomach flu, Valcareggi devised a controversial solution for the second round of the tournament, which he called the "staffetta" (relay), in order to play both players.[12][13]
_-_S._Mazzola%2c_F._Valcareggi%2c_F._Capello.jpg)
Mazzola, who was faster, stronger, fitter, more goal-prone, and who had the superior tactical intelligence and work-rate of the two, would start in the first half, while Rivera would come in at half time, once the opposing players began to tire. This would allow the more creative playmaker Rivera more time on the ball to dictate the tempo of the team's play. With this strategy,Italy defeated hostsMexico in the quarter-finals, and subsequentlyWest Germany in extra time in the semi-finals to reach theWorld Cup final for the first time in 32 years, in which Italy facedBrazil, led byPelé. The match was billed as the battle between offensive and defensive football, but on game day, Valcareggi abandoned hisstaffetta policy at half time, with the score tied at 1–1, and decided to only use Mazzola until the very end of the match, due to the precarious physical state of several of his starting players following Italy's taxing semi-final victory. Rivera finally went into the game with only six minutes remaining, replacingRoberto Boninsegna, with Brazil leading 3–1. Two of Italy's biggest technical stars were finally united together on the pitch, where many people believed they should have been all along, but it was too late; Brazil won the match 4–1 to capture the World Cup title, their third overall.[2][4][7][14][15][16]
Four years later, Valcareggi finally used the two players together at the1974 World Cup, but the ageing Italian side underperformed and was eliminated in the first round of the tournament.[2][4][7]
After retiring from football, Mazzola held an executive position at Inter, between 1977 and 1984, then atGenoa.[17]
From 1995 to 1999, he returned to work at Inter assporting director, before being replaced by former player and teammateGabriele Oriali. From 2000 to 2003, he worked as the sporting director of Torino.[17]
Mazzola also worked as a commentator forRai Sport. He holds the unique record of being the commentator of the finals of the1982 World Cup alongside Luigi Colombo for Telemontecarlo (the first final broadcast on commercial television) and the2006 World Cup final alongside Marco Civoli for RAI, both won by Italy.[4]
Mazzola is widely considered to be one of the greatest Italian football players of all time and one of the best players of his generation.[1] A quick, talented, skilful, energetic, tactically intelligent and versatile player, he was capable of playing in several advanced positions. Known for his athleticism, defensive work-rate, and acrobatic ability in the air, he initially played as an offensive–mindedcentral midfielder in his youth, known as the "mezzala" role in Italian, but was later primarily utilised as aninside-right underHerrera, a role in which he rose to fame, establishing himself as one of the best players in the world in his position; he was also used as acentre-forward, as awinger, as a mainstriker, or even as asupporting striker on occasion. In his later career, as he lost some of his speed and mobility, he was usually deployed in a morecreative role as anoffensive midfielder, which was aided by his passing range, vision, technique, ball skills, and close control; he was also capable of playing in adeeper midfield role, as aplaymaker.[2][4][7][16][18][19][20][21][22]
Despite occupying a more withdrawn, creative playing role for much of his career, Mazzola was also known to be a prolific goalscorer as a forward, due to his eye for goal, and his powerful and accurate striking ability from both inside and outside the area, as well as his ability to time his attacking runs and get on the end of his teammates' passes, which enabled him to win the Serie A top scorer award in 1965. However, Mazzola was most highly regarded during his prime for his outstanding pace, acceleration, and stamina, as well as hisdribbling ability, agility, technical skills, and balance, in particular when running at full speed while in possession of the ball; his pace, combined with his excellent ball control and technical ability enabled him to beat defenders frequently during matches, both in one-on-one situations or when undertaking individual runs.[2][4][7][18][19][21][22] In addition to his ability as a footballer, Mazzola also stood out due to his personality, strong character, mentality, determination, and leadership.[21]
On 3 July 1968, Mazzola founded theItalian Footballers' Association (AIC), inMilan, along with several fellow footballers, such asGiacomo Bulgarelli, Gianni Rivera,Ernesto Castano,Giancarlo De Sisti, andGiacomo Losi, as well as the recently retiredSergio Campana, also a lawyer, who was appointed president of the association.[23]
He considers himself Roman Catholic.[24]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Inter Milan | 1960–61 | Serie A | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 1 | |
| 1961–62 | Serie A | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1962–63 | Serie A | 23 | 10 | 1 | 1 | — | — | 24 | 11 | |||
| 1963–64 | Serie A | 30 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 9[a] | 7 | — | 39 | 16 | ||
| 1964–65 | Serie A | 33 | 17 | 2 | 0 | 6[a] | 3 | 2[b] | 1 | 43 | 21 | |
| 1965–66 | Serie A | 30 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 4[a] | 1 | 2[b] | 2 | 37 | 22 | |
| 1966–67 | Serie A | 30 | 17 | 2 | 2 | 10[a] | 4 | — | 42 | 23 | ||
| 1967–68 | Serie A | 28 | 6 | 9 | 2 | — | — | 37 | 8 | |||
| 1968–69 | Serie A | 29 | 7 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 32 | 7 | |||
| 1969–70 | Serie A | 28 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 10[c] | 1 | — | 43 | 6 | ||
| 1970–71 | Serie A | 29 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 1[c] | 0 | 2[d] | 0 | 35 | 9 | |
| 1971–72 | Serie A | 28 | 7 | 9 | 2 | 9[a] | 2 | — | 46 | 11 | ||
| 1972–73 | Serie A | 26 | 2 | 9 | 4 | 6[e] | 0 | — | 41 | 6 | ||
| 1973–74 | Serie A | 26 | 4 | 10 | 3 | 2[e] | 0 | — | 38 | 7 | ||
| 1974–75 | Serie A | 23 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 4[e] | 0 | — | 34 | 3 | ||
| 1975–76 | Serie A | 25 | 2 | 10 | 4 | — | — | 35 | 6 | |||
| 1976–77 | Serie A | 28 | 1 | 9 | 3 | 2[e] | 0 | — | 39 | 4 | ||
| Total | 418 | 116 | 80 | 24 | 63 | 18 | 6 | 3 | 567 | 161 | ||
| Career total | 418 | 116 | 80 | 24 | 63 | 18 | 6 | 3 | 567 | 161 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Italy | 1963 | 4 | 1 |
| 1964 | 3 | 3 | |
| 1965 | 8 | 6 | |
| 1966 | 9 | 5 | |
| 1967 | 3 | 3 | |
| 1968 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1969 | 4 | 2 | |
| 1970 | 10 | 2 | |
| 1971 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1972 | 8 | 0 | |
| 1973 | 6 | 0 | |
| 1974 | 5 | 0 | |
| Total | 70 | 22 | |
Inter Milan[2]
Italy[2]
Individual
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Awards | |
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| International | |
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| National | |
