Dino Zoff

Facts to Talk About:   Birth Date: 28 th February, 1942 Birthplace: Mariano del Friuli, Italy Height and Weight: 5 ft 9 in, 81 kg Position: Goalkeeper Foot: NA Clubs: 1961-1963 Udinese ( Italy ), 1963-1967 Mantova ( Italy ), 1967-1972 Napoli ( Italy ), 1972-1983 Juventus ( Italy ) Starting: # 1 Marital Status: Married to Anna-Maria   Personal Profile:   Dino Zoff one of the finest goalkeepers of all time was born on 28 February 1942 in Mariano del Friuli. Having a keen interest in football since childhood, he began his professional career at Udinese Calcio; he was just 19 years old when he started his career. On 24 September 1961, he made his Serie A debut. Zoff was dependable, had self-control and extreme confidence to justify the duties and responsibilities of a goal keeper. The following season, he became a member of the Friulan squad in the Serie B.   In 1963, Zoff again returned to AC Mantova, a Serie A club and stayed in Lombardy until 1967. The same year he played for SSC Napoli and made his first appearance with the national team. He became the goalkeeper of the national team in 1972 and stayed with the team for 11 years. These 11 years were perhaps the best period of the Azzurri team. In 1972, he joined Juventus FC the most significant club in his professional life that helped him in achieving star status. In 1982/83, Zoff safeguarded the Bianconeri goal and until this day has a track record of playing in every single championship match, making 332 appearances in Serie A. During his tenure with the Bianconeri he reined the national football by winning the Italian title six times. He also won the UEFA Cup with Juve in the year 1977.   The control of his gestures, his self-confidence and responsiveness made Zoff a player of his own accord. With the Azzurri team, Dino Zoff was among the greatest goalkeeper and still today holds an unmatched record.   The World Cup of 1982 was an outstanding tournament that helped him in making an impact on the football history. As the captain he got criticized during the initial world cup games but gradually the team became unbeatable and gave a tough fight against some reigning world champions. He became the oldest football player to lift the victorious World Cup in the tournament. The team of 1982 comprised Zoff, Cabrini, Scirea, Gentile, Collovati and Bergomi, beat Germany in the finals 3-1.   In 1983, Zoff had to end his career rather regretfully as his team had lost the Champions League, conquered second position in the Serie A table and had only won the Italian Cup. Until 2005, he had held the Serie A appearances record of 570, a record that was later beaten by Gianluca Pagliuca and Paolo Maldini . Even after retirement, Zoff continued to be active in the world of football and stayed with the Italian Football Federation as a coach of the Olympic national selection, the Juventus FC team and the Italian national team.   While Zoff had decided to become a coach, he still was spending the last years of his career as a goalkeeper. He had said, “After turning 36 I had the opportunity to acquire new special knowledge and experience. I can’t say I was already a sort of coach on the field but I was definitely a leader for my teammates. So when I quitted as a player, deciding to become a coach, I didn’t have to change my mentality and attitude too much”. He loved to face the new challenge and worked for the team benefit, with the same old spirit and desire to improve and grow eventually. His first experience as a coach was with the Italian Olympic team and the team held an excellent track record of winning 7 matches with 4 draws out of the 11 matches played under his guidance.   In Italy Dino Zoff holds the reputation of excellent sportsmanship, skillfulness and proficiency. With just few words uttered, he managed to make his supporters and fans love him for what he was. In 2004, he was awarded the Golden Foot Award and over the years earned the repute of being a real living legend.   Career in a Glance (appearances – goals)   Senior Clubs   1961-1963 Udinese 38 - 0 1963-1967 Mantova 131 - 0 1967-1972 Napoli 143 - 0 1972-1983 Juventus 330 – 0   National Team   1968-1983 Italy 112 - 0   Major Achievements:   Club Honor   1 Serie A (1973) 1 Serie A (1975) 1 Serie A (1977) 1 UEFA Cup (1977) 1 Serie A (1978) 1 Italian Cup (1979) 1 Serie A (1981) 1 Serie A (1982) 1 Italian Cup (1983)   International Honor   1 European Championship (1962) 1 European Championship winner (1968) 1 FIFA World Cup first round (1974) 1 FIFA World Cup second round (1978) 1 FIFA World Cup (1982)     Coaching Honors   1 Italian Cup (1990) 1 UEFA Cup (1990) 1 European Championship runner-up (2000)   Other honors   1 Italy 's Golden Player - the best Italian player of the last 50 years, selected by the Italian Football Federation (November 2003)