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| Career | |
| Position: | Left back |
| Clubs: | Inter Milan (1960-78) |
| International appearances: | 94 (70 as captain) |
| International goals: | 3 |
| International debut: | 27/03/1963, Turkey-Italy (0-1) |
| Last international appearance: | 16/11/1977, England-Italy (2-0) |
| First international goal: | 04/10/1964, Italy-Finland (6-1) |
Appearances: 3 (1966, 1970, 1974), 12 matches
Finalist (1970)
Winner (1968)
Winner (1964, 1965)
Winner (1964, 1965)
Winner (1963, 1965, 1966, 1971)
Vice-President of Inter Milan (Nov. 2001-Jan. 2004), President of Inter Milan (since Jan. 2004)
Biography
Giacinto Facchetti, veteran of three World Cups and one of the greatest defenders Italy has produced, began his sporting career in athletics before switching to football.
A heavily built man (1.88 metres, 85 kg) he could nevertheless run 100 metres in less than 11 seconds.
His destiny was decided when fabled Inter Milan coach Helenio Herrera plucked him from his local club Treviglio and began coaching him in the black arts of the "catenaccio", a revolutionary strategy which involved a team getting into a one-goal lead, before bringing every player behind the ball to make an equaliser almost impossible.
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| Brazilian forward Jaïrzinho falls down after being pushed off by Italian defender Giacinto Facchetti 21 June 1970 in Mexico City during the World Cup final between Brazil and Italy. Brazil beat Italy 4-1 with Jaïrzinho scoring the third goal. AFP PHOTO |
Facchetti came to symbolize "catenaccio", playing first on the wing and in midfield before moving to the left-back postion where he developed his skills as an attacking defender, a style of play that is seen throughout the modern game today.
He had left a trail of glory behind him by the time he retired in 1978, winning European Cups with Inter in 1964 and 1965 against Real Madrid and Benfica respectively, securing four Italian titles and chalking up 476 matches and 78 goals in the famous blue and black shirt.
Facchetti also had an impressively long international career, playing 94 matches for Italy (70 of them as captain), a record that has only been surpassed by goalkeeper Dino Zoff (112 appearances).
One of his greatest achievements on the international stage was winning the European Championship in 1968, but he also appeared in three World Cups, including the 1970 tournament in Mexico where Italy reached the final before falling at the last hurdle against Brazil.
Following his playing days, he moved into management and quickly scaled the heights at Inter becoming president of the club in January, 2004, following the resignation of Massimo Moratti.