November 16, 1977-England 2-Italy 0

November 16, 1977

England 2-Italy 0

World Cup Qualifying-Group 2

Venue: London - The Empire Stadium Wembley

Attendance: 92,500

Referee: Karoly Palotai (Hungary)

Goalscorers: (England): Kevin Keegan 11', Trevor Brooking 80'

                    (Italy): None

Lineups:

England:

1-Raymond Neal Clemence (Liverpool Football Club)  [33 / 0]
2-Philip George Neal (Liverpool Football Club)  [9 / 0]
3-Trevor John Cherry (Leeds United Association Football Club)   [15 / 0]

4-Raymond Colin Wilkins (Chelsea Football Club-London) [10 / 0]
5-David Vernon Watson (Manchester City Football Club)  [28 / 0]

6-Emlyn Walter Hughes (Liverpool Football Club)  [50 / 1]
7-Kevin Joseph Keegan  (Hamburger Sport Verein e.V. /  West Germany)  [34 / 8] (16-Trevor John Francis (Birmingham City Football Club) [7 / 1] 85th) 
8-Stephen James Coppell (Manchester United Football Club)  [1 / 0]
9-Robert Dennis Latchford (Everton Football Club-Liverpool) [1 / 0] (15-James ‘Stuart’ Pearson (Manchester United Football Club) [13 / 4] 75th) 
10-Trevor David Brooking (West Ham United Football Club-London)  [19 / 1]
11-Peter Simon Barnes (Manchester City Football Club)   [1 / 0]

Coach: Ronald Greenwood

Booked: Kevin Keegan 41’

Other Subs:

Peter Leslie Shilton (Nottingham Forest Football Club) 

William ‘Billy’ Bonds (West Ham United Football Club-London) 

Brian Ernest Talbot (Ipswich Town Football Club)

Team Captain: Emlyn Walter Hughes

Official Kit Supplier/Designer: Admiral

Uniform Colors: White Shirts, Blue Shorts, White Socks

Italy:

1-Dino Zoff  (Juventus Football Club-Torino)  [60 / 0]

2-Marco Tardelli (Juventus Football Club-Torino)   [14 / 0]

3-Claudio Gentile (Juventus Football Club-Torino) [11 / 1]

4-Romeo Benetti (Juventus Football Club-Torino) [36 / 1]

5-Roberto Mozzini (Torino Calcio 1906) [6 / 0]

6-Giacinto Facchetti (Internazionale Football Club- Milano) [94 / 3] (13-Antonello Cuccureddu (Juventus Football Club-Torino) [5 / 0] 85th)

7-Franco Causio (Juventus Football Club-Torino) [31 / 1]

8-Renato Zaccarelli (Torino Calcio 1906) [11 / 1]

9-Francesco Graziani (Torino Calcio 1906) [19 / 9] (15-Claudio Sala (Torino Calcio 1906) [12 / 9] 46th)

10-Giancarlo Antognoni (Associazione Calcio Fiorentina-Firenze) [24 / 5]

11-Roberto Bettega (Juventus Football Club-Torino) [13 / 13]

Coach: Enzo Bearzot

Booked: Romeo Benetti 31’, Gentile 42’

Other Subs:

Luciano Castellini (Torino Calcio 1906)

Fabio Capello (Associazione Calcio Milan)

Paolino Pulici (Torino Calcio 1906)

Team Captain: Giacinto Facchetti

Official Kit Supplier/Designer:

Uniform Colors: Blue Shirts, White Shorts , Blue Socks

Photo From: La Nazionale Italiana, 1978

(Italy squad, Top, left to right: Romeo Benetti, Roberto Mozzini, Roberto Bettega, Francesco Graziani, Dino Zoff, Claudio Gentile, Bottom, left to right: Franco Causio, Giancarlo Antognoni,  Giacinto Facchetti, Renato Zaccarelli, Marco Tardelli , November 16, 1977, World Cup Qualifier, England 2-Italy 0)

Notes:

-Match number 514 for England and number 347 for Italy.

-This was the 13th meeting between the nations.

-The previous match between the nations, as well as the previous match on Italian soil and Italy’s previous victory, was the first leg of this World Cup Qualifier at Roma’s Stadio Olimpico on November 17, 1976 that Italy won 2 to 0. 

England players: Clemence, Hughes, Keegan, Cherry, Brooking, Shilton and Pearson and Italy players: Zoff, Cuccureddu, Tardelli, Benetti, Gentile, Facchetti, Causio, Capello, Graziani, Antognoni, Castellini, Mozzini, Zaccarelli and Bettega were present that day (on the field and/or the substitutes bench).

Keegan captained England and Facchetti Captained Italy for that match.

Antognoni and Bettega scored for Italy.

Enzo Bearzot managed Italy with Fulvio Bernardini acting as Technical Director.

-The previous match between the nations at the same venue, as Italy’s previous away victory, was a Friendly November 14, 1973 that Italy won 1 to 0. 

England players: Shilton and Hughes and Italy players: Zoff, Benetti, Facchetti, Causio, Capello, Castellini, and Pulici were present that day (on the field and/or the substitutes bench).

Facchetti Captained Italy for that match.

Fabio Capello scored his most famous for Italy.

-England’s previous win as well as the previous match at a neutral venue, was during USA Bicentenary Cup at New York City’s Yankees Stadium, on May 28, 1976 that England won 3 to 2.

England players: Neal, Wilkins, Brooking and Cherry and Italy players: Zoff, Benetti, Zaccarelli, Facchetti, Causio, Sala, Capello, Graziani, Antognoni, Pulici, Castellini and Bettega were present that day (on the field and/or the substitutes bench).

Graziani scored both of Italy’s goals.

Giacinto Facchetti captained Italy for that match.

Photo From: Mondial, old series, Issue 11, December1977

(Kevin Keegan and Giacinto Facchetti)

-The next match between the nations as well as the next match on Italian soil and next Italy victory, was a UEFA European Championship Finals match at Torino’s Stadio Comunale on June 15, 1980 that Italy won 1 to 0.

England players: Shilton, Neal, Watson, Wilkins, Keegan, Coppell, Clemence, Hughes and Brooking and Italy players: Zoff, Gentile, Benetti, Causio, Tardelli, Graziani, Antognoni, Bettega and Zaccarelli were present that day (on the field and/or the substitutes bench).

Marco Tardelli scored Italy’s winning goal.

Romeo Benetti and Marco Tardelli were booked in that match.

Both Managers were still in their respective posts.

Keegan captained England and Zoff captained Italy for that match.

-The next match between the nations in the same venue would be a Friendly on November 15, 1989, that ended in a scoreless tie.

England goalkeeper Peter Shilton would play that match.

Shilton would also be England’s goalkeeper when the two sides met on July 7, 1990 at Bari’s San Nicola Stadium for World Cup 1990’s Third Place match. This would be his last ever England appearance.

-The next World Cup Qualifier between the nations in the same venue would be on February 12, 1997, that Italy won 1 to 0.

-The next England victory would be during ‘Le Tournoi’ Tournament at Nantes, France that England would win 2 to 0.

-On May 19, 1977, Liverpool’s Emlyn Hughes was named as Footballer of the Year. He passed away on November 9, 2004, aged 57.

-Ron Greenwood had been appointed caretaker Manager of England just a few months earlier after Don Revie was dismissed for breach of contract.

The England National Team were on their tour of South America, where Don Revie was supposedly away supervising World Cup qualifying group opponents Finland. However it was discovered by Daily Mail that he was in fact negotiating with officials from the United Arab Emirates.

A ten-year ban on was imposed on Revie that was eventually overturned by the high court.

Photo From: La Nazionale Italiana, 1978

(Dino Zoff making a save from Dave Watson)

-Enzo Bearzot had been appointed as Italy’s sole selector that Fall after managing with Technical Director Fulvio Bernardini for two years.

-The other two teams in this World Cup qualifying group were Finland and Luxembourg.

-England had to win this match therefore they dominated with Italy playing a defensive game.

Italy with a better goal difference, knew that even with a loss they just had to beat Luxembourg for their final qualifier on December 3^rd to qualify for the World Cup.

They won that match 3 to 0 and won the group on goal difference.

-England failed to qualify for a World Cup for the second successive time.

The next time they would fail to qualify for a World Cup would be for the 1994 World Cup.

-This turned out to be Giacinto Facchetti’s last match for Italy. Incidentally he was the only Internazionale Milano player left in Italy squad, which was a rarity.

He was substituted by Cuccurreddu due to a pulled muscle.

He passed away on September 4, 2006

-Kevin Keegan had just joined West Germany’s SV Hamburg that season and was having an initial difficult time.

-Liverpool’s Ray Clemence, Phil Neal, Emlyn Hughes won the Champions Cup in 1977 and at the end of that season, 1977/78.

They similarly had won the English League title for the 1976/77 season.

Kevin Keegan was also a member of the 1977 League and Champions Cup winning squad.

-Phil Neal captained Liverpool in the ill-fated Champions Cup Final on May 29, 1985 vs. Juventus (0-1 Juventus win).

Marco Tardelli played for Juventus that day.

-Juventus players: Dino Zoff, Marco Tardelli, Claudio Gentile, Romeo Benetti, Antonello Cuccureddu, Franco Causio, Roberto Bettega had won the 1977 UEFA Cup a few months earlier.

They had also won the Italy League title for 1977 and would go on to repeat as League Champions at the end of that season.

-Dino Zoff, Marco Tardelli, Claudio Gentile, Romeo Benetti, Roberto Mozzini, Antonello Cuccureddu, Franco Causio, Renato Zaccarelli, Francesco Graziani, Claudio Sala, Giancarlo Antognoni, Roberto Bettega and Paolino Pulici would make Italy’s Finals squad for the 1978 World Cup, where they would finish Fourth.

Zoff, Tardelli, Gentile, Causio, Graziani and Antognoni would win the 1982 World Cup along with Manager Enzo Bearzot.

Bettega would surely have been in that squad if not for injury.

-Both Managers were in their posts during the 1982 World Cup.

-Unused substitute goalkeeper Peter Leslie Shilton was the only member of that season’s League Champions Nottingham Forest to be included in this England squad.

 

-Raymond Colin Wilkins played in Italy for AC Milan, where Fabio Capello briefly coached him in 1987.

Trevor Francis also played in Italy for Sampdoria and Atalanta.

-Kevin Keegan has managed the England National team, as well as unused Italy substitute Fabio Capello.

Fabio Capello is the current coach of Russia.

Dino Zoff has managed Italy. Both managed their respective nations during the 2000 UEFA European Championships.

They both left their posts immediately or shortly thereafter.

Phil Neal has been the assistant Manager of England and Marco Tardelli has been the assistant Manager of Republic of Ireland.

-Ron Greenwood stayed as England Manager until 1982. This victory was instrumental in confirming him as England Manager.

-England’s Clemence, Neal, Wilkins, Keegan, Brooking, Francis, Coppell and Shilton were also in England’s 1982 World Cup squad.

-Ron Greenwood awarded first caps to Steve Coppell, Bob Latchford and Peter Barnes.

Peter Barnes and Steve Coppell started on the wings (left and right respectively).

The plan was to attack Italy from the flanks.

-In the 11^th minute, Trevor Brooking crossed from the right for Keegan to head home.

Photo From: England, The Complete Post-War Record, Author Mike Payne

(Kevin Keegan heading in England’s First goal with Zaccarelli unable to stop)

Photo From: World Soccer, December 1977

(Dino Zoff unable to stop Kevin Keegan’s opener)

-After 25 minutes, Bearzot took Zacarelli from man marking Keegan and assigned Tardelli to be Keegan’s marker.

Tardelli was initially to mark Barnes on the wing, but Gentile took that task.

Zaccarelli had effectively no input for rest of match.

-Romeo Benetti was booked in the 31^st minute after a foul on Peter Barnes.

-In the 37^th minute, Marco Tardelli elbowed Keegan though no cards were shown, as the referee missed it.

-In the 41^st minute, Keegan was booked for pushing Tardelli after an entanglement. It was most likely out of frustration due to elbowing incident from minutes before.

-Claudio Gentile was also booked, in the 42^nd minute, after a foul on Peter Barnes from behind.

-In the 80^th minute, Keegan slipped the ball through from outside of the box for Brooking to slot home. However, as soon as he crossed Benetti made contact and Keegan was injured and substituted.

This was Brooking’s first goal for England.

Photo From: Azzurri, Storia della Nazionale di Calcio tre volte campioni del Mondo, 1910-1983

(Trevor Brooking scoring England’s second goal)

-At the time the leading clubs in Italy were the Turin teams of Juventus and Torino. Naturally, the bulk of the squad came from those two squads.

From Italy’s starting squad contained 8 Juventus and Torino players and both substitutes who came on the field were also from these two clubs.

The only exceptions were Inter Milan’s Facchetti and Fiorentina’s Antognoni.

-By the time of the World Cup, Mauro Belluggi and Gaetano Scirea would supplant Facchetti and Mozzini as Italy’s starting central defenders.

Photo From: World Soccer, December 1977

(Marco Tardelli and Trevor Brooking)

-Francesco Grazini was subbed off after halftime by Claudio Sala. He had received a blow to head and had a cut eyebrow and his head was bandaged.

-This was considered one of England’s best performances in years following the disappointment of the Revie era.

-After halftime, Keegan and Brooking were given less room to operate and Italy was able to counter attack. England was nevertheless in general command of the match.

In the second half, Italy tried to slow the match down by back passing to zoff on numerous occasions.

Photo From: Mondial, old series, Issue 11, December1977

(Roberto Mozzini and Bob Latchford)

-After Facchetti’s substitution, Zaccarelli took his position as libero.

-Caretaker Manager Ron Greenwood claimed that Italy’s man to man marking had allowed England to stretch them.

Bearzot claimed he was satisfied with the result and praised Peter Barnes’ performance.

-Trevor Brooking and unused substitute Billy Bonds played at West Ham United under Ron Greenwood.

-Unused substitute Fabio Capello played his last ever match for Italy the following month (December 22, 1976) at Lisbon vs. Portugal (1-2 loss).

Match Reports:

La Nazionale Italiana, 1978/ England, The Complete Post-War Record, Author Mike Payne / World Soccer, December 1977 / Azzurri, Storia della Nazionale di calcio tre volte campioni del Mondo, 1910-1983

Match Video / Highlights:

World Cup 2014 Reflections

One more World Cup is over won by a German squad who in the end, given the flow of the match and the tournament itself, slightly deserved it more than a defensively solid and compact Argentina squad.

Watching the first group matches of Argentina left most unimpressed. They were certainly difficult to break down, but also struggled to find the net in a consistent basis.

Germany on the other hand had no problems in the scoring department, the only question mark was whether Joachim Low could take them beyond the semifinal hurdle and lose the tag of ‘nearly men’.

We had been used to Low’s Germany in previous tournaments to come out on fire and impress critics and fans alike with positive attacking football.

They would advance far, but stumble in the end with the promise that this generation is getting better and better and the next tournament will be the one they would win.

However, the biggest talking point of this World Cup will be just what happened to Brazil.

They will be many what ifs. What if Neymar had not been injured? What if Thiago Silva had not been suspended over an avoidable booking?

In truth, Brazil was a mediocre side, which lived very dangerously and rode their luck in the previous rounds.

The Manager Luiz Felipe Scolari will predictably take most of the blame, but I believe it was an accomplishment to get this team as far as he did.

He had a history of grinding out unimpressive wins and he did accomplish that until the Semifinal.

Up until the first ten minutes of the semifinal vs. Germany, I was convinced Scolari could possibly lead Brazil to victory with ugly wins as he has done in the past.

I believed home advantage could lead them to victory.

We were left wondering how could a nation like Brazil not find a genuine number nine in the Ronaldo/Romario caliber and settle for a Fred.

It is becoming more evident why Scolari tried to get Diego Costa on board before the latter’s decision to play for Spain (and Scolari’s subsequent angry outburst).

The other question is whether Neymar was being groomed too soon as Brazil’s next superstar. Perhaps he should have been in the background and gain experience like Ronaldo was during the 1994 World Cup and be preserved for future World Cups.

One can hope he will be more lethal in Russia in 2018.

A lot of false hopes were born out of Brazil’s 2013 Confederations Cup victory. The narrative for that win was that the team had ‘reconciled with its public’ and was ready to win and had adapted to Scolar’s tactics.

Even though any team should welcome any win, perhaps a false sense of confidence grew out of that victory.

It will take many years for Brazil to shake away the humiliation of the 1-7 result vs. Germany. Of course, this result should be taken in perspective; it’s a result that happens maybe once in a generation. Certainly it is not a fair barometer to judge either of the teams, neither was as good or as bad the score indicates.

More disappointing for Brazil was the demoralizing demonstration vs. Holland in the third place match that they had to win to salvage some pride.

The silver lining for Brazil is that these performances will be the type of shake up that every team needs from time to time.

Predictably, the press (Brazilian and otherwise) will try to make this a cataclysmic event and describe it as the end of Brazilian football and so on and so forth.

For this we must make a parallel with the 1990 World Cup, when Sebastiano Lazaroni’s ‘Europeanized’ Brazil were eliminated in the second round and the press described that team similar to the headlines we have been seeing in the last few days.

Of course, that event was a wake-up call for that generation and they went on to win the following World Cup in 1994 in USA.

As far as the runner-ups Argentina, doubts always remained whether they would advance as far they did.

The talking point for Argentina has always been that Lionel Messi has to flourish in the International stage to lay claim as one of the best ever players in history.

For nearly a decade now, succeeding national team selectors are unable to come up with a system that will make Messi perform like he does in a Barcelona shirt.

In this World Cup he decided a number of matches with key goals and assists, but at no point did he take charge of a match in the manner of Maradona.

My admiration for Messi is second to none, but in all fairness I could not see how he was awarded the ‘Golden Ball’ (2014 World Cup’s best Player).

The Netherlands was a surprise, as I believed they had many young and inexperienced players. Somehow, the older heads (Robben, van Persie and Sneijder) were able to propel a young squad to a Third Place finish.

Certainly their prospects for the 2016 Euros seem bright, as the squad is still young enough for many other campaigns.

This World Cup brought down the curtain on Spain’s glorious generation.

Players like Iker Casillas, Xavi, Fernando Torres and David Villa will most likely exit the International scene with their head held high. No poor performance can take away what this generation has achieved and even before the Tournament Casillas had said that ‘This generation has earned the right to failure.’

This may also turn out to be the end of Uruguay of Forlan and Suarez. The manager Oscar Washington Tabarez has for many years achieved great results with this squad, but the team may have reached its limit.

Italy with some luck could have perhaps advanced to the second round, though they are still years away from title winning potential. Cesare Prandelli has left his post and remains to be seen if veterans like Buffon and Pirlo will carry on.

Not much was expected of England given the youth of the team; nevertheless, because of their history a first round exit was disappointing.

There is a foundation to build up this young team, while Rooney is still young enough, replacements will be needed for Lampard and Gerrard.

The youth of the squad is a reflection of the large number of quality foreign players in the English Premier League. This has forced Roy Hodgson to blood many young English born players perhaps maybe a bit too soon.

France, under Didier Deschamps, somewhat redeemed themselves from their last catastrophic World Cup and the future seems brighter. Many young players gained much needed experience in line with the 2016 Euros that they will host.

No one will know if Franck Ribery’s absence due to injury would have made a significant difference, but it’s doubtful even with him they would have passed the Quarterfinals.

Prior to the start of the Tournament, much was expected of reigning World Player of the Year, Cristiano Ronaldo. However, besides carrying a slight injury, he was not playing for one of the stronger nations with a title winning potential. The superstar who shone throughout the season for Real Madrid seemed to be content with his Champions League Triumph.

Just like the last World Cup, the African nations did not perform to their potential (except Algeria), which is a surprise because in general the standard of play and coaching seemed to have been in ascendance for the last couple of decades.

The CONCACAF gave a far better account of themselves with Mexico, USA and Costa Rica reaching the second round and beyond.

Costa Rica in particular were the surprise of the Tournament with their wins over Uruguay, Italy and keeping England and Holland scoreless.

Many observers had predicted the young Belgium squad to do well and they did not disappoint. Just like their Dutch neighbors they are a team in ascendance.

Living in the United States, the Tournament had the most significant media and fan interest that I can ever remember.

Though there were some debates amongst longtime fans whether the fans were just ‘bandwagon’ or ‘world cup fans only’ as opposed to genuine soccer fans.

Nevertheless, most welcomed the positive and present media coverage that seemed to encompass even the political/entertainment spheres.

Every World Cup comes with a new fad. This time referees were armed with sprays to designate the location of the ball and the wall on free kicks. This may be useful, though I never felt lining up walls was that critical of a problem in football.

Another noticeable aspect was the colorful boots that the players wore. The era of all black boots has given way to yellow, red and even the pink/blue combination.

The water breaks for the matches at Amazon were also a novelty. Many believed it breaks the rhythm of a game that is loved because of its free flowing nature and that these breaks may give an unfair advantage to one team over the other.

As a safety and health concern not many could oppose these. It must be asked if such a concern existed, then such venues should have been avoided altogether.

All in all, it was a pleasant World Cup from the fan’s standpoint with many surprises and many goals.

No one player dominated ‘a la Maradona’, though Colombia’s James Rodriguez price value must have skyrocketed. While Neymar failed to fulfill that role, Messi may not have many other opportunities.

Farewell, Brazil 2014

Soccer Memories-Part 23

My Favorite World Cup Match:   July 8, 1982, The Magic of Seville

http://www.zani.co.uk/world-cup-1982-the-magic-of-seville-france-west-germany
 

With the World Cup right around the corner, the inevitable debates come up as to which was the best ever World Cup match.

In the lead up to the main event we are naturally inundated with Television Specials and highlights from past World Cups.

To pick a favorite World Cup match varies depending upon your generation.

Experts will point out to World Cups that might be decades remote from our own lifetime. These matches usually stand out due to high drama, many goals, score reversals, big names involved, sending offs, etc…

However, there is little emotional resonance when you have not witnessed Gordon Banks making a save from Pele, Rivera scoring in overtime vs. West Germany or Geoff Hurst’s last minute overtime winner in 1966 (They think it’s all over, Well it is now..).

Since the 1982 World Cup, turned me into a fan, naturally my favorite World Cup match is from that Tournament.

Though not a very original choice, the Semifinal match between France and West Germany in Seville’s Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium on July 8^th, 1982 stands out as my preferred choice.

Over a decade later in an Interview, France’s Captain Michel Platini stated that just in that one match he went through every possible emotion that any person can go through.

To those of us who witnessed the match on our Television sets, we could not agree more, irrespective of our allegiances and even if we were neutral.

Thirty years later this match is still talked about and referenced and has become an unforgettable memory for the participants as well as the global audience that witnessed it.

By this stage of the Tournament, after Brazil’s elimination, France had become the neutrals’ favorite due to their positive displays especially in the Second Round.

The French squad, managed by Michel Hidalgo, had improved as the Tournament had progressed with Alain Giresse and Dominique Rocheteau in fine form.

Their weak point had been the goalkeeper Jean-Luc Ettori who many viewed as too nervous and inexperienced to inspire confidence.

Photo From: Onze, December 1982

(Alain Giresse and Hans-Peter Briegel)

The West Germans, managed by Juup Derwall, had not made themselves popular especially after the farce match vs. Austria in the Group stage, but had advanced due to hard work and determination, if not brilliance.

They were a far more physical team exemplified by towering figures such as Hans-Peter Briegel, Manfred Kaltz and Horst Hrubesch.

Captain Karl-Heinz Rummenigge had not been fully fit throughout the World Cup, but nevertheless had managed four goals up to that point.

West Germany had taken the lead in the 17^th minute, after Ettori could only parry an attempt by Fischer; the deflected ball reached Pierre Littbarski who scored from outside of the box.

Photo From: Onze-Mondial, Issue 84, January 1996

(Littbarski scoring for West Germany)

The French tied up the match in the 26^th minute through a penalty kick by Platini, awarded after a foul by Bernd Forster on Rocheteau.

The real Drama started early in the second half. French midfielder Bernard Genghini was injured and substituted in the 52^nd minute by Patrick Battiston.

With barely ten minutes on the field, Battiston was sent clear by Platini with only goalkeeper Harald Schuamcher to beat. His lobbed attempt went just wide, however, the onrushing Schumacher collided with him.

Photo From: L’Equipe, L’equipe de France de Football, La Belle Histoire

(Schumacher and Battiston’s collision)

Such was the impact that Battiston was knocked unconscious and lost two teeth.

The sight of Platini holding his hand while he was being taken off with a stretcher became one of the lasting images of this World cup.

Photo From: Onze-Mondial, Issue 84, January 1996

(Battiston with Platini)

With no more midfielders on the bench, Hidalgo had to send in defender Christian Lopez as a defensive midfielder.

To everyone’s amazement, not only Dutch referee Charles Corver did not award a penalty kick, but also Schumacher was not sent off nor even shown a yellow card.

Corver instead awarded a goal kick for West Germany.

With the score even after full time, the match went into extra time.

Perhaps due to the fatigue, most of the goals and entertainment was saved for these thirty minutes.

The more adventurous French took the lead two minutes into the overtime. They were awarded a free kick on the right side. Giresse crossed it near the penalty kick spot to his Bordeaux club mate, the veteran Marius Tresor, who had been remarkably unmarked. He smashed a volley into the net.

Photo From: Onze, July 1982

(Tresor scoring with a volley)

Six minutes later, Platini passed to Didier Six on the left side, who in turn passed it to the onrushing Alain Giresse whose long distance shot deflected off the post into the net.

Giresse’s celebration would also become one the most famous images of this Cup.

With France up by two goals, many believed the match was wrapped up and perhaps France themselves believed it as well.

By now Derwall had replaced midfielder Briegel and sent on striker Rummenigge to make a difference and he did.

Just four minutes after Giresse’s goal, he pounced on a cross from Littbarski from the left and gave the Germans some hope.

Photo From: Chronik des deutschen fussballs, 2005

(Rummenigge about to score despite pressure from Janvion)

Six minutes after that, in the 108^th minute, a cross from Littbarski on the left was headed across the goal by Hrubesch and Klaus Fischer tied up the match with an overhead kick.

The teams were scoreless for the final twelve minutes and for the first time in World Cup History a match was to be decided by a penalty kick shoot-out.

France started first and both teams converted their first two attempts by Giresse and Manuel Amoros for France and Kaltz and Paul Breitner for West Germany.

Rocheteau scored on France’s third attempt, but Uli Stielieke failed in his attempt and broke down in tears.

While the cameras were on the tearful Stielieke, they missed out Schumacher’s save on Didier Six’s attempt.

Littbarski scored in his attempt to level the shoot-out.

Platini and Rummenigge converted their respective attempts.

France’s Maxime Bossis missed his attempt, leaving Hrubesch to score his and settle the tie for West Germany.

However, West Germany’s victory had come at a price. Their opponents in the Final, the Italians were fresher while the Germans were physically more exhausted. In addition, their victory had seemed unjust due to the Schumacher-Battiston incident and the general public opinion was against them and not surprisingly they lost the Final with the crowd against them.

After the match vs. France, a journalist notified Schumacher that Battiston had lost teeth in the incident. Schumacher was quoted saying “if that’s all that’s wrong with him, I’m prepared to pay what it costs to have them crowned.”

When he published his very controversial autobiography, Schumacher claimed that no malice was intended in his response. He had been fearful that Battiston had suffered worse head injuries and was grateful that he had not.

A few years later Uli Stielieke was asked in an interview that some of the French players had found him too aggressive, his reply was that if to win a match of that importance one has to be aggressive, then yes he could have been. An attitude filled with determination, which was in sharp contrast with France’s lack of winning mentality.

This match had lasting effect especially on the French Football. To this day when one utters the word Seville in French Footballing lexicon, it is understood to be this match and all that it encompasses.

French observers have referenced this match as their romanticism being overcome by rugged resilience and stronger mental strength.

Succeeding French Football Generations would learn to be tactically and mentally stronger and often reference this match as a learning experience.

France were able to build up on this experience and two years later triumphed in the European Championships on home soil and in fact were able to overcome and reverse a seemingly lost Semifinal in overtime vs. Portugal and credited the lessons learned in Seville.

This match will still be talked about for years to come for its significance to the History of the game and especially my generation who got to watch it.

Photo From: Les Bleus, Le livre official de l'equiep de France, Author: Dominique Grimault, 1997

(France squad, July 8, 1982, World Cup, West Germany 3-France 3, Top, left to right: Marius Tresor, Jean-Luc Ettori, Gerard Janvion, Manuel Amoros, Maxime Bossis, Jean Tigana, Bottom, left to right: Dominique Rocheteau, Bernard Genghini, Alain Giresse, Michel Platini, Didier Six)

Soccer Memories-Part 22

Rejected Talent: Future Stars, not good enough at youth level

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When one looks at a top Football Player, logically the assumption is that they were exceptional talents as youth. In most cases that’s accurate, as one would have to possess gifts at a very young age to make it as a professional.

However, throughout Football history, there have been players whose gifts were not self-evident or were judged inadequate to succeed as professionals.

French Legend Michel Platini is such a case. Though he performed impressively as a 20 year old for his club Nancy, it is astonishing that Lorraine neighbors FC Metz rejected him.

There are two stories about this great oversight. In one version it was Metz’s Team Doctor, after a number of physical tests, judged Platini not adequate to succeed as a professional. In another version, Platini would only join if his father Aldo was also part of the package with a job (which he got at Nancy).

Photo From: Mondial, old series, issue 27, February 1979

(Michel Platini with Nancy, 1978/79)

Another technically gifted French Talent from the 1980s and 90s, David Ginola was turned down by OGC Nice. He had to make his name with Toulon before starring for Paris St Germain and Newcastle United later in his career.

Other French Internationals who had to take different routes to stardom include long time goalkeeper Joel Bats who was barred as a youth at Sochaux by the more experienced Albert Rust and had to go to Auxerre and also striker Xavier Gravelaine, a contemporary of Didier Deschamps as a youth at Nantes, who was also shown the door and had to make his way through the lower divisions before eventually playing for sides like Paris St Germain and Olympique Marseille.

Photo From: Mondial, new series, issue 71, March 1986

(France goalkeeper Joel Bats)

In the early 1990s, Croatia’s Robert Prosinecki was considered to be one of the greatest young talents of World Football and was an International for Yugoslavia in his early 20s.

As a youth he was coached by future Croatia National Team Manager Miroslav Blazevic at Dynamo Zagreb. Blazevic was so unconvinced by his talents that he went on to declare that if Prosinecki ever became a good player he would tear off all his diplomas.

Photo From: Onze-Mondial, Issue 28, May 1991

(Robert Prosinecki with Red Star Belgrade, 1990/91)

When it comes to Germans, Bayern Munich is a difficult place to break through, some of the notable casualties include future West German and Stuttgart defender Bernd Forster (brother of Karl-Heinz) and future Bordeaux defender and Manager Gernot Rohr. Both failed to make the grade in a team full of Internationals.

There is the peculiar case of Italian defenders Giuseppe Bergomi and Franco Baresi. Each player was rejected by one of the Milanese clubs to serve their entire career with the other Milanese club, Bergomi with Inter and Baresi with AC Milan. Incidentally, Franco Baresi’s brother Giuseppe was accepted by Inter.

Photo From: Calcio 2000, Issue 16, February 1999

(Internazionale Milano’s Giuseppe Bergomi)

Future Juventus defenders (both capped by Italy), Sergio Porrini and Gianluca Pessotto started at AC Milan’s youth teams but were released before making their breakthroughs at smaller teams.

Similarly another future Juventus and Italy International, midfielder Angelo Di Livio failed to make the grade at AS Roma and had to start out at the lower leagues.

Future Italy and AS Roma midfielder Luigi Di Biagio actually started at cross town rivals Lazio, but failed to make the grade.

Future Italy goalkeeper Francesco Toldo’s path was blocked at AC Milan, he therefore had to work his way up the lower leagues as well.

Defender Roberto Tricella was once seen as Gaetano Scirea’s heir apparent as Italy’s Libero under Enzo Bearzot; however, he was also rejected as a youth at Internazionale Milano before making a name for himself at Verona.

Similarly young Lazio striker Marco Di Vaio’s path was blocked by such talents as Signori and Casiraghi, therefore he had to work his way up the lower leagues as well.

When it comes to the British there are also many interesting cases. Future England Captain David Platt was rejected as a youngster at Manchester United. He had to go to Crewe and Aston Villa to achieve stardom.

Photo From: World Soccer, February 1994

(David Platt st Sampdoria, 1993/94)

Welsh International, the controversial Robbie Savage is another of Manchester United’s famous failures.

Scottish legend Kenny Dalglish was rejected as a trainee at West Ham United for reasons that only they would know.

Photo From: Onze, Issue 22, October 1977

(Kenny Dalglish at Liverpool, 1977/78)

Liverpool itself is also a tough place to break through especially during the competitive Shankly and Paisley eras. Future England International defender Dave Watson could not make it. He had to go through Norwich to eventually play for cross-town rivals Everton.

Republic of Ireland Midfielder Kevin Sheedy and Northern Ireland midfielder Jim Magilton were also released during this era. Sheedy eventually made his name at cross-town rivals Everton, while Magilton starred for Southampton.

Arsenal under George Graham was guilty of dispensing prolific striker Andy Cole and International defender Martin Keown. Though, Graham bought back Keown some six years later.

In Spain, Real Madrid is a tough jungle and many talented players had to make headway elsewhere blocked by International quality stars.

Hipolito Rincon is such a case, unable to make the first team; he joined Real Betis and was one of Spanish Leagues best goalscorers of the 1980s.

The list goes on: Ismael Urzaiz, Alvaro Negredo, Roberto Soldado, Alfonso Perez, Dani Garcia, Miguel Pardeza, and Sebastiano Losada.

These young Spaniards had to succeed away from Real’s tough environment.

I presume the lesson to be learned is to never give up after initial rejection.

Even the experts can be wrong or perhaps players need the right environment to flourish.

They need the less pressured atmosphere of a smaller club where they will get playing opportunities rather than being confined to the bench, way behind the pecking order.