Giuseppe Favalli

Giuseppe Favalli
Favalli playing for Milan in 2007
Personal information
Date of birth (1972-01-08) 8 January 1972 (age 52)
Place of birth Orzinuovi, Italy
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1]
Position(s) Defender
Youth career
1987–1988 Cremonese
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1988–1992 Cremonese 94 (3)
1992–2004 Lazio 298 (4)
2004–2006 Internazionale 49 (0)
2006–2010 Milan 80 (2)
Total 521 (9)
International career
1989–1990 Italy U18 9 (1)
1989–1994 Italy U21 24 (2)
1992 Italy U23 6 (0)
1994–2004 Italy 8 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Giuseppe Favalli (Italian pronunciation: [dʒuˈzɛppe faˈvalli]; born 8 January 1972) is an Italian former professional footballer. A versatile, consistent, tenacious and experienced defender, Favalli was capable of playing as a centre back as well as on the left or right flank as a full back.[2][3][4]

After beginning his career with Cremonese in 1988, he played for Serie A clubs Lazio, Internazionale and Milan. At international level, Favalli represented the Italy national team on eight occasions between 1994 and 2004, and was a member of his nation's UEFA Euro 2004 squad. He was also a member of the under-23 side that took part at the 1992 Summer Olympics.

Club career

Cremonese

Favalli started his career with then-Serie B squad Cremonese in 1988. Following their promotion to Serie A in 1989 he made his top flight debut in a 2–1 defeat to Internazionale on 27 August 1989.[5][6]

Lazio

Favalli's strong performance resulted in him being signed by Lazio during the summer of 1992. Following the departure of Alessandro Nesta to Milan in 2002, he became team captain. During his time with Lazio, he won one Scudetto, three Coppa Italia, two Supercoppa Italiana and the UEFA Super Cup, as well as establishing himself as a fan favourite. In 12 seasons with the Biancocelesti, he made 401 appearances in all competitions (becoming the player with second most appearances in Lazio's history), scoring six goals.[5][6]

Inter

Favalli later moved to Internazionale joining the club on 1 June 2004[7] on a free transfer. With Inter, he won the Coppa Italia twice, in 2005 and 2006 meaning he had won the trophy in three consecutive years (2004, 2005 and 2006). He also won his second Scudetto with Inter following the Calciopoli scandal which saw Juventus stripped of the 2006 title and it being awarded to Inter. However, he was not always chosen to start for the team and the arrival of Fabio Grosso after the 2006 FIFA World Cup meant he was deemed surplus to the squad and as a result, did not have his contract renewed at the end of the 2006 season.[5][6]

Milan

Favalli was then subsequently signed by Milan on a free transfer, as a replacement for his former Lazio teammate Giuseppe Pancaro, but once again, with players such as Kakha Kaladze and Paolo Maldini ahead of him in the ranks playing left-back, he would spend the seasons mainly on the bench. In the 2007 UEFA Champions League Final, he appeared as a substitute late in the match which saw Milan win their seventh European Cup/UEFA Champions League in a 2–1 win over Liverpool. He was affectionately nicknamed Favallinho by Milan supporters after he scored his only two goals of the 2006–07 Serie A campaign in back-to-back wins over Empoli and Messina in April 2007. Towards the end of his career, he was used as a centre-back by the Rossoneri.[8]

On 1 July 2010, Favalii was released by Milan at age 38, then subsequently retired.[9]

International career

Favalli has represented Italy at under-18 level, as well winning the 1992 UEFA European Under-21 Championship and playing at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona with the Italy under-21 side.

Favalli earned eight full caps for the Italian senior side between 1994 and 2004.[10] He was part of the Italy squad that took part at UEFA Euro 2004; he made only one appearance throughout the tournament, replacing Gennaro Gattuso in the 76th minute of Italy's 1–1 draw with Sweden in the team's second group match.[11] Italy performed below expectations and exited at the group stage on direct encounters, following a three-way five point tie with Sweden and Denmark; the later two sides qualified for the quarter-finals at their expense.[12]

Career statistics

International

Source:[13]
Italy national team
Year Apps Goals
1994 1 0
1998 1 0
2004 6 0
Total 8 0

Honours

Club

Lazio[14]

Internazionale[14]

AC Milan[14]

International

Italy[14]

References

  1. ^ [1] Giuseppe Favalli, Italia. Statistiche, biografia, foto, età e par
  2. ^ "Milan: rinnovo per Favalli". Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  3. ^ "LAZIO, processo ai terzini". Il Corriere della Sera (in Italian). 30 September 1994. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  4. ^ "Veron e Favalli hanno firmato. Due buoni acquisti?" (in Italian). Archived from the original on 27 April 2015. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  5. ^ a b c "Giuseppe Favalli". tuttocalciatori.net (in Italian). Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  6. ^ a b c "Favalli Giuseppe". Archived from the original on 27 April 2015. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
  7. ^ "FAVALLI SIGNS FOR INTER". FC Internazionale Milano. 1 June 2004. Archived from the original on 10 October 2012. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
  8. ^ "Giuseppe Favalli". magliarossonera.it (in Italian). Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  9. ^ "ONE GOES, ANOTHER COMES". AC Milan. 1 July 2010. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
  10. ^ "Nazionale in cifre: Favalli, Giuseppe" (in Italian). FIGC. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  11. ^ "Italy 1-1 Sweden". BBC. 18 June 2004. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  12. ^ Fifield, Dominic (23 June 2004). "Cassano's last-gasp winner all for nought as Trapattoni pays price for early exit". The Guardian. Guimaraes. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  13. ^ "Giuseppe Favalli". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
  14. ^ a b c d "Giuseppe Favalli" (in Italian). Eurosport.com. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
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