When Calcio Ruled the Football World-A Personal Journey-Part 9 (1990/91)

The 1990/91 season started in the aftermath of the World Cup that Italy had hosted. After exhaustive years of preparations for the Tournament, the Nation could breath somewhat easier now that the World Cup had ended.

The focus would now be shifted back to the Serie A.

Maradona’s defending Champions of Napoli (managed by Albertino Bigon) had retained the backbone of a squad that had served well for many seasons. Striker Andrea Carnevalle had left to join AS Roma and goalkeeper Giuliano Giuliani had also departed.

In a move reminiscent of Juventus’s purchase of Salvatore Schillaci, Napoli had enrolled Serie B’s top goalscorer Andrea Silenzi from Reggiana.

Former AC Milan goalkeeper Giovanni Galli had also been acquired to fill the gap left by Giuliani’s departure.

Giuseppe Incocciati was another new arrival from Pisa.

As always Napoli’s fortunes were dependent upon the physical, as well as the mental state, of Diego Maradona. In the previous season, especially during his faux-departure to Olympique Marseille, Maradona had shown signs of having grown weary of the demanding and stressful Serie A. This season he would go even further (more on that later).

Photo From: Guerin Sportivo, October 17-23, 1990

(Sampdoria’s Gianluca Vialli)

The Milanese giants of AC Milan and Internazionale Milano (beset by the poor state of the San Siro pitch) had retained the majority of the same bloc of players. The teams managed respectively by Arrigo Sacchi and Giovanni Trapattoni still relied on their Dutch and German (soon to be a reunified Nation) stars.

AC Milan had lost Galli, as well as Angelo Colombo (Bari), Stefano Borgonovo (back with Fiorentina) and Diego Fuser (loaned to Fiorentina).

The arrivals were mostly little-known players that included Sebastiano Rossi (as back-up goalkeeper from Cesena), striker Massimo Agostini (Cesena), Gianluca Gaudenzi (Verona) and Angelo Carbone (Bari).

In a way, a healthy and fit Ruud Gullit could also have been seen as a new arrival.

Inter for their part had acquired Sergio Battistini (Fiorentina), Antonio Paganin (Udinese), Paolo Stringara (Bologna), Fausto Pizzi (Parma) and Genoa’s Davide Fontolan.

Much had been expected of Fontolan, however, he was lost for the season (before the season had kicked off) due to surgery to treat an injury.

The main talking point on that off-season was the dealings on and off the field at Juventus (first season in the new Stadio Delle Alpi). After years of disappointments, the Agnelli clan wanted to build a new and improved Juventus. President Giampiero Boniperti and Manager Dino Zoff had been dismissed, as scapegoats for Juventus’ failings.

Luca di Montezemolo, who had been involved in organizing the World Cup, was brought in as an Executive Vice-President.

Bologna’s star coach on the rise, Luigi Maifredi had been hired as the ‘next Arrigo Sacchi.’

Photo From: World Soccer, February 1991

(Juventus executive Luca Di Montezemolo and new Manager Luigi Maifedi)

He was portrayed as a tactical genius and a future coaching great.

As far as the playing personnel, Juventus dispensed of its foreign trio of Portugal’s Rui Barros (to AS Monaco) and USSR duo of Sergei Aleinikov (Lecce) and Alexander Zavarov (Nancy).

Long serving stopper Sergio Brio had retired and others such as Pasquale Bruno and Roberto Tricella were also transferred out.

At the end of the previous season, Juventus had spent a World record fee to acquire Fiorentina’s phenomenon Roberto Baggio, who had also gone on to be one of the successes of the World Cup.

West German midfielder and World Cup winner Thomas Haessler had arrived from Koln, to fill one of the foreigner spots, along with Brazilian sweeper Julio Cesar from Montpellier.

Juventus desperately tried to purchase English defender Des Walker from Nottingham Forest. Brian Clough refused to sell (as a result the third authorized foreigner spot would remain unfilled)

Lazio’s excellent (though controversial) forward Paolo Di Canio, Bologna’s defensive pair (Gianluca Luppi and Marco De Marchi), Brescia playmaker Eugenio Corini and Massimo Orlando (Reggina), all came on board to strengthen a declining side.

The mood was that their rare successes from the previous season, strikers Salvatore Schillaci (still basking on his World Cup exploits) and Pierluigi Casiraghi could only improve with the reinforcements.

Certainly Maifredi publicly gave every indication that Juventus would be victorious and play like ‘Brazil.’

Photo From: Onze-Mondial, Issue 21, October 1990

(Juventus’ Salvatore Schillaci, Thomas Haessler and Roberto Baggio)

Going into this season not much was expected of the recent Cup Winners Cup winners Sampdoria. The notable acquisition had been that of Soviet star Alexei Mikhailichenko, to replace the departing Spanish veteran Victor.

They were still regarded as a team that could only do well in Cup competitions and not strong nor consistent enough to last a League Campaign.

Photo From: Guerin Sportivo, October 17-23, 1990

(Sampdoria’s Roberto Mancini, Gianluca Vialli and Alexei Mikhailichenko)

The mood of its mains stars and stand-bearers Gianluca Vialli and Roberto Mancini was also at an all time low. Mancini had not seen a single minute of action during the World Cup on home soil, while Vialli had been singled out as one of the scapegoats for Italy’s failure to win the World Cup.

He was also suffering from an injury and would miss the beginning stages of the season. As a result the omens did not look good for the Veteran Yugoslav Manager Vujadin Boskov’s squad.

Their Genovese neighbors Genoa had appointed Osvaldo Bagnoli as manager. They had retained only one of their trio of Uruguayans (Carlos Aguilera).

They had acquired Czechoslovakia Striker Tomas Skuhravy, who had scored five goals during the World Cup in Italy. By October, Brazilian defender Branco would also join up.

They would go on to have a wonderful season along with their Italian supporting cast among whom Stefano Eranio and Gennaro Ruotolo would be capped.

Photo From: World Soccer, July 1991

(Genoa’s new Czech striker Tomas Skuhravy)

Photo From: Guerin Sportivo, November 21-27, 1990

(Genoa President Aldo Spinelli and Brazilian defender Claudio Branco)

AS Roma had appointed former Napoli Manager Ottavio Bianchi as their new manager. In addition to Carnevalle, young rising goalkeeper Angelo Peruzzi was back from loan (Verona). The new foreigner on the squad was Brazilian defender Aldair from Benfica (He would remain in Roma for well over a decade).

For Fiorentina, the sale of Roberto Baggio had been Count Pontello’s undoing. He left amid the protests to be replaced by Film Mogul Mario Cecchi Gori.

Photo From: Soccer International, November 1990

(Juventus’ Roberto Baggio)

The new management was unable to acquire Brazilian midfielder Valdo, however, his manager during the World Cup, Sebastiano Lazaroni had been hired.

The main foreign arrival consisted of Romanian star Marius Lacatus from Steaua Bucharest. Brazilian midfielder Carlos Dunga and Czechoslovakia’s Lubos Kubik were still on board.

Photo From: World Soccer, April 1991

(Fiorentina and Romania’s Marius Lacatus)

Photo From: World Soccer, April 1991

(Fiorentina’s new Brazilian Manager Sebastiano Lazaroni)

Torino had returned to the Serie A after a season in Serie B with Emiliano Mondonico at the helm. They had acquired Real Madrid’s Rafael Martin Vazquez, who was very eager to try his luck in the Serie A.

Photo From: Guerin Sportivo, October 17-23, 1990

(Torino’s Spanish star Rafael Martin Vasquez)

Cagliari had also been promoted after a seven-year absence. The team managed by a young Claudio Ranieri had acquired Gianfranco Mateolli from Inter, as well as the Uruguayan trio of Enzo Francescolli, Daniel Fonseca and Jose Herrera.

Another newly promoted side (for the first time) was Parma. Nevio Scala’s side would go on to become one of the major forces in the Serie A for the coming decade. They brought in a foreign trio of Brazil goalkeeper Claudio Taffarell, Belgian defender Georges Grun and Swedish forward Tomas Brolin.

Photo From: World Soccer, April 1991

(Parma’s new Brazilian goalkeeper Claudio Taffarel)

Photo From: World Soccer, April 1991

(Parma’s new Swedish star Tomas Brolin)

Other newcomers to the Serie A included: West German striker Karl-Heinz Riedle (Lazio), young Romanian forward Florin Raducioiu (Bari), Hungary’s Lajos Detari (Bologna), Denmark’s Henrik Larsen (Pisa), Argentinean (then unknown) midfielder Diego Simeone, Brazil’s Mazinho (Lecce) and Swiss striker Kubilay Turkyilmaz (Bologna, in November).

On the bench, Juventus and Roma’s former Polish star Zbigniew Boniek became the new manager of Lecce.

The seasons kicked off on September 9th and from the outset the defending Champions Napoli were struggling. A scoreless tie at Lecce was followed by a home loss vs. Cagliari and another loss vs. Parma.

They managed to pick up their first win on only on Matchday 4.

The first controversy of the season occurred on the Third Matchday (September 23^rd), after AS Roma’s win over Bari (1-0).

Photo From: Guerin Sportivo, October 17-23, 1990

(Pietro Vierchowod and Julio Cesar, September 30, 1990, Juventus 0-Sampdoria 0)

On October 8^th, it was revealed that AS Roma teammates Angelo Peruzzi and Andrea Carnevalle had failed their Drug tests. On October 13^th, they pair were banned for one year.

Photo From: Guerin Sportivo, October 17-23, 1990

(AS Roma’s Angelo Peruzzi and Andrea Carnevalle and Club President, Dino Viola)

In the meantime, the other leading squads were picking up points without impressing much. At this point it was difficult to see which team(s) was going to break out of the pack.

On Matchday 6 (October 21^st), the first big encounter of the season occurred with struggling Napoli taking on AC Milan.

This was a must-win match for Napoli to jump-start the defense of the League title. They struck first through a penalty kick by Maradona and seemed headed for a rare win, when Ruud Gullit tied up the match in the dying stages.

Photo From: World Soccer, February 1991

(Franco Baresi and Diego Maradona, October 21, 1990, Napoli 1-AC Milan 1)

The following week (Matchday 7, October 28^th) saw Juventus defeat Inter (4-2), where Schillaci scored his first goal of the season. On the same day, Sampdoria gave a sign of its title ambitions by defeating AC Milan at San Siro with a goal from Brazilian veteran Cerezo. Sampdoria became League leaders for the first time in the season.

Photo From: Guerin Sportivo, October 31-November 6, 1990

(Toninho Cerezo, Roberto Mancini and Franco Baresi, October 28, 1990, AC Milan 0-Sampdoria 1)

As for Napoli, Diego Maradona would continuously express his desire to leave the Serie A in radio and magazine interviews.

In addition to the pressures of Calcio, he also had to contend with an ongoing paternity case from a few years back.

During the season he was fined a number of times by the Federation for dissent and indiscipline. He would also train at Napoli according to his own wishes and on many occasions skipped training sessions.

On November 5^th, Maradona continued his antics. He locked himself in his home and refused to fly to Moscow with his teammates for a Champions Cup encounter with Spartak (He eventually joined up via a private plane, but was unable to avoid his team’s elimination via penalty kick shoot-out).

The following week (Matchday 8, November 11^th), Sampdoria held on to the lead by defeating Pisa (4-2). The match was significant as Gianluca Vialli (now healed) scored his first goal of the season.

Juventus defeated Bologna with a penalty kick by Roberto Baggio. The match highlighted Salvatore Schillaci’s difficulties post World Cup. The penalty kick was awarded after a foul on Schillaci. At the end of the match, Bologna’s Fabio Poli accused Schillaci of diving. The pair continued quarreling to such a point, that Schillaci threatened Poli that he would have him ’shot.’

This would lead to his suspension in a nightmarish and forgettable season for himself (and his club).

The following week (Matchday 9, November 18^th), the limelight was on the Milan derby (won by Inter), but the more significant match (as far as the rest of the season) took place at San Paolo between Napoli and Sampdoria.

Sampdoria proved that their win vs. Milan a few weeks earlier was no fluke and hammered the defending Champions (4-1) away from home with both Vialli and Mancini scoring twice.

This was considered by many as a reference match for Sampdoria, that showed they might have a legitimate chance to win the Scudetto (while virtually eliminating any last hope Napoli had of defending their title).

The following Matchday (Round 10, November 25^th), Inter inflicted more misery on Napoli (2-1 win) and leveled at the top with Sampdoria, who lost to neighbors (and improving and attractive Genoa side).

For Inter, Lothar Matthaus was having an exceptional season and he would be rewarded with France Football’s Ballon d’Or at the end of the year.

Photo From: Guerin Sportivo, June 5-11, 1991

(Internazionale Milano’s Lothar Matthaus)

The stage was set for the pacesetters to face one another on Matchday 14 (December 30^th) at Genova. Sampdoria, with a resurgent Vialli and Mancini, deservedly defeated Inter (3-1) to take control of the League. On the same day, AC Milan defeated a lackluster Juventus.

However, in their next two matches, Sampdoria showed a sign of nerves and lost at home to Torino and away to Lecce.

Gianluca Vialli in an interview some time later explained that following the Lecce defeat, the players got together and hashed out all their differences. The squad became unified in its quest to win the elusive League title. The defeat at Lecce would be their last one of that season.

These setbacks had allowed their closest rivals, Inter, AC Milan and Juventus within touching distance.

On January 19^th, AS Roma’s President Dino Viola (who had presided over the 1983 Scudetto) passed away at the age of 75 to end an era for the club.

Less than three months later on April 13^th, Giuseppe Ciarrapico, a mineral water millionaire, bought controlling stake from widow of Dino Viola, to become the new President of AS Roma.

By the halfway stage of the season (Matchday 17, January 20^th, 1991), Inter had taken control (24 points).

Parma’s surprise ascent was exemplified by their win over a fading AC Milan (2-0) on that Matchday. Alessandro Melli, who scored both goals, was part of the new wave of Italian stars that many predicted a bright future.

Similarly, this was the season that Torino’s Gianluigi Lentini would break through and be capped by the Azzuri.

AC Milan had been disappointing despite their high position in the League. There were reports that Sacchi and Marco van Basten were at loggerheads.

Marco van Basten felt that Sacchi’s tactics stifled him. By now Sacchi was employing a 4-5-1 formation that left van Basten alone and isolated upfront with no support striker to assist him. Many others also felt that Sacchi’s tactics were becoming too predictable in the Serie A and suggested adjustments.

Photo From: World Soccer, February 1991

(AC Milan’s Marco van Basten)

On Matchday 19 (February 3^rd), Sampdoria and Inter were level on points following Sampdoria’s win (Fiorentina 1-0) and Inter’s scoreless tie at Bologna (26 points each).

Maradona’s troubles continued and intensified in the New Year. In February, he was linked to drugs/prostitution scandal related to the Camorra (Napoli’s crime syndicate).

Magistrates questioned him on February 15^th and March 25^th. (His greatest troubles still lay ahead).

On Matchday 21 (February 17^th), Sampdoria took full control of the League by defeating Juventus with a penalty kick by Vialli. The loss effectively ended Juventus’ title aspirations and they took a free fall from that point on.

By Matchday 24 (March 10^th), Sampdoria and Inter broke away from the chasing pack. While Inter defeated a demoralized Juventus, Sampdoria defeated AC Milan (2-0). Following the defeat, AC Milan President Silvio Berlusconi ruled his team out of the running. Milan’s poor season (by their standards) was compounded days later by their elimination in the Champions Cup by Olympique Marseille (Having walked off after Stadium Lights failure).

On the following Matchday (Round 25, March 17^th), Sampdoria pulled one point ahead after winning in Pisa (3-0) and Inter being held scoreless at Parma.

However, the most significant news of the Matchday concerned the aftermath of Napoli’s win over Bari (1-0) that would be revealed in the coming days.

On the following Matchday 26 (March 24^th), Sampdoria pulled three points clear (39 points) by defeating Napoli at home (4-1).

The soon to be suspended Maradona scored his final goal in the Serie A from the penalty spot. During this eventful Final season, all his goals had been from the penalty spot, further underlining his decline.

On March 28^th, it was reported that Maradona had failed his Drug test for the match vs. Bari on March 17^th. The test had shown traces of cocaine.

On April 1^st, he left Italy for Argentina with his family. He would be banned for 15 months. 

Photo From: Onze-Mondial, Issue 21, October 1990

(Napoli’s Diego Maradona)

AC Milan, with less pressure now that they were out of Europe and out of the title race, seemed re-invigorated and produced better performances for the rest of the season. They defeated Inter in the Milan derby that helped Sampdoria.

By Matchday 28 (April 7^th), Inter had gained one point over Sampdoria (41 vs. 39) after defeating Bari (5-1) and Sampdoria being held at home by Cagliari (2-2).

By Matchday 30 (April 21), Sampdoria once again pulled three points clear (45 vs. 42), after defeating Bari (3-2) and Inter being held scoreless at Fiorentina.

The match of the season took place the following week (Matchday 31, May 5^th), with Inter hosting Sampdoria. Inter HAD to win to have any chance of winning the title. Sampdoria performed heroically and won (2-0) with goals by Giuseppe Dossena and Vialli (not to mention Gianluca Pagliuca saving a Matthaus Penalty kick) to effectively pave the way for the Scudetto. They were now 5 points clear of Inter (47 vs. 42). Inter’s loss allowed their neighbors AC Milan to take the second spot (43 points) after defeating Juventus (3-0) in Turin.

Inter effectively gave up and tried to concentrate for the Final of the UEFA Cup (that they would end up winning defeating fellow Italians, AS Roma).

This summed up their performance the following Matchday (Round 32, May 12^th), when they lost (0-3) at Genoa.

Sampdoria mathematically won the Scudetto on the penultimate Matchday (Round 33, May 19^th), when they hosted and defeated Lecce (3-0). Brazilian veteran Cerezo, who had an excellent season, started off the festivities by scoring the opening goal. Gianluca Vialli scored Sampdoria’s third and his personal and League Leading 19^th goal to end a memorable season.

Photo From: Onze-Mondial, Issue 30, July 1991

(Toninho Cerezo during the title deciding match, May 19, 1991, Sampdoria 3-Lecce 0)

Photo From: Guerin Sportivo, June 12-18, 1991

(Sampdoria’s Brazilian star Toninho Cerezo)

The Final Matchday of the season (Round 34, May 26^th) was irrelevant as far as the title race, but was significant in other aspects. Genoa capped off an exceptional year for the city of Genova by qualifying for the UEFA Cup. Nevio Scala’s Parma also qualified for Europe to start a Legacy at home and Europe for the years to come.

Juventus ended one of its most nightmarish seasons ever by failing to qualify for Europe for the first time in nearly three decades.

Luigi Maifredi left in disgrace and rejoined his former club Bologna (now relegated to the Serie B).

Ginaluca Vialli believed that his and Mancini’s negative experiences during the World Cup the previous summer had been the motivation to win the League and perform in exceptional fashion.

By springtime, the duo was back as starters in the National team as well.

Photo From: Calcio 2000, Issue 22, August 1999

(Gianluca Pagliuca and Gianluca Vialli during the title win celebrations, May 19, 1991, Sampdoria 3-Lecce 0)

Photo From: Onze-Mondial, Issue 30, July 1991

(Roberto Mancini during the title win celebrations, May 19, 1991, Sampdoria 3-Lecce 0)

Arrigo Sacchi ended his four-year adventure with Milan. He had placed AC Milan at the zenith of the European game and along the way changed the mentality of Italian Soccer by making it more attack minded and attractive. He officially resigned on May 31^st.

His last season had been a disappointment in no small part due to his ongoing feud with van Basten. 

It was an open secret that he was due to take over as National Team Manager within months.

Photo From: Guerin Sportivo, June 5-11, 1991

(AC Milan Manager Arrigo Sacchi)

His replacement at Milan would be Fabio Capello, who was still an unknown quantity as a Manager. Many had viewed his appointment as a sign of Berlusconi wanting someone more malleable to his suggestions.

While Inter Manager Giovanni Trappatoni left after five years and returned to his old love Juventus, who were desperate to get out of the rut.

Trappatoni’s arrival (still under contract) would come at a price (the loan of newly acquired Dino Baggio (from Torino) to Inter for one season).

Photo From: Onze-Mondial, Issue 29, June 1991

(Internazionale Milano Manager Giovanni Trapattoni)

His replacement at Inter would be Corrado Orrico, from Serie B’s Lucchese.

Former Juventus Legend Antonio Cabrini also called time on his career. He had spent his last two seasons at Bologna.

Photo From: World Soccer, March 1991

(Bologna’s Antonio Cabrini)

Former AS Roma legend Bruno Conti retired in somewhat anonymity. He had been part of Roma’s squad, but did not play in this final season.

AS Roma’s German defender Thomas Berthold left Italy after four seasons to join Bayern Munich.

Predictably, Napoli Manager Albertino Bigon was fired and replaced with Cagliari’s young up and coming Manager Claudio Ranieri.

The Soviet Alexei Mikhailichenko (Probably the only disappointment in Sampdoria’s season) left to join Rangers Glasgow.

Inter veteran Aldo Serena left Inter for good (after three different spells) and joined cross-town rivals AC Milan (his second spell there).

Lothar Matthaus also expressed his desire to leave Inter and join Real Madrid in the off-season. He was finally persuaded to stay by Inter President Ernesto Pellgrini.

But it was not the players’ comings and goings that mattered in that summer of 1991, but all the managerial changes. AC Milan, Juventus, Inter and Napoli were to start the following season with new managers. All bets were off with no clear favorites.

Photo From: Guerin Sportivo, October 17-23, 1990

(Sampdoria President Paolo Mantovani and Gianluca Vialli)

There were some who suggested that Sampdoria had been the beneficiary of World Cup hangovers. They believed the Big three (Juventus, AC Milan and Inter) had been uncharacteristically vulnerable and jaded, while Napoli was beset with all the problems related to Maradona.

There was clearly no sign of a dynasty being built, but more like a one-off event such as Verona’s title in 1985.

We were about to enter the Post-Maradona era after seven (mostly) glorious years (1991/92 season, to be continued…..)

Note:

For a more detail account of Juventus’ season, please see:

http://soccernostalgia.blogspot.com/2011/12/soccer-memories-part-two.html

Photo From: (Magazine Source unknown) / Contribution From a blog viewer

(Sampdoria squad 1990/91)

When Calcio Ruled the Football World-A Personal Journey-Part 8 (1989/90)

The 1989/90 season was anticipated, as it would lead up to the World Cup that the Italians would be hosting on home soil the following summer. The Nation was mobilized to have all the Stadia and facilities ready in time for the main event in less than a year.

But as was the case like the previous off-season, it was Diego Maradona’s off the field drama that caught all the headlines.

Due to the Copa America Tournament over that summer, as well as, the CONMEBOLWorld Cup Qualifiers, most South America players were expected to arrive after the start of the season.

Photo From: Calcio 2000, Issue 22 Supplement, August-September 1999

(Diego Maradona with Napoli fans)

As defending World Cup Champions, Argentina had no such worries, however, it was Maradona himself who delayed his return. It would turn out that the ambitious French Club Olympique Marseille of Bernard Tapie had convinced Maradona to join them. The player himself was more than willing, as the pressure of the Serie A seemed to be getting to him after five years and the less pressured atmosphere of the French League appealed to him.

It was also believed he was threatened by Napoli’s crime syndicate, The Camorra.

Needless to say, Napoli and its President Corrado Ferlaino were unwilling to give up on their most prized asset. This soap opera continued for over a month, but getting back to the other teams.

Photo From: Calcio 2000, Issue 22 Supplement, August-September 1999

(Diego Maradona with Corrado Ferlaino)

The defending Champions Internazionale Milano of Giovanni Trapattoni, already more than satisfied with the West German duo of Lothar Matthaus and Andreas Brehme, added a third. Jurgen Klinnsman arrived from Stuttgart to replace the Argentinean veteran Ramon Diaz, who went to France’s AS Monaco.

Photo From: Fussball Magazin, December 1989

(Jurgen Klinsman)

The European Champions AC Milan of Arrigo Sacchi had maintained their Dutch trio. All three (Ruud Gullit, Marco van Basten and Frank Rijkaard) missed the start of the season through various injuries. While van Basten and Rijkaard would shortly be back, Gullit would miss virtually the entire season. In fact Gullit’s physical state would be one of the ongoing sagas of the season, as he was originally expected to miss weeks, then it became months and months.

The veteran striker Pietro Paolo Virdis had left to join Lecce, but Daniele Massaro had returned from his one season loan at Roma. Young Como striker Marco Simone had been acquired and Stefano Borgonovo had come back from his loan at Fiorentina (where he had formed a lethal partnership with Roberto Baggio the previous season).

Future International midfielder Diego Fuser had arrived from relegated Torino.

Other new arrivals included goalkeeper Andrea Pazzagli (Ascoli), Stefano Carobbi and Stefano Salvatori (both Fiorentina) and Giovanni Stroppa (Monza).

The once mighty Juventus managed by Dino Zoff, it seemed were no longer the kings of the transfer market and it showed in their selections. Denmark’s Michael Laudrup had left to join Barcelona. Veteran defender Antonio Cabrini had been offloaded to Bologna. Other departures included Alessandro Altobelli, Luciano Favero, Marino Magrin, Massimo Mauro and Renato Buso.

They had wanted to offload the disappointing Soviet star Alexander Zavarov, but apparently there were no takers, so they chose to persevere him for one more season. They acquired another Soviet midfielder, Sergei Aleinikov of Dinamo Minsk (after it looked he was set to join Genoa) to perhaps help Zavarov as well. Portuguese midfielder Rui Barros remained as their third foreigner. The attempted triple signing from Sampdoria of Gianluca Vialli, Roberto Mancini and Pietro Vierchowod always seemed to be wishful thinking.

Photo From: Onze-Mondial, Issue 16, May 1990

(Juventus’ Sergei Aleinikov)

More telling was their failure to lure Denmark’s Fleming Povlsen (Koln) and the Brazilian pair of Carlos Dunga (Fiorentina) and Luis Muller (Torino) despite serious attempts.

Italian defender Dario Bonetti and midfielder Daniele Fortunato had arrived from Verona and Atalanta respectively. Angelo Alessio returned from his one season loan at Bologna. The surprise additions were two strikers from Serie B, Pierluigi Casiraghi (Monza) and Salvatore Schillaci (Messina).

Ottavio Bianchi had left his post as Napoli Manager at the end of the previous seasons, after many rows with players including Maradona. The new man in charge was the former Cesena Manager Albertino Bigon. The Brazilian pair Careca and Alemao had remained. The main arrivals were Massimo Mauro from Juventus, Marco Baroni from Lecce and a young unknown midfielder from Torres named Gianfranco Zola.

Photo From: Calcio 2000, Issue 22 Supplement, August-September 1999

(Napoli Manager Albertino Bigon)

Sampdoria of Gianluca Vialli welcomed Yugoslavia’s Srecko Katanec and Attilio Lombardo from Cremonese. Otherwise, Yugoslav Manager Vujadin Boskov had retained the same bloc of players.

Photo From: Onze-Mondial, Issue 16, May 1990

(Sampdoria’s new recruit Attilio Lombardo)

West German defender Thomas Berthold left Verona to join his compatriot Rudi Voeller at AS Roma (with new Coach Gigi Radice in charge).

Argentinean striker Claudio Caniggia left Verona to join Atalanta, who had offloaded Swedish midfielder Robert Prytz.

Newly promoted Udinese registered the Argentinean pair of Nestor Sensini and Abel Balbo who would go on and shine in Italy for more than a decade for various teams.

Spanish midfielder Ricardo Gallego also joined Udinese after over a decade of service at Real Madrid.

Veteran Italian striker Bruno Giordano joined Luigi Maifredi’s ambitious Bologna side, as did Bulgaria’s Nikolai Iliev and Brazil’s Geovani (one of Brazil’s flops at the Copa America).

Newly promoted Genoa under the well-respected Manager Francesco Scoglio acquired the Uruguayan trio of Carlos Aguilera, Ruben Paz and Jose Perdomo.

Though perhaps overlooked at the time, Marcello Lippi was given his first managerial position in the Serie A with Cesena.

Fiorentina acquired Czechoslovakia’s Lubos Kubik and Argentina’s Oscar Dertycia, as well Juventus’ Renato Buso. Due to ongoing construction on their home stadium for the upcoming World Cup, they would play all their home matches away in Pistoia and Perugia. This disadvantage would hamper their season, despite their progress in the UEFA Cup.

The season started on August 27^th, as expected without Maradona. 

He had been expected to be back by August, but he delayed his return for a month. He finally returned and everything was seemingly back to normal. Nevertheless, Napoli had no choice but to open a Civil Lawsuit against him because of his unprofessional behavior.

The second matchday on September 3^rd saw AC Milan unexpectedly lose at home to Lazio, with a bizarre own goal from Paolo Maldini. He lobbed his own goalkeeper from long range, while attempting a backpass. Napoli were already leaders, as they were the only team to have won its opening two matches. Salvatore Schillaci also displayed his potential with two goals in a (4-1) Juventus win over Verona. However, that day was tragic for Italian Football as a whole. Former Juventus Libero Gaetano Scirea was killed in an automobile accident near a Village called Babsk in Poland. Scirea, who was on Dino Zoff’s staff, was in a supervising mission for Juventus on their Polish opponents Gornik Zabrze for the upcoming First Round of the UEFA Cup.

In the following week (Matchday 3, September 10), Inter suffered its first loss of the season at Sampdoria (0-2), Juventus’ win over Ascoli, as well as Napoli’s away win at Verona, made the two joint leaders.

However, by the following week (Matchday 4, September 17), Juventus’ limitations would be exposed as they lost at Inter (1-2).

Napoli took over the sole lead with a (3-2) win over Fiorentina, after having fallen behind 0-2. Maradona made his first appearance of the season after coming on as a substitute.

Fiorentina’s Roberto Baggio scored one of his most famous goals, after he took the ball in his own half and dribbled past many defenders to score (very reminiscent of Maradona’s goal vs. England in 1986).

Three days later, ‘Baggiomania’ would take over Italy, with his two-goal performance for the National team vs. Bulgaria in a friendly.

On Matchday 6 (September 24), Maradona would score his first goal in an away tie with Cremonese that would help them to hold on as League leaders.

The following week (Matchday 7, October 1), would feature the league leaders Napoli of Maradona taking on the struggling AC Milan. The more in form Napoli side convincingly defeated Milan (3-0) to be favorites for the title.

One of the most enduring images of Maradona for years to come would be him wearing Franco Baresi’s exchanged jersey after the match.

On the same day, Inter recovered somewhat by defeating Roma (3-0) to move up to second place.

On the following week, AC Milan (with van Basten making his first appearance) continued its poor form by losing at Cremonese, while Juevntus also lost ground by losing at home to Atalanta.

Photo From: Onze-Mondial, Issue 16, May 1990

(Marco van Basten and Giancarlo Marocchi, March 11, 1990, Juventus 3-AC Milan 0)

On Matchday 9 (October 22), the next table-topping clash would pit Napoli at home vs. the German inspired defending Champions of Inter. Once again Napoli would come out winners with goals from Maradona and Careca to consolidate its lead. On the same day, Marco van Basten would score his first goal of the season as Milan defeated Roma (1-0).

Diego Maradona had an eventful few days prior to his wedding in November.

Napoli were scheduled to play Wettingen in the UEFA Cup in midweek, Maradona skipped training and rested at home for two days.   When he showed up on the third day, Corrado Ferlaino had had enough and sent him home.

Then on November 2^nd, Maradona allegedly punched a fifteen year old after a training session, which led to a Police Complaint.

On Matchday 11 (November 5), van Basten would signal AC Milan’s recovery and once again Juventus’ shortcomings by scoring twice in a (3-2) win. The League leaders Napoli would hold onto the top position by defeating Lecce (3-2).

Following the match, Maradona would fly off to Buenos Aires to marry Claudia Villafane.

The following Round (Matchday 12, November 19), AC Milan would defeat its neighbors Inter (3-0) with van Basten once again amongst the goalscorers.

The important clash on the following week (Matchday 13, November 26) would see the leaders Napoli hold onto a tie at Juventus (1-1).

The still injured Ruud Gullit had yet another operation by famed Belgian Surgeon Marc Martens on November 29^th and it was clear his layoff would be long term. In total he would have three operations in less than a year.

In the next round (Matchday 14, December 3), Napoli would defeat Atalanta (3-1) with the young playmaker Gianfranco Zola (wearing the number 10 jersey, as Maradona was rested and only came on as a substitute) scoring one of the goals with a beautiful curling shot.

In the meantime, the Draw for the upcoming World Cup finals was made, Maradona once again stirred controversy by declaring the draw had been fixed to favor Italy at the expense of Argentina. As a result, the Italian Federation demanded disciplinary action against Maradona. (He would be fined in January)

Napoli would suffer its first League defeat of the season in the last round of the first phase of the season (Matchday 17, December 30), when they lost at Lazio (0-3).  Inter’s win at Udinese placed them in second place just two points behind Napoli. (25 points vs. 23 points).

On that day, tragedy was averted after AS Roma’s Lionella Manfredonia collapsed in the 5^th minute of their match at Bologna. He was revived and rushed to a hospital, but stayed in a coma for a couple of days.

The second half of the season would see the resurgence of AC Milan, with Marco van Basten in excellent form.  He was awarded his second Ballon d’Or in December ahead of clubmates Franco Baresi and Frank Rijkaard.

Milan also clinched the UEFA Super Cup (vs. Barcelona) and the Intercontinental Cup (vs. Atletico Nacional Medellin) in December.

The prolonged absence of Ruud Gullit was compensated with more than adequate response from the rest of the squad.
Milan were so impressive that at one point, AC Milan President Silvio Berlusconi suggested Azeglio Vicini, the National Team Manager, should select the entire AC Milan’s Italian contingent in place of the current struggling players.

National Team Manager Azeglio Vicini responded that a Manager should take decisions objectively and that Milan’s best players were in fact its Dutch duo (van Basten and Rijkaard).

On Matchday 19 (January 14), AC Milan won away at Lazio (3-1) and Napoli drew at Udinese (2-2). This tightened the race at the top. Napoli had 28 points, while Inter (27 points) and AC Milan (26 points) were right behind.

The next day Maradona was again at the center of another controversy. Giuseppe Pacileo of ‘Il Mattino’ had given Maradona a note of 3.5/10 for his performance vs. Udinese. The two men came face to face at a Naples studio where Maradona was doing his weekly TV show. He threatened Pacileo that he would make him eat his own newspaper.

AC Milan and Napoli continued winning for the next few rounds, with van Basten scoring in phenomenal fashion.

Photo From: Onze-Mondial, Issue 16, May 1990

(Juventus’ Roberto Galia and Fiorentina’s Roberto Baggio, January 17, 1990, Fiorentina 2-Juventus 2)

His excellent form was rewarded with a new improved contract until 1993 (with an option for an extra year) that was announced on January 23^rd. Van Basten would sign it on February 9^th.

Despite the revelation of Schillaci, Juventus had been declining for many years now. Gianni Agnelli felt a change of direction was needed. He announced that Dino Zoff would leave his post at the end of the season.

Around this time, former Juventus great Michel Platini accused long serving Administrator Giampiero Boniperti of having squandered Agnelli’s money on ineffective transfers. Boniperti announced his departure after these attacks.

In any case, it was believed that Boniperti and Agnelli had not seen eye to eye on many transfers. Boniperti had wanted Andreas Moeller, while Agnelli had been opposed. It was Agnelli who had insisted on Zavarov’s signature, while Boniperti had been doubtful.

On February 5^th, Boniperti announced his resignation.

As for Zavarov, himself and his old Manager Valeri Lobanovsky placed the blame of his failure on Dino Zoff.  They both blamed Zoff for positioning him on the left side instead of his preferred central position.

On Matchday 24 (February 11), Napoli and Milan would meet in the most anticipated clash of the season. In contrast to the first encounter, AC Milan were now the more in form squad.  They completely dominated Napoli at home and won (3-0) with goals by Daniele Massaro, Paolo Maldini and van Basten. The teams were now level on points (36 each).

Just three days later, Milan once again showed its dominance over Napoli by defeating them at San Paolo, in the second Leg of the Coppa Italia Semifinals (3-1) to qualify for the Final after a goalless first Leg.

On Matchday 26 (February 25), AC Milan would break free and lead for the first time in the season. Napoli would lose again, this time vs. Inter (1-3), while Milan would defeat Roma away (4-0).  AC Milan now had 40 points and Napoli had 38.

At this point, Milan seemed odds on favorites to win the title. But it was precisely around this time, in the beginning of spring, that their implosion started.

On Matchday 28 (March 11), they were defeated at Juventus (0-3). Napoli could only draw at Lecce but nevertheless reduced the deficit to one point.

Photo From: Onze-Mondial, Issue 16, May 1990

(Luigi De Agostini and Angelo Colombo, March 11, 1990, Juventus 3-AC Milan 0)

The following week (Matchday 29, March 18), Milan were defeated once again, this time by neighbors Inter (1-3). Though Napoli themselves were also defeated at Sampdoria (1-2).

On Matchay 30 (March 25), both teams won, but Maradona’s two-goal display vs. Juventus signaled his return to form.

Physiotherapist Antonio Dal Monte was credited for placing Maradona on a special diet. He lost significant weight and was sharper and fitter in the final weeks of the season.

A few days later, Juventus’ Salvatore Schillaci’s fine form  (in addition, to the National Team’s struggles to score goals regularly) earned him his Azzurri debut in a friendly vs. Switzerland on March 31 (1-0 Italy win).

Photo From: Onze-Mondial, Issue 17, June 1990

(Salvatore Schillaci)

The following week (Matchday 31, April 8) would be significant in deciding the final outcome. AC Milan could only manage a scoreless draw at Bologna. Napoli managed the same at Atalanta. However, an object from the stands hit Napoli’s Alemao. As a result the score was overturned as (2-0 win for Napoli, ‘a tavolino’) by the League. This made the teams level on points with three matches to go.

Both teams won their next match and each had 47 points heading into the penultimate round (Matchday 33, April 22).

Both teams were away, AC Milan at Verona and Napoli were at Bologna.

AC Milan went ahead through Simone and seemed set to win. Arrigo Sacchi decided to send on Ruud Gullit for his very first appearance of the season. Unfortunately, for Milan, Verona fought back and tied up the score. The Milan players’ nerves gave way and Arrigo Sacchi, Rijkaard, van Basten and eventually Alessandro Costacurta were all sent off.  Milan were completely demoralized and Verona scored a winner through Davide Pellegrini, virtually handing over the title to Napoli, who were winning at Bologna (4-2). Napoli were now ahead by two points (49 vs. 47) going into the last match, and their victory seemed certain if not yet mathematical.

A few days later, Milan would also lose the Second Leg of the Coppa Italia Final to Juventus to miss out on domestic honors.

The last Round (Matchday 34, April 29) saw Napoli defeat Lazio with a Marco Baroni goal and Napoli were champions for the second time in four seasons.

Photo From: Calcio 2000, Issue 22 Supplement, August-September 1999

(Maradona and Alemao celebrating)

Marco van Basten was top goalscorer with 19 goals, with Baggio just behind with 17, Maradona with 16 and the revelation of the season Salvatore Schillaci with 15.

A few weeks later AC Milan triumphed in the Champions Cup (1-0 vs. Benfica) to salvage their end of the season.

In fact Italian teams all triumphed in Europe, Sampdoria won the Cup Winners Cup and Juventus won the UEFA Cup in an all-Italian affair vs. Fiorentina.

The Italian dominance in the European Cups allowed as much as eight Italian teams to be represented in Europe for the following season. (Napoli and AC Milan in C1, Sampdoria and Juventus in C2, Roma, Inter, Bologna and Atalanta in C3)

Verona who had been champions just five years earlier were relegated, along with Udinese, Cremonese and Ascoli.

The significant departures at the end of the season included the already mentioned Dino Zoff, who was appointed as the new Manager of Lazio, as well as, AC Milan goalkeeper Giovanni Galli joining Napoli, while Napoli forward Andrea Carnevalle would go on to join AS Roma after four successful seasons and two Scudetti.

Photo From: Calcio 2000, Issue 22 Supplement, August-September 1999

(Napoli’s Andrea Carnevalle)

Inter’s Alessandro Mateolli would join the newly promoted Cagliari of Claudio Ranieri.

The most significant transfer that was finalized just weeks after the end of the season and before the World Cup was that of Roberto Baggio. Juevntus paid a World Record fee of  £ 7.7 Million to acquire the excellent player.

This led to riots and unrest by the Fiorentina fans, which in turn led to the downfall of Count Flavio Pontello’s reign as Fiorentina owner.

Not to mention, the disruption of the National team’s World Cup preparation at nearby Coverciano.

The World Cup was a disappointment as Italy finished third, but Schillaci and Baggio had been the toast of Italy.

Of course the World Cup ended in tears (literally) for Maradona as well. Maradona was about the enter his last and most difficult season in Italy (1990/91 season, to be continued…..)

Photo From: (Magazine Source unknown) / Contribution From a blog viewer

(Napoli squad 1989/90, Top, left to right: Andrea Carnevalle, Ricardo Alemao, Raffaele Di Fusco, Giulliano Giuliani,  Giovanni Francini, Giancarlo Corradini,  Middle, left to right: Tebaldo Bigliardi, Massimo Tarantino, Massimo Mauro, Albertino Bigon, Diego Maradona, Massimo Crippa,  Ciro Ferrara,  Bottom, left to right:  Alessandro Renica, Fernando De Napoli, Antonio Careca, Maurizio Neri, Gianfranco Zola, Luca Fusi, Marco Baroni)