Giovanni Ferrari

Giovanni Ferrari (6 December 1907 – 2 December 1982) was an Italian footballer who played as an attacking midfielder/inside forward on the left. He is regarded as one of the best players of his generation, having won Serie A 8 times, as well as two consecutive FIFA World Cup titles (in 1934 and 1938) with the Italy national football team. Along with Giuseppe Meazza and Eraldo Monzeglio, he is one of only three Italian players to have won two World Cups.

A creative, advanced midfield playmaker, Ferrari was a strong, physically fit, hardworking, versatile, and well-rounded footballer, as well as being a generous team player. Due to his technical ability, vision, tactical intelligence, and passing ability, he excelled at building attacking plays and well-known for setting up chances for teammates, at a time where assists went unrecorded. He was capable of scoring himself due to his powerful and accurate shot. He was primarily deployed as an attacking midfielder/left–sided inside forward, known in Italian football jargon as the Mezzala. throughout his career.

Club career
Ferrari began his footballing career with local club Alessandria in the prima divisione nazionale in 1923. He was at the start of the newly established Serie A in the season 1929-30, aside from a brief loan to Napoli during the 1925–26 season, where he scored an impressive 16 goals in 15 matches. He was given credit over a seven-year period (1923–1930) with Alessandria and Napoli in total to play in 137 matches and scoring 78 goals. The following year Ferrari changed over to Juventus and was handed the number 10 shirt. Over that five-year period (1930–1935), which was his first spell at Juventus, he played in 160 games and scored 66 goals, in addition to providing many assists. Although the official number of assists he provided went unrecorded, it was said to be extremely high. Ferrari would next move to Inter, where he would play for five-years (1935-1940), and then subsequently to Bologna for the 1940–41 season, before return for second spell to Juventus in the 1941–42 season, this time as a player-manager in what turned out to be the final season of his playing career, winning his 10th major national trophy. After the Second World War, when Italian club football resumed in the season 1945-46, he became a full-time manager for Brescia.

1930-1935: Il Quinquennio d'Oro della Juventus

Juventus had won 2 Italian Championships earlier in history, before it was named Serie A, but under his guidance, the club won 5 consecutive Serie A Titles, Il Quinquennio d'Oro, by then a record of 1st 5 successive titles ever in Italy, which meant he in reality dragged Juventus into an era, as one of Italy’s biggest and most important clubs.

1935-1941: Making it a record 8 Serie A titles

He then went on to win 2 more Serie A titles & 1 Coppa Italia with Internazionale and 1 Serie A title with Bologna; Making him the first player to win a then record of 8 Serie A Championships, Virginio Rosetta also won 8 national championships, but 3 of them came before the formation of a professional Serie A.  Ferrari is also one of six footballers to have won the Serie A title with 3 clubs, a feat he managed with Juventus, Inter, and Bologna; the other 5 players to have managed the same feat are Filippo Cavalli, Aldo Serena, Pietro Fanna, Sergio Gori, and Attilio Lombardo. The record for most Serie A titles went unbroken for 77 years, until the season 2017-18 where Gianluigi Buffon won his 9th Serie A title, subsequently making it 10 Serie A titles in the season 2019-20, all 10 titles won with Juventus.

1941-1942: 2nd spell at Juventus & 10th major national trophy

He came back to Juventus where he won his 2nd Coppa Italia, which was his 10th major national trophy in what would be his last season as a player. After this season the Serie A & Coppa Italia was discontinued due to the Second World War.

International career
Ferraris first taste of success with the Italy national team was as part of the silver medal winning 1931-32 Central European International Cup squad. He then went on to win two consecutive World Cups (in 1934 & 1938), as well as the 1933-35 Central European International Cup. All 4 tournaments alongside teammates Giuseppe Meazza and Eraldo Monzeglio. The 3 (in terms of silverware) most successful players ever for Italy. In total he managed 44 appearances and 14 goals with the national side between 1930 and 1938. He later was the head coach of Italy from 1960 to 1961, and was part of the technical commission being co-manager with Paolo Mazza leading Italy in the 1962 FIFA World Cup.,  where Italy lost 1 match to the hosting nation Chile in the infamous Battle of Santiago (1962 FIFA World Cup), having 2 men sent off, while Chile had none sent off despite amongst other things, a left-hook punch by Chilean outside-left Leonel Sánchez to Italian right-back Mario David, & later Leonel Sánchez actually broke Humberto Maschio's nose with another left hook but the English referee Ken Aston did nothing;Ken Aston would never referee a World Cup match again.

Central European International Cup 1931-32

Ferrari was from the start of the 1931-32 Central European International Cup a regular starter in his playmaker/attacking midfielder role and also scored a goal in the away match against Czechoslovakia. The campaign ended with Italy being Runners-up after the Austrian Wunderteam led by Matthias Sindelar, Ferrari's first international medal with Italy (Silver).

FIFA World Cup 1934

Ferarri aside from his playmaker/attacking midfielder role scored 2 goals, both of them at the knockout stage, in his first World Cup. The first goal was against USA in the round of 16 and the second goal equalizing against Spain in the 1/4 finals, earning Italy a replay as there was then no penalty shoot-out. If a match was tied after extra time, there would be a rematch the day after; a win would mean they won the World Cup. They beat the Austrian Wunderteam in the semi-finals and Czechoslovakia led by Oldrich Nejedly in the final but Ferrari's equalizer in the quarter finals, enabled Italy to continue in the 1934 World cup.

Central European International Cup 1933-35

Ferrari aside from his playmaker/attacking midfielder role scored 3 goals in this gold winning campaign; home against Czechoslovakia, home against Switzerland and home against Hungary, this time helping Italy beat the Austrian Wunderteam for the gold.

FIFA World Cup 1938

Ferrari was again a regular starter in his second World Cup, where he from his playmaking/attacking midfielder role help guide Italy to its second and consecutive World Cup title, beating Hungary led by György Sárosi in the final. This made him one of only three Italians to win 2 FIFA World Cups.

Personal life
Ferrari was born in Alessandria on 6 December 1907 and died in Milan in 1982, aged 74.

Club

 * Juventus
 * Serie A: 1930–31, 1931–32, 1932–33, 1933–34, 1934–35
 * Coppa Italia: 1941–42


 * Internazionale
 * Serie A: 1937–38, 1939–40
 * Coppa Italia: 1938–39


 * Bologna
 * Serie A: 1940–41

International

 * Italy
 * FIFA World Cup: 1934, 1938
 * Central European International Cup: 1933–35; Runner-up: 1931–32

Individual

 * Italian Football Hall of Fame: 2011 (Posthumous)