 Chinaglia withLazio in 1975 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1947-01-24)24 January 1947 | ||
| Place of birth | Carrara,Tuscany, Italy | ||
| Date of death | 1 April 2012(2012-04-01) (aged 65) | ||
| Place of death | Naples, Florida, U.S.[1] | ||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1962–1964 | Swansea Town | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1964–1966 | Swansea Town | 6 | (1) |
| 1966–1967 | Massese | 32 | (5) |
| 1967–1969 | Internapoli | 66 | (24) |
| 1969–1976 | Lazio | 209 | (98) |
| 1976–1983 | New York Cosmos | 213 | (193) |
| Total | 525 | (321) | |
| International career | |||
| 1972–1975 | Italy | 14 | (4) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Giorgio Chinaglia (Italian pronunciation:[ˈdʒordʒokiˈnaʎʎa]; 24 January 1947 – 1 April 2012) was an Italianfootballer who played as astriker. He grew up and played his early football inCardiff, Wales, and began his career withSwansea Town in 1964. He later returned to Italy to play forMassese,Internapoli andS.S. Lazio in 1969. Chinaglia led Lazio to the club's first league championship in the 1973–74 season, during which he was also the league'sleading scorer. He played international football forItaly, making 14 appearances and scoring 4 goals between 1972 and 1975, including two appearances at the1974 FIFA World Cup. Chinaglia was the first player in Italian football history to be called up internationally from the second division.[2]
In 1976, Chinaglia left Lazio to sign with theNew York Cosmos of theNorth American Soccer League. With the Cosmos team that also featuredPelé andFranz Beckenbauer, Chinaglia won four league titles, and retired in 1983 as the NASL's all-time leading goal scorer with 193 goals.[3] In 1980 Chinaglia scored a record 50 goals in regular- and post-season play, plus another 26 in friendly matches. In all matches played, including friendly, exhibition and pre-season games, Chinaglia scored 734 goals, giving him a lifetime average of a goal a game.
In 2000, Chinaglia was inducted into theNational Soccer Hall of Fame in the United States and was named the greatest player in Lazio's history during the club's centenary celebrations; with 29 goals, he is also the highest-scoring Lazio player in international competitions. A prolific goalscorer, some sources state that he is thehighest scoring Italian player in all professional competitions, with 398 goals, ahead ofSilvio Piola, although this claim is also disputed, as the NASL did not abide to certainFIFA regulations at the time.[4] He is also the Italian player with the best goalscoring ratio in domestic championships, with 319 goals scored in 429 league matches played across both Italy and the United States.[5]
Chinaglia was given the nickname "Long John", a reference to Chinaglia's physical style of play, as well as his resemblance to the similarly large Welsh footballing legendJohn Charles who also played in Italy and Wales.[6]
Chinaglia was born inCarrara, Tuscany in 1947, but in 1955, he moved toCardiff, Wales with his father Mario, mother Giovanna and his sister Rita, because of unemployment in Italy followingWorld War II.[7] Because his family was poor, Chinaglia said, "All four of us lived in one room," he says, "My father was an ironworker and it was tough. I used to take the milk left on people's porches and drink it for breakfast."[8] Chinaglia, whilst living in Cardiff, attended St Mary's of The Angels Catholic Primary School for an unknown period.
At age 13, Chinaglia was spotted scoring ahat trick for Cardiff Schools, and joinedSwansea Town in theFootball League Third Division as an apprentice in 1962.[9]
Chinaglia made his senior debut for Swansea in October 1964 atRotherham United, with his League debut following in February. His final Swans appearance was in March 1966, coming on as a substitute againstBrentford.[10]
With Swansea, Chinaglia won the 1965 West Wales Senior Cup, scoring in the 3–0 victory in the final againstLlanelli, and represented the Swansea Senior Association Football League in 1964 in a representative match against the Birmingham & District Works Football Association.[11]
In 1966, because of the lack of interest from British clubs and his compulsory Italian military service, Chinaglia, then age 19, and his family moved back to Carrara. He credited the military requirement with getting his career on track, saying, "Otherwise, I'd probably still be in Wales, slogging it out in the mud and drinking ale. TheItalian army has a special regiment for soccer players, so all I did in the service was to train all day, and when my club had a game, get a pass."[8]
Chinaglia was banned from playing inSerie A, the top division, for three years because he had played professionally outside of Italy, and his father fixed him up withMassese, aSerie C club inMassa near his home.[12]
The following season, he joined anotherSerie C club,Internapoli inNaples, where he played two seasons and scored 26 goals in 66 matches.[8]
_-_Cagliari%2527s_Nen%25C3%25A9_%2526_Lazio%2527s_Giorgio_Chinaglia.jpg)
Chinaglia rose to fame as a prolific goalscorer in Italy'sSerie A, playing forS.S. Lazio, scoring 12 goals in hisdebut Serie A season, including a notable goal againstEuropean Cup holdersMilan, led byGianni Rivera. He scored nine goals in his second season, which was insufficient to prevent Lazio from being relegated toSerie B the following season. Despite Lazio's poor league form that year, Chinaglia won theCoppa delle Alpi with Lazio in 1971, defeatingBasel 3–1 in the final. He helped Lazio to gain promotion to Serie A during thefollowing season, leading the club to a second-place finish in Serie B that year, and finishing the season as the leading goalscorer in Serie B, with 21 goals. The following season, Chinaglia scored 10 goals in Serie A, as Lazio narrowly missed out on thetitle, losing it toJuventus on the final matchday. During the1973–74 season, heled the top Italian league in scoring, with 24 goals, and he helped his team to the Serie A title that year, scoring the decisive goal from a penalty in a 1–0 win overFoggia. He was named the club's captain during hisfinal season in Italy, concluding his European career with 14 goals. In total, he scored 98 league goals for Lazio in 209 appearances, 77 of which were scored in Serie A, in 175 appearances. He scored 122 goals in 246 appearances in all competitions for Lazio, scoring 13 goals in 28Coppa Italia appearances, and nine goals in 11 European matches.[13][14]
In Rome, Chinaglia's family faced abuse from opposing fans and threats of kidnap by terrorist groups, and he voiced frustration at Italian tax and corporate laws that he said led to business failures.[8] In 1972, Chinaglia began investing in American real estate while on a tour of theUnited States with Lazio. And in 1975, his family bought a house inEnglewood, New Jersey with the idea that he would commute to matches from there. Instead, he walked into the office ofClive Toye, then president of theNew York Cosmos ofNASL, and said he would either play for the Cosmos or buy his own team.[3]
Chinaglia joined the Cosmos in 1976 and finished his career in New York with 397 goals in outdoor games and 38 goals in 21indoor, a total of 435 goals in 413 matches. He led his team in scoring for 13 straight seasons, six at Lazio and seven at the Cosmos, scored two or more goals 54 times for the Cosmos, of which 14 were playoff games, scored three or more goals in a game 16 times, five in the playoffs, and scored seven goals in a playoff game against theTulsa Roughnecks in 1980 as well as seven goals in an indoor game against theChicago Sting on 8 December 1981. Chinaglia won theNASL Most Valuable Player Award in 1981.[15]
Chinaglia scored 49 goals in 41 playoff games for the Cosmos for his career and scored five goals in five Soccer Bowls, three of which were game winners (1977,1978, and1982).
In 1980 Chinaglia scored 76 goals in 66 total matches, including 32 goals in 32 regular-season games and 18 goals in seven playoff games. The NASL regular-season record for most goals is also held by Chinaglia with 34 goals in 1978.
In December 1981, Chinaglia played indoor soccer, and in his first game against the Chicago Sting, he set an individual all-time NASL indoor record for most goals in a single match, by scoring seven.
He also became a close associate ofWarner Brothers presidentSteve Ross, part-owner of the franchise, and was known to thoroughly enjoy the cultural diversions that New York provided.[16]
In 1984, Cosmos, facing mounting losses and having never turned a profit, sold 60 percent of the club's ownership to Chinaglia, with no money exchanging hands.[17] Chinaglia, at that time Lazio's president, handed the controls to his personal assistant and general manager Peppe Pinton.[18] When the league and the club folded in 1986, Pinton ended up retaining the rights to the Cosmos name and memorabilia, including trophies and playing gear, associated with the club.[19]
In 2000, he was inducted into theNational Soccer Hall of Fame.[3]
In 2009, Pinton sold the Cosmos name to new owners, and in 2014the new Cosmos team retired Chinaglia'sn° 9 jersey.[20][21] The ceremony was held before a match, with the three children from his first marriage in attendance.[22]
_-_Rivera%2c_Chinaglia_and_Pulici.jpg)
Chinaglia's play withLazio earned him a place on head coachFerruccio Valcareggi's shortlist for theItaly squad in the1970 FIFA World Cup. He did not make the final 22-man squad, but Valcareggi took him to Mexico for experience.[12] Italy reached thefinal of the tournament.
In 1971, after Lazio were demoted toSerie B, Chinaglia became the first Italy national team player in modern history to be selected from a second-tier division club.[8] Chinaglia scored on his debut in a friendly match againstBulgaria, on 21 June 1972, inSofia.
In 1973, Chinaglia returned to Britain with the Azzurri to faceEngland in a friendly match. In the 86th minute, Chinaglia beat English defenderBobby Moore and sent in a cross that was tapped in byFabio Capello, helping Italy to its first win over England atWembley Stadium.[23]
Along with his teammatesRe Cecconi andWilson, Chinaglia took part in1974 FIFA World Cup in Germany, although he was used scarcely by Italy managerFerruccio Valcareggi. Chinaglia became notoriously famous for his strong verbal reaction when he cursed upon being substituted by Valcareggi forAnastasi during his nation's opening match of the tournament againstHaïti, which ended in a 3–1 victory to the Italians, although they would later suffer a first round elimination from the competition. With his successor,Fulvio Bernardini, the situation did not improve.[24][25] In total, he scored 4 goals for Italy in 14 appearances between 1972 and 1975.[26]
Regarded as one of the top and most prolific Italian strikers of all time, Chinaglia was a large, strong, fast, and powerful player, with a keen eye for goal.[27] Often described as one of the first true old fashionedcentre-forwards in Italy, his physical, determined, and opportunistic style of play was initially seen as unorthodox, but he developed into a prominent and prolific goalscorer.[6] Chinaglia was known for his powerful and accurate shot, heading ability, and clinical finishing, both inside and outside the area,[28] as well as his athletic and acrobatic ability in the air.[14] Although he was not initially regarded as the most talented or technically gifted player,[29] he developed his skill and control with time, showing great technical improvements and finesse later on in his career, which also led him todribble with the ball at speed during counterattacks on occasion.[13][14] He was also an accuratepenalty taker.[14]
Look at me. I am Giorgio Chinaglia. I beat you!
In addition to his footballing attributes, Chinaglia was a confident, charismatic and highly influential player on the pitch, due to his flamboyant, outspoken, eccentric, and extroverted personality, as well as his unique sense of humour with his teammates, which led him to become one of the first true footballing stars. He was also known for his leadership throughout his career,[28] in particular during his time at Lazio.[13] However, despite his prolific goalscoring record, he was criticised at times for being selfish, arrogant, and for his limited work-rate off the ball.[31] Although he was popular with fans and teammates, he also had a controversial, brash, and rebellious character, and an aggressive temper at times, which led to arguments and altercations with some of his managers and teammates throughout his career.[3][6] He also drew negative attention to himself in the press due to his lifestyle off the pitch,[31] which included certain legal problems throughout his career, as well as accusations of criminal activity.[3][6]
In 1970, married his first wife, Connie Eruzione, daughter of a retired American army sergeant who was living in Italy[8] and cousin ofMike Eruzione, member of the gold medal-winning 1980United States men's national ice hockey team that won the "Miracle on Ice" game against the Soviet Union.[32] They had three children together: Cynthia, Giorgio Jr. and Stephanie.[3] After his divorce with his first wife, Chinaglia married Angela Cacioppo; they had two children: Anthony and Donald.[3][24]
In 1979, Chinaglia became a naturalized American citizen, tellingThe New York Times Magazine reporterDiane Ackerman that he proudly kept his citizenship papers in his locker next to his bottle ofChivas Regal.[33]
In 1996, Chinaglia was given a two-year prison sentence for fraudulent and false bankruptcy in the financial statements attributable to the management of Fin Lazio (1986–87), the financial owner of S.S. Lazio.[34] He was Lazio's club president from 1983 to 1985, and was investigated by Italian authorities over a failed attempt to buy the club in 2006[3] over money laundering allegations involving suspected associates of theCasalesi clan, a clan of theCamorra crime syndicate.[35][36] He had previously attempted to buy another Italian club,U.S. Foggia, in 2004, but that attempt also failed after money laundering allegations and he fled to the United States.[3] In October 2006, Chinaglia was also accused of extortion andmanipulation and an arrest warrant was issued by theGuardia di Finanza, but he remained a fugitive due to him residing in the United States.[37] In November 2007, Chinaglia was fined €4.2 million by theCommissione Nazionale per le Società e la Borsa for the alleged intention of a Hungarian chemical-pharmaceutical group to acquire the majority stake in S.S. Lazio.[38] In July 2008, another arrest warrant was issued to Chinaglia.[39]Football Show co-hostCharlie Stillitano said Chinaglia never returned to Italy because "He never wanted to take the chance".[3]
At the time of his death, Chinaglia was co-host of a daily football talk show,The Football Show onSirius Satellite Radio.[3]
Chinaglia died inNaples, Florida of a heart attack on 1 April 2012.[3] His body was brought back to Rome for burial at Cimitero Flaminio, in the chapel of the Maestrelli family, where former Lazio coachTommaso Maestrelli is buried.[40][41] The Giorgio Chinaglia Foundation, a non-profit organisation to help youth football programmes and disabled children, was later formed by the three children from his first marriage.[42]
Lazio
New York Cosmos
Individual
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