Comunardo Niccolai Facts for Kids

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Comunardo Niccolai
Personal information
Full name	Comunardo Niccolai
Date of birth	(1946-12-15) 15 December 1946 (age 76)
Place of birth	Uzzano, Italy
Height	1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)
Playing position	Centre back
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps^†	(Gls)^†
1963–1964	Torres	22	(0)
1964–1976	Cagliari	218	(4)
1976–1977	Perugia	7	(0)
1977–1978	Prato	4	(0)
Total		251	(4)
National team
1970	Italy	3	(0)
Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Comunardo Niccolai (Italian pronunciation: [komuˈnardo nikkoˈlai]; born 15 December 1946) is an Italian former footballer, who played as a defender.

Club career
International career
After retirement
Honours
- Club
- International
See also

Club career

A tough, physically strong centre-back, Niccolai initially began his career with Torres in 1963, before joining Cagliari Calcio, where he played from 1964 to 1976, winning the only Serie A championship in the club's entire club history in 1970. He ended his career in 1977 with Perugia. Niccolai played 218 Serie A matches, and is still remembered today for his proneness to score own goals, including some very spectacular ones.

International career

Niccolai made three appearances for the Italy national football team in 1970, and represented the team at the 1970 FIFA World Cup, where he won a runners-up medal; he only appeared in Italy's opening group match, a 1–0 win against Sweden on 3 June, as he was replaced by Roberto Rosato in the 37th minute, after sustaining an injury which kept him out of the remainder of the tournament. This led his Cagliari coach Manlio Scopigno to declare: "I could expect everything from my life, but to see Niccolai in international telecast".