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José Altafini

Altafini in 1974

Personal information

Full name

José João Altafini

Date of birth

24 July 1938 (age 86)

Place of birth

Piracicaba, Brazil

Height

1.76 m

Playing position

Striker

Senior career*

Years

Team

Apps^†

(Gls)^†

1956–1958

Palmeiras

114

(89)

1958–1965

AC Milan

205

(120)

1965–1972

Napoli

180

(71)

1972–1976

Juventus

(25)

1976

Toronto Italia

1976–1979

Chiasso

(18)

1979–1980

Mendrisiostar

(11)

Total

653

(334)

National team

1957–1958

Brazil

(4)

1961–1962

Italy

(5)

Honours

Men's Football

Representing Brazil
FIFA World Cup
Winner	1958 Sweden

Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

† Appearances (Goals).

José João Altafini (born 24 July 1938) is a famous former footballer. He was known as "Mazzola" in Brazil because he looked like the Italian football legend Valentino Mazzola. Altafini played as a forward, scoring many goals throughout his career.

He started playing for Palmeiras in Brazil. Later, he moved to Italy and became very successful with AC Milan. He also played for Napoli and Juventus. He finished his career in Switzerland.

Altafini was a top goalscorer. For over 50 years, he held the record for the most goals in a single European Cup season. He is also one of only eight players to score five goals in one European Cup match. He is one of the highest scorers in Italian Serie A history, with 216 goals.

Internationally, he played for both Brazil and Italy. He was part of the Brazilian team that won the 1958 FIFA World Cup. He later played for Italy in the 1962 FIFA World Cup.

Today, Altafini is a well-known football expert on Italian TV and radio. He is famous for saying "golaço" (or "golazzo" in Italian) when a great goal is scored, and "incredibile, amici!" ("incredible, friends!").

Early Life and Nickname

José Altafini was born on 24 July 1938, in Piracicaba, Brazil. His family was from Italy, which helped him get Italian citizenship later. His father worked in a sugar factory, and his mother was a housemaid.

José started playing football at age 16 for a local youth team. It was then that he got his nickname "Mazzola." This was because he looked a lot like the famous Italian player Valentino Mazzola. At 17, he joined the youth team of Palmeiras. He first played as a midfielder or winger, but soon moved to a more attacking role as a forward.

Club Career Highlights

Starting with Palmeiras

Altafini made his first team debut for Palmeiras in Brazil on 29 January 1956. He scored two goals in his very first game. This made him the youngest goalscorer for the club at 17, a record he still holds today.

He played for Palmeiras for two seasons, scoring 89 goals in 114 matches. His goal-scoring rate was one of the best for a Palmeiras player. In one game, he scored all five goals in a 5–0 win, which is still a club record.

Success with AC Milan

Altafini playing for AC Milan

After the 1958 World Cup, Altafini moved to Italy to play for AC Milan. He was bought by Milan for a large sum of money. In his first season, he played 32 games and scored 28 goals, helping Milan win the 1958–59 Serie A title. He scored 32 goals in all competitions that season.

On 27 March 1960, he scored four goals in the famous Milan derby against Inter. Milan won that game 5–3. In the 1961–62 season, Milan won the Serie A title again. Altafini was the league's top scorer with 22 goals.

In the 1963 European Cup Final, Altafini scored two goals against Benfica. This helped Milan win their first European trophy. He finished that competition as the top scorer with a record 14 goals. This record stood for over 50 years until Cristiano Ronaldo broke it in 2014. In one match, he scored five goals in a single European Cup game, a rare achievement.

During his seven years with Milan, Altafini won two Serie A titles and one European Cup. He also won top goalscoring awards in Serie A, the Coppa Italia, and the European Cup.

Time at Napoli

Altafini with Napoli in 1965

In 1965, Altafini joined Napoli. He played there for seven years and formed a strong partnership with fellow player Omar Sívori. He became very popular with Napoli fans. In 1967, he scored an amazing bicycle kick goal, which he called a "golaço."

He helped Napoli compete for the league title. They finished second in the 1967–68 Serie A season, their best finish at that time. He also helped them reach the 1971–72 Coppa Italia final, but they lost to his old club, Milan.

Winning More Titles with Juventus

After Napoli, Altafini moved to Juventus in 1972. Even though he was older, he was very important in helping Juventus win two more Serie A titles. These were in the 1972–73 and 1974–75 seasons.

In the 1972–73 season, he scored a crucial goal against Roma that helped Juventus win the title. Another famous moment was his winning goal against his former club, Napoli, in 1975. He came off the bench and scored in the 88th minute, helping Juventus win 2–1. This win helped Juventus secure the title. After this game, Napoli fans put up a banner saying "José core 'ngrato" (José, ungrateful heart).

Altafini with Juventus in the 1972–73 season

He also helped Juventus reach the Coppa Italia and European Cup Final in 1973. They lost both finals, but still won the league title. He left Serie A in 1976 after 18 seasons.

By the time he left Juventus at age 38, Altafini had played 459 games in Serie A and scored 216 goals. He is currently the fourth highest goalscorer of all time in Serie A.

Later Career in Switzerland

After leaving Italy in 1976, Altafini played briefly in Canada. Then, he played for four years in Switzerland for Chiasso. He helped them get promoted to the top league. He later played for another Swiss team, Mendrisiostar, before retiring in 1980 at the age of 42. He had a professional football career spanning 25 seasons.

International Career

Playing for Brazil

Altafini made his international debut for Brazil at 18 years old on 16 June 1957. He scored a goal in his first game against Portugal. He also helped Brazil win the Copa Roca against Argentina alongside Pelé.

Altafini (left) in 2008

Altafini, known as Mazzola, was part of the Brazil team that won the 1958 FIFA World Cup in Sweden. At 19, he was the second-youngest player in the squad after Pelé. He started the tournament well, scoring two goals in the first match against Austria. He played 8 games for Brazil and scored 4 goals.

Playing for Italy

For the 1962 FIFA World Cup, Altafini played for Italy. He explained that Brazil did not usually call up players who played overseas. Since he was only 23 or 24, he wanted to play in the World Cup.

He made his debut for Italy on 15 October 1961, scoring in a World Cup qualifying match against Israel. He also scored two goals in friendly wins before the World Cup. Altafini played in Italy's first two group matches at the 1962 World Cup. Italy was eliminated early, and he did not play for Italy again. He made 6 appearances for Italy, scoring 5 goals.

Style of Play

José Altafini was considered one of the best strikers of his time. He was a complete forward with great skills and a good eye for goal. He was quick, agile, and physically strong.

He had excellent control of the ball, good technique, and great dribbling ability. He started his career as an attacking midfielder or winger, which made him a very creative player. He was known for his powerful and accurate shots, smart attacking runs, and quick reactions inside the penalty area.

Media Appearances

Football Pundit

After retiring from playing, Altafini became a well-known football commentator in Italy. He is famous for coining the term golazzo, which means 'great goal' in Portuguese. This phrase was even used at the start and end of the TV show Football Italia.

Books

Altafini has also co-written two books about football: Incredibile amici! Il mio manuale del calcio and Futebol e alegria. Personaggi, fatti, aneddoti del mio calcio.

Career Statistics

In Italy

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club	Season	League		Cup		Europe		Other		Total
Club	Season	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
AC Milan	1958–59	32	28	4	4	–	–	2	2	38	34
	1959–60	33	20	–	–	4	2	2	4	39	26
	1960–61	34	22	2	4	–	–	2	0	38	26
	1961–62	33	22	–	–	2	0	–	–	35	22
	1962–63	31	11	2	1	9	14	4	5	46	31
	1963–64	30	14	1	0	4	4	3	1	38	19
	1964–65	12	3	–	–	–	–	–	–	12	3
	Total	205	120	9	9	19	20	13	12	246	161
Napoli	1965–66	34	14	2	1	-	-	5	7	41	22
	1966–67	27	16	1	1	5	1	–	–	33	18
	1967–68	29	13	2	1	3	3	–	–	34	17
	1968–69	21	5	4	2	3	1	–	–	28	8
	1969–70	15	8	3	0	3	0	5	3	26	11
	1970–71	25	7	11	4	–	–	–	–	36	11
	1971–72	29	8	5	2	2	0	–	–	36	10
	Total	180	71	28	11	16	5	10	10	234	97
Juventus	1972–73	23	9	6	0	6	3	–	–	35	12
	1973–74	21	7	8	2	2	1	1	0	32	10
	1974–75	20	8	6	0	9	5	–	–	35	13
	1975–76	10	1	4	1	3	0	–	–	17	2
	Total	74	25	24	3	20	9	1	0	119	37
Career total		459	216	61	23	55	34	24	22	599	295

*European competitions include the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Cup Winners' Cup & UEFA Cup

International Appearances and Goals

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Brazil	1957	3	2
Brazil	1958	5	2
Total		8	4

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Italy	1961	2	1
Italy	1962	4	4
Total		6	5

Altafini's team's score listed first, score column indicates score after each Altafini goal.

International goals by José Altafini
No.	Team	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
Brazil	1	16 June 1957	Pacaembu Stadium, São Paulo, Brazil	Portugal	–	3–0	Friendly
	2	10 July 1957	Pacaembu Stadium, São Paulo, Brazil	Argentina	–	2–0	1957 Roca Cup
	3	8 June 1958	Rimnersvallen, Uddevalla, Sweden	Austria	1–0	3–0	1958 FIFA World Cup
	4	8 June 1958	Rimnersvallen, Uddevalla, Sweden	Austria	3–0	3–0	1958 FIFA World Cup
Italy	5	15 October 1961	Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel	Israel	2–2	4–2	1962 FIFA World Cup qualification
	6	5 May 1962	Stadio Comunale, Florence, Italy	France	1–1	2–1	Friendly
	7	5 May 1962	Stadio Comunale, Florence, Italy	France	2–1	2–1	Friendly
	8	13 May 1962	Stade du Heysel, Brussels, Belgium	Belgium	2–1	3–1	Friendly
	9	13 May 1962	Stade du Heysel, Brussels, Belgium	Belgium	3–1	3–1	Friendly