The phrase “football is a box of surprises” is a maxim that is as cliché as it is real. After all, the sport we love is unpredictable, treacherous and a great source of unexpected situations and contexts. This was what happened with Italy throughout their campaign in the 1974 World Cup, for example – including in the game against Argentina, valid for the second round of the group stage.
The team coached by Ferruccio Valcareggi won its debut game in the competition, against Haiti, and drew the second with Argentina, who had lost to Poland. It seemed like a great result, considering that the Poles beat the Caribbeans, qualified in advance and could save efforts against Italy, right? Wrong.
Nobody expected that the game against Argentina would be Rivera’s last with the Italy shirt (imago)
Furthermore, the match with the Albicelestes was also Gianni Rivera’s last for the Nazionale, and his departure from the scene was absolutely banal, as no one imagined that this would happen. The game’s significance for the Italian campaign and the number 10’s goodbye were two more strange facts about the Azzurri’s ill-fated expedition to West Germany that year.
At the end of the first round, there was no longer much celebration in the Italian delegation after the victory over Haiti. The Azzurri missed many scoring chances, so the 3-1 was considered a lower score than expected and a waste of opportunity, as the Caribbean were candidates to be punching bags in the other games in Group 4. Furthermore, an unhappy Giorgio Chinaglia had publicly disrespected Valcareggi and provoked a crisis behind the scenes. The Lazio striker was considered for a cut, but the situation was overcome and he was only banned in the match against Argentina.
Riva was one of Italy’s main hopes for a goal, especially after Chinaglia was blocked by Valcareggi (Getty)
There was no tranquility among Argentines either. In addition to the 3-2 defeat to Poland, the South Americans had to deal with a very serious accusation: Roberto Telch, the midfielder who would mark Rivera, was accused of trying to sexually assault one of the maids at the hotel where the Albiceleste delegation was staying. Despite the complaint reported in the main newspapers in West Germany, coach Vladislao Cap decided to select the player for the match – it is worth mentioning that, after the fact, the case did not move forward.
On the night in Stuttgart, Argentina and Italy went to the Neckarstadion field at the same time that Haiti and Poland played at the Olympiastadion in Munich – the Europeans would score a resounding 7-0 over the Central Americans and guarantee a place in the next phase of the World Cup. World. The Azzurri would advance in the event of another victory, but the urgency of victory was with the Albicelestes, who fielded a very offensive team, with Mario Kempes, Rubén Ayala and René Houseman as their biggest highlights from midfield.
In the second half, Mazzola had the chance to kill the game for Italy (Getty)
In the 8th minute, Argentina had the first good chance of the match, when right-back Quique Wolff advanced down the flank, cut to the center and hit low, with his left, forcing Dino Zoff to palm it for a corner. The goal didn’t take long to come. In the 20s, midfielder Carlos Babington tore through the defense with a beautiful deep pass to Houseman, who finished strongly, with his left leg, and sent it into the Italian corner.
The aging Italy had not managed to get into the game and suffered a lot from the rival’s speed, especially when Ayala and Houseman carried the ball. Luck, however, seemed to be on his side – it was just an impression, really. In the 35th minute, in a move without any future, Romeo Benetti was unable to chest down a pass from Rivera, inside the area, but captain Roberto Perfumo got scared and, when trying to cut it, splashed his stick and left archer Daniel Carnevali sold. . Undeservedly, the Nazionale drew.
With plenty of speed, Argentina troubled the Italian defense for much of the game, despite rare chances to score (Picture Alliance/Getty)
Based on individuality and with little lucidity, both teams tried to score more goals, and did not produce a great spectacle. There was a lack of ideas and a surplus of initiative – which, in that context, was not good. The Argentines abused the anti-game and the tough attacks were the keynote on both sides. In this stagnation, Ayala’s powerful shot, which forced Zoff to make a save in the 58th minute, was a rare item.
Around the 66th minute, Valcareggi made the two substitutions he was entitled to, swapping one defender for another (Giuseppe Wilson replaced Francesco Morini) and removing Rivera, who gave way to Franco Causio. As the Milan star would inexplicably be left out of the match against Poland, that would be his last scene with the Azzurri shirt. Approaching the age of 31, he would retire from the Nazionale – he would represent the Rossoneri until he was close to 36, however.
Against Argentina, star Riva had another lackluster performance in the 1974 World Cup, repeating what he did not show with Haiti (Getty)
With Rivera’s departure, Italy’s decision-making power fell mainly to Luigi Riva, who was very dull, and Sandro Mazzola, the most talented name in midfield. Sandrino had the ball of the game in the 75th minute, when he received it from the striker, until then missing, dominated the field in the half-moon, beat the markers to the body and rolled consciously, past Carnevali, looking for the right corner. However, sending it out.
Years later, the Inter star commented on that move in an interview. “Considering the way I shot, the ball should have gone out and ended up in the net. She rolled low and started to head towards the goal, but, suddenly, she took another direction and left without even hitting the post,” he said. “I stood there, with my eyes wide open like an owl. It wasn’t possible. I went over to check the grass near the post and saw a strange swelling. They had changed that part of the lawn and didn’t tidy it up properly, creating a pile that changed the trajectory of the ball. A shame, because we would have qualified with that goal”, lamented the former player. Luck was not on Italy’s side, as we highlighted above.
The chance Mazzola missed was, in fact, the last most acute of that game, difficult to watch. Argentina was not completely dissatisfied with the result, because they would have Haiti ahead of them and a good chance of beating the Caribbeans. However, they would only be able to advance to the next stage if Italy lost to already qualified Poland, through victory and a better goal difference. You don’t need to be very smart to infer what happened, do you? After all, luck was not on the Azzurri’s side. It only seemed like it, but you can’t bet your chips on this sneaky entity.
Argentina 1-1 Italy
Argentina: Carnevali; Wolff (Glaria), Perfumo, Heredia, Sá; Telch, Babington; Ayala, Kempes, Yazalde (Chazarreta), Houseman. Technician: Vladislao Cap. Italy: Zoff; Burgnich, Morini (Wilson), Spinosi, Facchetti; Mazzola, Capello, Benetti, Rivera (Causio); Riva, Anastasi. Coach: Ferruccio Valcareggi. Goals: Houseman (20′); Performo (against; 35′) Referee: Pavel Kazakov (Soviet Union) Local e data: Neckarstadion, Stuttgart (West Germany), on June 19, 1974
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2024-06-19 03:33:54
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