| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1967-09-02)2 September 1967 (age 58) | ||
| Place of birth | Margherita di Savoia, Italy | ||
| Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Position | Striker | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1984–1988 | Cesena | 62 | (7) |
| 1988–1994 | Roma | 154 | (29) |
| 1994–1996 | Torino | 60 | (30) |
| 1996–1998 | Bayern Munich | 45 | (11) |
| 1998–2000 | Piacenza | 33 | (1) |
| 2000–2001 | Cesena | 14 | (6) |
| Total | 369 | (84) | |
| International career | |||
| 1987–1989 | Italy U21 | 16 | (4) |
| 1988–1991 | Italy | 9 | (2) |
| 1989 | Italy B[1] | 1 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Ruggiero Rizzitelli (Italian pronunciation:[rudˈdʒɛːrorittsiˈtɛlli]; born 2 September 1967) is an Italian formerfootballer who played as astriker.
Due to his goalscoring ability, he was given the nickname "Rizzi-gol" by the fans.[2][3]
Rizzitelli started his professional career forSerie B teamCesena during the1984–85 season, making hisSerie A debut in the1987–88 season. He played four seasons with the small side fromEmilia-Romagna before joiningA.S. Roma in 1988, where he scored a total of 29 goals in six seasons with thegiallorossi, winning aCoppa Italia in 1991. In the same year reached theUEFA Cup Final, but his goal was unable to prevent them from losing toInter Milan. Roma were also subsequently defeated in the1991 Supercoppa Italiana.
From 1994 to 1996 he then played forTorino, scoring a very impressive 30 goals in 60 appearances with thegranata. Despite his good performances, Torino were relegated toSerie B in 1996, and Rizzitelli agreed for a move to German teamFC Bayern Munich, then coached by fellow ItalianGiovanni Trapattoni. In his second season with Bayern, he seldom appeared as a regular starter due to injury and the emergence ofCarsten Jancker,[4] but proved to be a more than useful player on the bench, thanks to his quickness that made him skillful and dangerous on the counter-attack. He scored a total of 11 goals in 45 appearances with the Bavarian team, winning aBundesliga title in 1997 and aDFB-Pokal (German Cup) in 1998. He returned to Italy in 1998 to joinPiacenza where he however failed to impress. Rizzitelli retired in 2001 after a season with Cesena.
Rizzitelli received a total of nine caps with theItalian team between 1988 and 1991, making his debut on 20 February 1988 in a friendly match againstUSSR, played atStadio San Nicola,Bari and won 4–1 by theazzurri.[5] He scored a total of two goals with the Italian team and was selected for theEuro 88 squad,[6] but played no part in the tournament, as Italy reached the semi-finals.[7] He was also part of the Italian Olympic squad that finished fourth in the1988 Olympics in Seoul.[8][9]
Rizzitelli was a versatile forward, capable of playing in several offensive positions; he was deployed as a mainstriker as well as in a supporting role, in particular as asecond striker off another centre forward, or even as awinger or outside forward, where he could deliver assists to team mates. His versatility was demonstrated during his time atRoma, where he formed an effective partnership with a more offensivecentre forward,Rudi Völler. He was a quick, agile, and tenacious player, with good technique, who excelled in the air, despite his small stature.[10][11]
Roma
Bayern Munich
Italy
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