Alberto Zaccheroni facts for kids
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Alberto Zaccheroni | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 1 April 1953 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Meldola, Italy | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Full-back | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Managerial career | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 1983–1985 | Cesenatico | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 1985–1987 | Riccione | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 1987–1988 | Boca San Lazzaro | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 1988–1990 | Baracca Lugo | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 1990–1993 | Venezia | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 1993–1994 | Bologna | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 1994–1995 | Cosenza | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 1995–1998 | Udinese | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 1998–2001 | Milan | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2001–2002 | Lazio | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2004 | Internazionale | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2007 | Torino | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | Juventus | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2014 | Japan | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016 | Beijing Guoan | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017–2019 | United Arab Emirates | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Alberto Zaccheroni is a famous Italian football manager. He was born on April 1, 1953. He has managed many top football clubs in Italy. He also led the national teams of Japan and the United Arab Emirates.
One of his biggest achievements was winning the Serie A title with AC Milan in his first season. He also won the AFC Asian Cup with Japan in 2011. Zaccheroni is known for using a special 3–4–3 playing style. This formation uses three defenders, four midfielders, and three attackers.
Contents
Football Career Highlights
Alberto Zaccheroni started his football journey as a player. He played as a full-back on both sides of the field. Sadly, an injury ended his playing career early.
He then became a manager at the age of 30. His first team was an amateur club called Cesenatico. He helped them win titles in lower Italian leagues. His career really took off when he joined Udinese.
Managing Udinese
Zaccheroni became the manager of Udinese in 1995. In the 1996–97 season, he led Udinese to qualify for the UEFA Cup. This is a big European football competition. The next season, they finished third in Serie A. This was a great achievement for the team.
Leading AC Milan
His success at Udinese caught the eye of Silvio Berlusconi, the owner of AC Milan. Milan is one of Italy's biggest clubs. Zaccheroni became their manager in 1998. He asked Milan to sign two players from Udinese: Oliver Bierhoff and Thomas Helveg.
Zaccheroni made an immediate impact. Milan won the Serie A title in his very first season, 1998–99. They won their last seven matches in a row. He used his attacking 3–4–3 formation, which worked very well.
The next season, 1999–2000, was not as successful. Milan exited the UEFA Champions League early. They finished third in Serie A, but were not close to winning the title. The 2000–01 season was even tougher. Milan struggled in Serie A and were knocked out of the Champions League. Because of these results, Zaccheroni was replaced in March 2001.
During his time at Milan, Zaccheroni signed some important players. These included Oliver Bierhoff, Kakha Kaladze, Gennaro Gattuso, and Andriy Shevchenko. These players became key to the club's future success.
Time at Lazio
After leaving Milan, Zaccheroni joined Lazio in October 2001. The team had a difficult start to the season. He helped them improve and finish 6th in Serie A. This earned Lazio a spot in the UEFA Cup. However, some people criticized his decisions. He left Lazio in 2002.
Managing Inter Milan
In October 2003, Zaccheroni was called to manage Internazionale. He took over when the team was struggling. He helped Inter finish fourth in Serie A. This meant they qualified for the Champions League the next season. Despite this, he was replaced by Roberto Mancini in 2004.
Coaching Torino
After two years without a club, Zaccheroni became the head coach of Torino in September 2006. He replaced the previous manager just before the season started. Torino had a good start, but then had a tough period with six losses in a row. He was sacked in February 2007.
Leading Juventus
On January 29, 2010, Zaccheroni was appointed manager of Juventus. He signed a four-month contract. His first win with Juventus was a 3–2 victory against Genoa.
He also led Juventus in the UEFA Europa League. They won against Ajax but were later knocked out by Fulham. Juventus finished the season in seventh place in Serie A. This was a difficult season for the club.
Success with Japan
On August 30, 2010, Alberto Zaccheroni became the new manager of the Japan national football team. His first match in charge was a historic 1–0 win against Argentina.
His first major tournament with Japan was the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar. He led the team to win their fourth Asian Cup title. They won 1–0 against Australia in the final.
He also led Japan to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. Japan was the first nation to qualify for that World Cup. In the World Cup, Japan lost to Ivory Coast and Colombia. They also drew with Greece. Japan was eliminated in the group stages. After the tournament, Zaccheroni resigned as Japan's manager.
Time in China and UAE
In January 2016, Zaccheroni became the manager of Beijing Guoan, a club in China. However, after a poor start to the season, he was fired in May 2016.
On October 16, 2017, Zaccheroni took over the United Arab Emirates national football team. In January 2018, his team finished second in the Gulf Cup. In January 2019, he led the UAE to the semi-finals of the 2019 AFC Asian Cup. After a 4–0 loss to Qatar in the semi-final, Zaccheroni left his position.
Recent Roles
Since April 2022, he has been the technical commissioner for the "Italian Non Profit National Team." This group promotes good values through sports. In 2022, he also joined FIFA's Technical Study Group for the World Cup in Qatar.
Zaccheroni's Coaching Style
Zaccheroni is famous for his unique attacking style of play. He often used a 3–4–3 formation. This meant his team had three defenders, four midfielders, and three attackers. This was not a common formation at the time.
His system used "wing-backs" instead of regular wide midfielders. These players would run forward to help the attack. They would send crosses into the box for the forwards. Zaccheroni liked his team to play directly. This meant getting the ball to the attackers quickly. His teams also used "pressing" to win the ball back when they didn't have it.
Managerial Statistics
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | Win % | ||||||||
| Lugo |  |
1 July 1988 | 30 June 1990 | 34 | 15 | 15 | 4 | 44.12 | ||||
| Venezia | |
1 July 1990 | 20 January 1992 | 58 | 18 | 26 | 14 | 31.03 | ||||
| Venezia | |
30 March 1992 | 22 February 1993 | 38 | 13 | 15 | 10 | 34.21 | ||||
| Venezia | |
11 April 1993 | 30 June 1993 | 9 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 0.00 | ||||
| Bologna | |
1 July 1993 | 29 November 1993 | 13 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 30.77 | ||||
| Cosenza | |
1 July 1994 | 30 June 1995 | 39 | 11 | 18 | 10 | 28.21 | ||||
| Udinese | |
1 July 1995 | 30 June 1998 | 113 | 50 | 25 | 38 | 44.25 | ||||
| AC Milan | |
1 July 1998 | 12 March 2001 | 125 | 54 | 44 | 27 | 43.20 | ||||
| Lazio | |
1 October 2001 | 30 June 2002 | 46 | 19 | 11 | 16 | 41.30 | ||||
| Inter Milan | |
20 October 2003 | 30 June 2004 | 44 | 18 | 14 | 12 | 40.91 | ||||
| Torino | |
7 September 2006 | 26 February 2007 | 24 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 20.83 | ||||
| Juventus | |
29 January 2010 | 19 May 2010 | 21 | 8 | 5 | 8 | 38.10 | ||||
| Japan |  |
10 September 2010 | 30 June 2014 | 55 | 30 | 12 | 13 | 54.55 | ||||
| Beijing Guoan |  |
15 January 2016 | 20 May 2016 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 30.00 | ||||
| United Arab Emirates |  |
16 October 2017 | 30 January 2019 | 23 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 30.43 | ||||
| Career Total | 652 | 255 | 211 | 186 | 39.11 | |||||||
Personal Life
In February 2023, it was reported that Zaccheroni was recovering from a head injury.
Honours and Awards
Club Achievements
- Riccione
- Campionato Interregionale: 1986–87
- Baracca Lugo
- Campionato Interregionale: 1988–89
- Serie C2: 1989–90
- Venezia
- Serie C1: 1990–91
- Milan
- Serie A: 1998–99
International Achievements
- AFC Asian Cup: 2011
- EAFF East Asian Cup: 2013
Individual Awards
- Albo Panchina d'Oro (2): 1996–97, 1998–99
- Serie A Coach of the Year: 1999
- Japan Football Hall of Fame: Inducted in 2024
See also
In Spanish: Alberto Zaccheroni para niños
