Arrigo Sacchi facts for kids
Arrigo Sacchi (born 1 April 1946) is a famous Italian former football coach. He is best known for leading the AC Milan team twice. Many people think Sacchi is one of the greatest football managers ever. His AC Milan team from 1987 to 1991 is seen as one of the best club teams in history.
Sacchi won the Serie A league title in his first season with AC Milan in 1987–88. After that, he became very successful in European football. He won the European Cup (now called the UEFA Champions League) two years in a row, in 1989 and 1990. From 1991 to 1996, he coached the Italian national team. He led them to the 1994 FIFA World Cup Final, where they lost to Brazil in a penalty shoot-out.
Arrigo Sacchi never played football professionally. For many years, he worked as a shoe salesman. When people questioned his coaching skills because he hadn't been a pro player, he famously said: "I never realised that in order to become a jockey you have to have been a horse first." Another well-known quote from Sacchi is: "football is the most important of the least important things in life."
Contents
Arrigo Sacchi's Football Journey
Early Coaching Days
Sacchi grew up watching exciting attacking football teams. These included famous teams like Real Madrid and the Netherlands national team. He began his coaching career with his local club, Baracca Lugo. He coached them because he wasn't good enough to play for them. Sacchi later said about this challenge: "I was twenty-six, my goalkeeper was thirty-nine and my centre-forward was thirty-two. I had to win them over."
After Baracca Lugo, he coached at Bellaria. Then he joined Cesena as a youth team coach. Cesena was in Serie B, a lower league. Next, he took over Rimini, a team in Serie C1. He almost led them to win the league title.
Sacchi got his big break when he moved to Fiorentina as a youth coach. His success with the youth team caught the eye of Parma. Parma was also playing in Serie C1 at the time. He helped Parma get promoted in his first season. The next season, they almost reached Serie A, missing out by just three points. More importantly, Parma did very well in the Coppa Italia (Italian Cup). They beat AC Milan 1–0 in the group stages. Then they beat Milan again 1–0 over two games in the knockout round. This impressive performance attracted the attention of AC Milan's owner, Silvio Berlusconi. Berlusconi quickly hired Sacchi as Milan's new manager.
Success with AC Milan
When Sacchi arrived at AC Milan, some people doubted him. The press argued that someone who wasn't a good player could not be a successful coach. Sacchi famously used his witty reply: "I never realised that in order to become a jockey you have to have been a horse first." Sacchi quickly found success at Milan. He led the team to win their first Serie A title in nine years in his very first season (1987–88). After that, they also won the Supercoppa Italiana in 1988.
Sacchi's biggest achievements at Milan were winning two European Cups in a row. This success was largely due to three Dutch players he bought: Marco van Basten, Ruud Gullit, and Frank Rijkaard. However, other great players were also key to his success. These included Roberto Donadoni and the strong defensive line of Franco Baresi, Alessandro Costacurta, Mauro Tassotti, and Paolo Maldini.
The first European Cup final in 1989 was against Steaua București. Milan won easily, 4–0. Gullit and Van Basten each scored two goals. Milan lifted the European Cup for the first time in over 20 years. On their way to the final, Milan beat Real Madrid 6–1 over two games in the semi-final. The quarter-final against Werder Bremen was very close. Milan won 1–0 thanks to a penalty goal from Van Basten.
Even though the team was not as strong the next season, they won the European Cup again in 1990. After beating HJK Helsinki, Real Madrid, and KV Mechelen, Milan defeated Bayern Munich in the semi-final. They won because of the away goal rule. In the 1990 final, Frank Rijkaard scored the only goal with an assist from Van Basten. Milan beat Benfica. By winning this final, Milan became the first team to keep the title since 1980. They were also the last team to do so until Real Madrid achieved it 27 years later. Sacchi also won two European Super Cups and two Intercontinental Cups in 1989 and 1990. He led Milan to the 1989–90 Coppa Italia final, but they lost to Juventus. The next season, Milan was knocked out of the European Cup by Marseille. They finished second in Serie A behind Sampdoria. This was Sacchi's last season with AC Milan for a while.
Leading the Italian National Team
In November 1991, Sacchi became the manager of the Italian national team. He mostly picked players from AC Milan for his team, especially in defense. Paolo Maldini and Franco Baresi were key defenders. The attack was led by Roberto Baggio, who won the Ballon d'Or award in 1993. Some famous players like Gianluca Vialli and Roberto Mancini were not often chosen by Sacchi.
Sacchi led Italy through the qualification games to reach the 1994 FIFA World Cup. Italy lost their first match 1–0 to the Republic of Ireland. They finished third in their group. However, they still made it to the final. This was Italy's first World Cup final since 1982. In the final, they lost to Brazil in a penalty shoot-out. This was the first time a World Cup final was decided by penalties. Under Sacchi, Italy also qualified for UEFA Euro 1996. But they were knocked out in the group stage. Sacchi later said that his Euro 96 team was his best Italian squad.
Later Coaching Roles
After leaving the national team, Sacchi returned to AC Milan in December 1996. However, his second time at Milan was not successful. Milan finished 11th in the league. They also had their worst ever Serie A defeat, losing 6–1 at home to Juventus.
Sacchi then had short periods coaching in Spain's La Liga. He took charge of Atlético Madrid in 1998. He left in March of that season, with the team struggling. He also briefly returned to Parma in 2001. He resigned after only three matches because of stress. Later, he went back to Madrid, but this time as a director of football for Real Madrid in 2004–05.
Honours
Parma
- Serie C1: 1985–86
Milan
- Serie A: 1987–88
- Supercoppa Italiana: 1988
- European Cup: 1988–89, 1989–90
- European Super Cup: 1989, 1990
- Intercontinental Cup: 1989, 1990
- Coppa Italia Runners-up: 1989–90
Italy
- FIFA World Cup Runners-up: 1994
Individual
- Seminatore d'Oro: 1988, 1989
- World Soccer Awards Manager of the Year: 1989
- Ranked among the Greatest Managers of All Time by France Football, World Soccer, and ESPN
- Sports Illustrated Greatest Manager of All Time: 2nd place (2019)
- Italian Football Hall of Fame: 2011
- UEFA President's Award: 2022
See also
In Spanish: Arrigo Sacchi para niños
