Remembering Vittorio Pozzo - A Pioneer of Modern Football
A true master tactician and founding father of modern football, he led the Italian national team to glory in the 1930s, winning two consecutive World Cups.
Vittorio Pozzo is one of the greatest coaches in the history of football. A true master tactician and founding father of modern football, he led the Italian national team to glory in the 1930s, winning two consecutive World Cups. Let's reflect on the brilliance of one of the first legendary football coaches in history.
Although Vittorio Pozzo's name might not be well-known to some, along with Hugo Meisl and Jimmy Hogan, he is undoubtedly one of the founding fathers of modern football. Born in Turin in 1880, the young Italian quickly found an interest in football when the first clubs started to emerge at the end of the 19th century. Pozzo's introduction to football came from two encounters in Manchester for a study trip: Manchester United player Charlie Roberts and Derby County’s Steve Bloomer. After many discussions, the Italian learned more about football in the country where the sport was born.
From that moment on, Vittorio Pozzo decided to combine his language studies with his passion for football. He joined Grasshoppers Zurich before returning to his hometown of Turin, where he joined Torino FC at its inception in 1900. After five seasons at the club, Pozzo became the club's sporting director, and even had a brief stint as manager of the Italian national team for the 1912 Stockholm Olympics. He returned to the national side almost a decade later to take part in the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris, before joining AC Milan.
Pozzo's Tactical Revolution
Pozzo returned to the Italian national team for the third time in 1929. Italy was under the fascist regime of Benito Mussolini, and ambitions were much higher than in his previous stints. Italy had to shine and show the world its power.
The tactical setups on the field echoed the rigor Pozzo enforced in training. Together with his friend and rival Hugo Meisl (Austria's coach for 25 years), the Italian created a new tactical system that he called "metodo". A system of play exploited in a "WW", as opposed to the famous "WM".
In his tactic, the team is based on a collective game, and each player must respect his position on the field. Pozzo set up his team in a 2-3-2-3 formation, with two attacking full-backs and a player positioned between the central defenders and the central midfielders: the single pivot. This position, now relatively common, was a revolution in the organisation of football. The high positioning of the central defenders gives more support to the fullbacks, allowing for a fluid and fast game.
On Top of the World
A year after being appointed Italy’s national team coach for the third time, Vittorio Pozzo won the Central European International Cup, one of the first international competitions in football history. After not being invited to the first edition in Uruguay, Italy hosted the 1934 World Cup. After a very controversial competition, the Nazionale, led by Giuseppe Meazza, won the final against Czechoslovakia (2-1).
Four years after an already controversial home victory, Pozzo's Italy won a second consecutive World Cup, beating Hungary in the final. During this World Cup, a strong tension was felt at the dawn of the Second World War. Heinrich Retschury's Austria was excluded, as was Germany. Spain, for its part, didn’t participate because of the civil war that was ravaging the country.
Italy was the most hated team of the tournament. In fact, when Italy walked the field for their opening match against Norway while wearing a black shirt, Mussolini's fascism was made quite clear. France had become the new home for many refugees who had fled Mussolini's fascist government, and Italy was far from being welcome.
Almost 3,000 refugees attended Italy's opening game. As the stadium booed during the national anthem, Vittorio Pozzo made a fascist salute in front of the presidential box, which provoked an even louder uproar. He then ordered all his players to do the fascist salute, and the booing stopped. Pozzo’s declaration afterwards remained in history: "we raised our hands again, to confirm we had no fear … Having won the battle of intimidation, we played.”
A True Pioneer
Vittorio Pozzo's story with the Nazionale would end, unfortunately as it often does with legendary coaches, in bitter fashion. At the end of World War II, which saw Italy being liberated from the fascism of Benito Mussolini, the Italian coach's political convictions were disturbing. Although being in charge of the national squad for the 1948 Olympic Games, the competition was a disaster, and Pozzo made the decision to retire at its conclusion, ending his coaching career. Twenty years later, on December 21, 1968, he passed away in Turin, his hometown. Pozzo will always be regarded as a pioneer in football and one of the best coach in history, having won two World Cup in a row, despite all the controversies.
By Grégoire Devaux (@gregdevaux)