Antonio Benarrivo facts for kids
Benarrivo with Parma in 1993
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 21 August 1968 | |||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Brindisi, Italy | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Full-back | |||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||
| 1986–1989 | Brindisi | 76 | (2) | |||||||||||||
| 1989–1991 | Padova | 69 | (7) | |||||||||||||
| 1991–2004 | Parma | 258 | (5) | |||||||||||||
| Total | 327 | (14) | ||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||
| 1993–1997 | Italy | 23 | (0) | |||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||
Antonio Benarrivo (born August 21, 1968) is a former Italian professional football player. He was a defender, which means he played in a position to stop the other team from scoring goals. Many people thought he was one of the best players in his position during the 1990s.
Benarrivo was an energetic player who could attack and defend. He started his career with Brindisi in 1986. Later, he moved to Padova in 1989. He became very well-known during his time with Parma, joining the club in 1991. With Parma, he won many important titles in Italy and Europe. He even became the player with the most appearances for the club in Italy's top league, Serie A, and in European competitions.
Antonio Benarrivo also played for the Italian national team. He represented Italy at the 1994 FIFA World Cup, where his team made it all the way to the final match.
Contents
Playing for Clubs
Antonio Benarrivo started his professional football journey with his hometown team, Brindisi. This was in the Serie C1 league during the 1986–87 season. He played there for three seasons.
After his time in Brindisi, he moved to Padova in Serie B. He played for Padova for two years. During this time, his skills caught the eye of bigger football clubs in Italy.
Joining Parma and Early Success
In 1991, Parma bought Benarrivo. This was under the coach Nevio Scala. In his very first year with Parma in Serie A, he helped the team qualify for the UEFA Cup. He quickly became one of Parma's strongest players.
Over the next ten years, Parma, with Benarrivo, achieved great success. In his first year in the top league, Benarrivo won the Italian Cup in 1992. The next year, during the 1992–93 season, he won the Cup Winners' Cup.
He reached the Cup Winners' Cup final again in the 1993–94 season, but his team lost that time. However, he did win the European Supercup with Parma in 1993.
More Trophies and Challenges
Benarrivo continued to have thrilling wins with Parma. They won the UEFA Cup again during the 1994–95 season. They also reached another Coppa Italia final.
Even though Parma was very successful in cup competitions, they found it hard to win the Serie A league title. They often finished high up in the league, but couldn't beat strong teams like Milan and Juventus. Their best league finish was second place in the 1996–97 season. This helped them qualify for the 1997–98 UEFA Champions League.
Later Years and Retirement
Benarrivo had another successful year with Parma during the 1998–99 season. Parma finished fourth in the league. Benarrivo also won his second UEFA Cup and Italian Cup titles that season. After these wins, they also won the 1999 Supercoppa Italiana in 1999.
After this season, Benarrivo started playing less often as a regular starter. In the 1999–2000 season, Parma finished fourth again. They just missed out on qualifying for the UEFA Champions League.
Parma finished fourth for a third time in a row during the 2000–01 season. They also reached another Coppa Italia final, but lost to Fiorentina. Benarrivo did add one more trophy to his collection, winning his third Italian Cup in 2002.
Antonio Benarrivo retired from professional football in 2004. He played 257 games for Parma in Serie A, scoring 5 goals. He holds the record for the most appearances for Parma in Italy's top football league. After he retired, he worked as a coach.
Playing for Italy
Benarrivo played for the Italian national team a total of 23 times. For a while, he was the main right-back player for Italy. He played his first game for Italy on September 22, 1993. This was a World Cup qualifying match against Estonia.
He was part of the Italian team at the 1994 FIFA World Cup. Italy reached the final of the tournament, but they lost to Brazil in a penalty shootout. Benarrivo was a very important player in the starting team for the 1994 World Cup. He even played in the final match. He showed he could play well on both the right and left sides of the field.
During the World Cup, he famously won a penalty kick in extra time during the game against Nigeria. Roberto Baggio scored from this penalty, which sent Italy to the quarter-finals. Benarrivo continued to play for the national team until 1997. His last game was on October 29, against Russia.
How He Played
Antonio Benarrivo was usually a right-sided player, but he could play comfortably on both the right and left sides of the field. He was an energetic full-back who was known for his ability to join in attacks, even though he didn't score many goals himself.
Sometimes, he played as a wing-back or even a wide midfielder. This was because he was very fast and had great stamina. He was also good at attacking, had good technique, and could deliver accurate crosses into the box. He was able to cover the entire side of the field, both in attack and defense. These skills made him one of the best players in his position during the 1990s.
Awards and Trophies
Parma
- Coppa Italia: 1991–92, 1998–99, 2001–02
- Supercoppa Italiana: 1999
- UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 1992–93
- UEFA Cup: 1994–95, 1998–99
- UEFA Super Cup: 1993
Italy
- FIFA World Cup runner-up: 1994
See also
In Spanish: Antonio Benarrivo para niños
