Alessandro Altobelli (; born 28 November 1955) is a former professional Italian footballer who played as a forward, and who won the 1982 World Cup with Italy. Nicknamed Spillo ("Needle") for his slender build, Altobelli was a prolific goalscorer and regarded as one of the greatest and most effective Italian strikers of the late 1970s and 1980s. Altobelli is currently the all-time top scorer in the Coppa Italia, with 56 goals in 93 appearances, and the ninth-highest scoring Italian player in all competitions, with almost 300 career goals.
Club career Altobelli was born in Sonnino, Latina. Following spells at Latina (Serie C) and Brescia (Serie B), he was signed by Serie A club Inter Milan in 1977, for whom he played 466 times, scoring 209 goals (128 in Serie A). He contributed heavily to his team's scudetto victory of 1980 (scoring 15 goals), and also helped Inter to win two Coppa Italia titles in 1978 and 1982, finishing as the tournament's top scorer in the 1982 edition, with nine goals. Altobelli was also the top scorer in the 1978–79 European Cup Winners' Cup, with seven goals, leading Inter to the quarter-finals of the tournament. After his lengthy period with Inter, he played one season with Juventus during the 1988–89 season, before ending his career with Brescia in Serie B once again, during the 1989–90 season.
International career For Italy, Altobelli was capped 61 times between 1980 and 1988, scoring 25 goals, and he is currently Italy's sixth highest goalscorer. His most notable international goal was Italy's third goal in the 1982 FIFA World Cup final, which Italy won 3–1 over West Germany. After coming on in the seventh minute of play for the injured Francesco Graziani, he became the second ever substitute to score in a FIFA World Cup final (after Dick Nanninga in 1978 and with Rudi Völler and Mario Götze repeating this, in 1986 and in 2014, respectively). Altobelli also played at Euro 80, with Italy finishing in fourth place on home soil, as well as representing Italy at the 1986 FIFA World Cup, scoring four goals, which were, however, not enough to prevent the defending champions from crashing out of the tournament in the round of 16. He also represented Italy at Euro 88, where he played as the team's captain, leading the Italian squad to the semi-finals once again. He made four substitute appearances scoring just after coming on in a 2–0 win over Denmark in the group stages.
Style of play Altobelli played as a centre-forward and was regarded by several commentators as one of the leading strikers of his generation. A left-footed player, he was known for his aerial ability, including his heading accuracy, elevation, agility, and acrobatic finishing. He was also noted for his pace, work rate, technical ability, and finishing with either foot. Despite his relatively slender build, he combined balance and physical strength, enabling him to shield the ball, play with his back to goal, and bring teammates into attacking moves.
After retirement After retirement, he played for Italy national beach soccer team, being the top scorer at the 1995 and 1996 Beach Soccer World Championships.
In the 1990s, he entered politics. He also worked as a sporting director for Padova and as a football scout for Inter.
In the 2000s, he served as a pundit for Al Jazeera. Since September 2020, he serves as a pundit for RAI TV show A tutto campo. He also featured as a pundit in 90º minuto.
Career statistics Club + Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueCoppa ItaliaEuropeTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsLatina1973–74Serie C287––287Brescia1974–75Serie B16210–1721975–76Serie B261140–30111976–77Serie B341333–3716Total762683–8429Inter Milan1977–78Serie A28101042040141978–79Serie A2911216737191979–80Serie A2915544338221980–81Serie A2912418441171981–82Serie A299994342211982–83Serie A30151145346221983–84Serie A2810536239151984–85Serie A301711610251251985–86Serie A2996410645191986–87Serie A2811758343191987–88Serie A289105624416Total31712880466935466209Juventus1988–89Serie A20467843515Brescia1989–90Serie B32710–337Career total47317295567739645275
International + Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsItaly19806219813019827219834119849319857319861091987104198851Total6125
Scores and results list Italy's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Altobelli goal.
+ List of international goals scored by Alessandro AltobelliNo.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition1Stadio Luigi Ferraris, Genoa, Italy1–03–1Friendly22–13Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, Madrid, Spain3–03–11982 FIFA World Cup4San Siro, Milan, Italy1–02–2UEFA Euro 1984 qualifying522 December 1983Stadio Renato Curi, Perugia, Italy1–03–1UEFA Euro 1984 qualifying6BJK İnönü Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey2–12–3Friendly7Varsity Stadium, Toronto, Canada1–02–0Friendly8Stadio Adriatico – Giovanni Cornacchia, Pescara, Italy1–02–0Friendly9Dalymount Park, Dublin, Republic of Ireland2–02–0Friendly10Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico2–12–1Friendly11Stadio Via del Mare, Lecce, Italy1–01–2Friendly12Stadio Friuli, Udine, Italy1–12–1Friendly13Stadio San Paolo, Naples, Italy2–02–0Friendly14Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico1–01–11986 FIFA World Cup15Estadio Cuauhtémoc, Puebla, Mexico1–01–11986 FIFA World Cup16Estadio Cuauhtémoc, Puebla, Mexico1–03–21986 FIFA World Cup172–118San Siro, Milan, Italy2–13–2UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying193–120National Stadium, Ta' Qali, Malta2–02–0UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying21Stadio Comunale, Bergamo, Italy3–05–0UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying224–023Estádio Nacional, Lisbon, Portugal1–01–0UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying24Arena Garibaldi – Stadio Romeo Anconetani, Pisa, Italy1–01–0Friendly25Müngersdorfer Stadion, Cologne, Germany1–02–0UEFA Euro 1988
Honours Inter Milan Serie A: 1979–80 Coppa Italia: 1977–78, 1981–82
Italy FIFA World Cup: 1982
Individual European Cup Winners' Cup top goalscorer: 1978–79 Coppa Italia top goalscorer: 1981–82 Beach Soccer World Championships top goalscorer: 1995, 1996 Italian Football Hall of Fame: 2022
See also List of FIFA World Cup top goalscorers
References
External links
Official website Alessandro Altobelli at Treccani