Giuseppe "Beppe"BergomiOMRI[1] (Italian pronunciation:[dʒuˈzɛppeˈbɛppeˈbɛrɡomi]; born 22 December 1963) is an Italian former professionalfootballer who spent his entire career atInter Milan. He is regarded as one of the greatest Italiandefenders of all time,[2][3][4] and as one of the best of his generation,[5] being elected byPelé to be part of theFIFA 100 in 2004.[6]
Aone-club man, Bergomi held the record ofmost appearances for the club for several years, while also being the side's longtimecaptain. He was affectionately referred to as"Lo zio" ("the uncle")[7] because of his bushy eyebrows and the impressivemoustache he wore even as a youngster,[8][9] which reminded teammateGianpiero Marini of his own uncle's appearance.[10]
Born inMilan, Bergomi began training withInter Milan's first team at the age of only 15, and made his professional debut at the age of 16, 1 month and 8 days in the 1979–80 Coppa Italia againstrivalsJuventus in Turin, on 30 January 1980, becoming the youngest to make it in the history of the club. During the1980–81 season, at the age of 17, he made his firstSerie A appearance in a 2–1 home win overComo on 22 February 1981. Afterwinning theCoppa Italia the following year,[12] alsoreaching the semifinals of theEuropean Cup whilst putting on consistent performances, he soon was part of Italy's senior squad choices.[13]
WithItaly Bergomi won the1982 FIFA World Cup. He also played in the1986 and1990 campaigns (acting as captain in the latter), as well asUEFA Euro 1988, with the nation reaching the semi-finals of the latter two tournaments. His final international tournament was the1998 World Cup.[12]
Alongside the likes of Inter'sGiuseppe Baresi, his younger brotherFranco of A.C. Milan andJuventus trio ofAntonio Cabrini,Claudio Gentile andGaetano Scirea, he formed the backbone of the national team's defence for much of the 1980s,[22] making his debut on 14 April 1982 in a 0–1friendly loss inEast Germany, aged only 18 years and 3 months, making him theyoungest player to feature in a match for Italy post-World War II.[23][24][25] He was included in the Italy team for the World Cup in Spain later that year, becoming the youngest Italian player ever to be called up for a World Cup.[26] In the victorious tournament, he appeared in three games, including Italy's 3–2second round victory againstBrazil in their final group match, where he put in a strong performance after coming on for the injured defenderFulvio Collovati, marking opposing strikerSerginho Chulapa, despite later deflectingPaulo Roberto Falcão's shot into his own net;[27][28][29][30] the result allowed Italy to advance to the semi-final ahead of Brazil andArgentina in the so-called "Group of Death."[31][32] At the age of 18 years and 195 days, Bergomi was the youngest Italian player ever to have appeared at a World Cup.[33] Although he was initially not in managerEnzo Bearzot's plans to feature in the knock-out rounds, Bergomi also went on to play the full 180 minutes in the last two matches of the tournament. Due to Gentile's suspension ahead of the semi-final againstPoland, coupled with an injury to goalkeeperDino Zoff, which impeded him from takinggoal kicks, Bergomi started the match, keeping aclean sheet in the 2–0 victory.[27][34] An injury toplaymakerGiancarlo Antognoni also allowed Bergomi to start in the 3–1final victory overWest Germany, where he effectively marked German forwardKarl-Heinz Rummenigge, despite picking up a minor injury in the first half,[27][34][35][36] and even participated in the lead-up to the second goal of the match, scored byMarco Tardelli.[37][38] Aged 18 years and 201 days, at the time, he was the second youngest player ever to win the title, after Brazil'sPelé, who won the tournament at the age of 17 years and 249 days in1958.[33][39]
Bergomi also appeared in the 1986 edition of the tournament, where Italy were eliminated in theround-of-16 by eventual semi-finalistsFrance following a 2–0 loss.[40][41]
During the first match under Bearzot's successor,Azeglio Vicini, Bergomi scored his first two goals for Italy in a 2–0 friendly win againstGreece inBologna on 8 October 1986, becoming the first Italian defender to score a brace at international level; he also wore the captain's armband for the first time, following strikerAlessandro Altobelli's substitution.[39][42] On 20 February 1988, Bergomi was named Italy captain ahead of Italy's 4–1 friendly win over theUSSR inBari,[43] a role he held for 33 games, until 1991.[44] As captain,[45] Bergomi was part of Italy's Euro 88 squad under Vicini,[46] where the nation reached the semi-finals, before suffering a 2–0 defeat to the Soviet Union;[45] Bergomi was elected part of the team of the tournament.[46]
Bergomi went on to captain his country in the 1990 World Cup – held on home soil – to a third-place finish,[47] playing in all seven matches, which included five consecutive wins and as many clean sheets, for a total of 518 minutes without conceding a goal, and the best defensive record overall in the history of the competition,[48] conceding only two goals in total.[49] Italy were eliminated in the semi-finals by defending championsArgentina on penalties, following a 1–1 draw,[47][50] the only match that Italy did not win throughout the competition.[51] Italy went on to win the bronze medal match 2–1 overEngland.[52]
However, Bergomi was surprisingly selected byCesare Maldini for the 1998 World Cup at age 34,[58] due to an injury toCiro Ferrara,[59] after playing 28 times inthe league and leading theNerazzurri to theUEFA Cup[60] – his third and last edition of the tournament. After appearing in a pre-tournament friendly againstSweden, which ended in a 1–0 defeat,[61] in France, Bergomi started off as a reserve, but was substituted in during the last group stage match againstAustria, whenAlessandro Nesta suffered a tournament-ending injury, with Italy winning the match 2–1.[62] He partnered for the rest of the tournament withFabio Cannavaro,Alessandro Costacurta and Maldini, playing three games in total, starting in the 1–0 win over Norway in the round of 16,[63] and leading Italy to a quarter-final finish, where they would be eliminated by hosts and eventual champions France 4–3 onpenalties on 3 July, following a goalless draw;[64] this would be his 81st and final international appearance, to which he added six goals in total.[65] At the time, he was Italy's fourth–most capped player of all time, alongside Franco Baresi and Tardelli.[66]
Along withGianluigi Buffon, Fabio Cannavaro, Paolo Maldini, andGianni Rivera, Bergomi is one of only five Italian players to have appeared in four editions of theFIFA World Cup.[33][67] However, despite playing in four editions of the tournament, Bergomi failed to make one single appearance inthe qualifying stages.[68]
Bergomi was an extremely versatile defender, who was capable of playing anywhere along the backline and adapting to any formation:[2][12][69] although he was primarily aright-back,[5][70] he was equally capable of playing on the left,[71][72] as acentral defender,[54] or even as asweeper,[56] positions in which he was often deployed both at club and international level. A quick, athletic, consistent and hard-working player, who was also strong in the air, in addition to his defensive ability, as a full-back he was also known for his strength, stamina and his ability to make attacking runs up the flank, and was also capable of contributing to his team's offensive plays with goals and assists,[5][13][54][71][73][74][75][76] courtesy of his good right foot,crossing ability and powerful shot from outside the area.[77] Above all, however, Bergomi was known for his excellent man-marking skills as a "stopper",[5][56][78] although he was later also able to excel in a zonal marking system;[71][56] he was also highly regarded for his timing of his challenges and his anticipation.[77]
Despite having a strong temper and being a hard tackler[79] − he was sent off 12 times in his career[54] − Bergomi also distinguished himself by his fairness, professionalism and discipline, which made him well-respected among teammates, opponents and coaches;[71][80][81] he was also regarded for his 'silent leadership' throughout his career.[82] Because of his physical and tenacious playing style,[71][83] in 2007,The Times placed him at number nine in their list of the 50 hardest football players in history.[79][84]
A precocious talent in his youth (when he had initially started out as aforward),[12][54][85] Bergomi later also stood out for his longevity throughout his extensive career;[54] indeed, his experience, tactical intelligence and positional sense,[86][87][88] as well as his confidence on the ball, balance, technique and his ability to play the ball out from the back-line enabled him to excel as a sweeper towards the end of his career,[5][56][71][76][89][90] and maintain a high level of performance, in spite of his loss of pace as a result of his physical decline.[86][91]
A licensed football coach, Bergomi became youth coach of theEsordienti at Inter in 2008.[92] In July 2009 he was appointed youth coach ofAllievi Nazionali (under-17) atMonza,[93] being promoted as head of theBerretti under-19 team, in co-operation with Giuseppe Chieppa, one year later.[94]
In July 2011, Bergomi left Monza to accept the same position atAtalanta.[95] Additionally, he also worked as a footballpundit and commentator for Italian satellite televisionSky Italia, often commentating withFabio Caressa, including in Italy's victorious run at the2006 World Cup.[96][97][98]
^abElefante, Andrea; Curino, Luca (11 October 1999)."La festa dello Zio" [Uncle's party].La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). Retrieved18 November 2023.
^MURA, GIANNI (13 October 1991)."L' ITALIA S' ARRENDE E VICINI DICE ADDIO" [Italy surrendurs and Vicini says goodbye].La Repubblica (in Italian). Retrieved19 February 2020.
^Lodovico, Maradei (28 June 998)."Italia, che batticuore" [Italy, what a heart racing encounter].La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). Retrieved18 November 2023.
^Cecere, Nicola; Calamai, Luca (4 July 1998)."Albertini e Di Biagio, il mondo addosso" [Albertini and Di Biagio, the world weighing down on them].La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). Retrieved18 November 2023.
^"Galli o Tancredi Ancora Non Scelgo" ["Galli or Tancredi I'm still not choosing"].La Repubblica (in Italian). 28 March 1986. Retrieved9 November 2017.
^Claudio Lenzi (9 August 2007)."Il Times contro gli eroi '82" [The Times against the heroes of '82].La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). Retrieved9 November 2017.
^"Bergomi".La Stampa (in Italian). 21 May 1982. p. 25. Retrieved8 June 2019.
^Antonello Capone; Luca Curino; Ruggiero Palombo (4 December 1998)."Salas ferma la nuova Inter" [Salas stops the new Inter].La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). Retrieved9 November 2017.
^Inter.it staff, inter(a t)inter.it (17 November 2006)."F.C. Internazionale Milano". Inter.it. Archived fromthe original on 19 August 2012. Retrieved14 October 2017.
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