Renato Zaccarelli

Renato Zaccarelli

Personal information
Full name	Renato Zaccarelli
Date of birth	(1951-01-18) 18 January 1951
Place of birth	Ancona, Italy
Height
Position(s)	Midfielder
Youth career
1966–1968	Torino
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1968–1969	Catania	2	(0)
1969–1970	Torino	0	(0)
1971–1973	Novara	52	(1)
1973–1974	Verona	30	(5)
1974–1987	Torino	317	(17)
International career
1975–1980	Italy	25	(2)
Managerial career
?	Italy U21 B
?	Italy U21 (vice)
2003	Torino
2004–2005	Torino
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Renato Zaccarelli (born 18 January 1951) is a former Italian professional footballer and manager who played as a midfielder.

Club career

After Giorgio Ferrini and Paolo Pulici, Renato Zaccarelli is the third player of Torino with the most appearances in Serie A. He began his career in the youth ranks of Junior Ancona, a historical team of the district of Vallemiano; at age 15 he began playing for Torino, before being sold to gain experience in Serie B with Catania and Novara. He debuted in the top flight with Verona in 1973 and returned to the Granata in the summer of 1974; the following year he formed a great midfield with Eraldo Pecci, Claudio Sala and Patrizio Sala.

Zaccarelli was a classic midfielder, elegant, practical and a consistent performance. Towards the end of his career he moved back in defence and reinvented himself as a libero from a tactical sense. In this role, he lived a second youth, to the point that in 1986, at age 35, he was awarded the "Guerin d'oro" as the best player of the 1985–86 season. With the "Bull" he won a scudetto in 1975–76.

International career

He played for five years in the Italian national football team (25 appearances and 2 goals) and participated in the 1978 FIFA World Cup in Argentina, where Italy finished fourth. He was played from bench as second to Giancarlo Antognoni and eventually racked up five appearances and one goal, that of a 2–1 comeback victory against France.

Zaccarelli (right) in action during Perugia-Torino in 1976, battling his former teammate Agroppi

Managerial career

After hanging up his boots, Zaccarelli alternated his coaching career with an executive career.

He was the Director of football of Torino in the Goveani era, team manager under Calleri; in 1992-93, the Director of football at Alessandria.

he began his coaching career in the service of the Italy under-21 Serie B representative team, and assistant coach of the Italy under-21. Back in Turin in 2002 he was a manager of the youth team.

In 2003 he became general manager of Torino in place of Sandro Mazzola. Zaccarelli was engaged as a coach at the end of the 2002–03 Serie A season (succeeding Renzo Ulivieri) and before the playoffs in the 2004-05 Serie B (instead of Ezio Rossi): attaining promotion for the Granata. In 2005–06 he moved to Bologna with the post of Director of football.

Honours

Club

Torino

• Serie A: 1975–76

Individual

• Guerin d'oro: 1986

References

• Renato Zaccarelli at National-Football-Teams.com