Vittorio Pozzo - Successes During The 1930s

Successes During The 1930s

During the 1934 FIFA World Cup in their home country, Pozzo's Italian side benefited from controversy in the first tournament on European soil. The game against Spain in the quarter-finals raised questions against the performance of the referee Louis Baert in the match, a draw; and in the replay, Swiss referee Rene Mercet did not escape criticism and was banned upon his arrival home by the Swiss FA. A clear foul on Ricardo Zamora for the equaliser in the first leg went unpunished while another on Joan Josep Nogués in the replay earned Italy a semi-final place.

Italy benefited as well from the grueling quarter-final played elsewhere between Hungary and Austria. By the time of the semi-final, Johann Horvath was absent and Italy won by another disputed goal over Austria. Enrique Guaita, one of the squad's Oriundi, scored from close range after Giuseppe Meazza had fallen over goalkeeper Peter Platzer. On the back of the World Cup success, Pozzo was awarded the title of Commendatore for greatness in his profession.

The excesses of the side, however, boiled over at the Battle of Highbury in December 1934 against a tough English side led by Arsenal's uncompromising Wilf Copping.

Italy repeated as Central European International Cup winners in 1935, going into the 1936 Summer Olympics on the back of a run which had seen them lose only to Austria and England since October 1932. The Italians, all registered as students, won the Olympic Games that year, defeating Meisl’s Austrians in the final 2-1. Annibale Frossi, the myopic striker who Pozzo had discovered from obscurity in Serie B, led the front-line throughout the tournament.

By the time of the 1938 World Cup, Italy remained undefeated in recent competition under Pozzo. Silvio Piola earned his first cap in 1935 and became an instant success, scoring regularly for the national side and proving an effective partner for Meazza. Legend has it that ahead of the semifinal against Brazil, Pozzo learned that the Brazilians were so sure of themselves and confident of appearing in the final in Paris that they had requisitioned the only airplane from Marseilles to Paris on the day after the semifinal against Pozzo's Italy. Pozzo went to the Brazilians that sunbathed in Côte d'Azur and asked them to surrender him the aerial bookings in case of Italian victory. The Brazilians apparently arrogantly answered "it is not possible because to Paris we will go, because we will beat you in Marseilles". They then reportedly offered Pozzo the ironic hospitality of a plane ride to Paris to see them play in the final. Pozzo reported to the Italian side what the Brazilians had told him to rouse the pride of the players. It was the psychological premise for revenge in the match, which Italy went on to win 2-1. In the resulting final, Italy duly won their second world title in a 4-2 free-scoring game against Hungary.