1963–64 Bologna F.C. 1909 season
During 1963–64 season Bologna F.C. competed in Serie A, Coppa Italia and Mitropa Cup.
| 1963-64 season | |
|---|---|
| Chairman | Renato Dall'Ara (until 4 June).[1] Luigi Goldoni |
| Manager | Fulvio Bernardini |
| Serie A | 1º (in European Cup)[2] |
| Coppa Italia | Quarterfinals |
| Mitropa Cup | Semifinals |
| Top goalscorer | League: Nielsen (21) All: Nielsen (25) |
Summary
After World War II, the club was less successful. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, the club generally floated between fourth, fifth and sixth position in the league, Things started to turn around when new manager and former 1928 Italy national team Olympian Fulvio Bernardini took his place on the Bologna touchline. On his resume, was Fiorentina's 1956 Serie A championship. On his arrival at the club, the side was already well stocked with talented players, but a few crucial ingredients were missing that would make Bologna true title contenders once again. Bernardini made several quality acquisition, such as the purchase of Harald Nielsen, a Denmark Olympic squad member who caught Bologna's eye at the Rome 1960 Games. Helmut Haller, the German international, also came on board. Like Nielsen, Haller was an amateur player who divided his time between football and driving a truck for a living. The club's owner, Renato Dall’Ara, personally went to Germany to sign the player. However, on his way back to Italy, Dall’Ara's car skidded off the road and crashed into a ditch. Without missing a beat, the old man emerged from the wreck waving Haller's contract and shouting, “Don’t worry about the accident, what matters is that we got this piece of paper signed!”
The next season, Haller and teammates like Ezio Pascutti with his spectacular diving headers delighted the Bologna faithful. However, they still only managed a fourth place finish and the finger was pointed at goalkeeper Santarelli, who at times was guilty of poor mistakes. The finishing touch came with the purchase of former Italy national team goalkeeper William Negri. Three wins a row launched the 1963/64 season, and despite a stuttering start after that, it was a win over Genoa that got Bologna's season back on track. The team regrouped and travelled to the San Siro for a difficult test against Inter. They played excellently, and Negri put in a top performance between the sticks, and the game ended in a goalless draw. From here, Bologna gained confidence and marched to ten successive victories, progressively making their way up the table. Nobody could believe what they were seeing. Even Helenio Herrera was shocked when his Inter lost in their second meeting. The Rossoblu kept moving towards their 7th Scudetto with a 2–1 win over AC Milan after which they found themselves leading both Milan clubs in the standings by three points. But three days after the Milan victory, everything came crashing down.
In March, the Italian Football Federation issued a statement that 5 Bologna players had tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs. They were immediately suspended and the club was docked 3 points. Everyone associated with Bologna FC was shocked, and nobody doubted the innocence of the players implicated for a moment. The notoriously tough and emotionless Fulvio Bernardini was in tears. So close to finally winning another title after a 23-year wait, it was about to be ripped away from them. Well, Bologna were having none of it. Protest marches exploded in the streets, the local media cried foul in the newspapers, and a team of Bolognese lawyers took on the case. While all this was happening, Renato Dall’Ara, by now an elderly man, was on the way out with a failing heart. The Bolognese prosecutor discovered that the tubes containing the urine samples from the players were not adequately sealed – therefore, anyone could have tampered with the specimens. In addition, the methamphetamine the samples contained was enough to kill a man. Meanwhile, other samples from the players, taken at the same time, were found perfectly sealed, in a double-locked refrigerator, with no traces of drugs whatsoever. The plot thickened. In the end, the players were acquitted of any wrongdoing. It was determined that the entire affair was an act of sabotage on behalf of the northern clubs to derail Bologna's season.
However, Bologna still lost 3 points while investigations continued and because of that, they struggled to keep up with Inter in the race for the Scudetto. The two teams matched each other win for win while Bologna anxiously awaited for the final investigation results. Finally it came – an established lack of evidence of any wrongdoing meant that the crucial three points would be returned to Bologna, bringing them level with Inter, with just three games to go. At the end of the season, both teams were still on equal points, which meant that for the first and only time in the history of the Serie A, a playoff would decide the ultimate champions. Four days before this penultimate match however, Bologna's emblematic president of 30 years, Renato Dall’Ara, died from a heart attack in the middle of a meeting in the offices of the Federation. The players were in tears, as Dall’Ara was not only their employer, he was like their father. Bologna's season from hell continued.:[3] In his honour, Bologna took to the pitch against an Inter side who had just become European champions. Finally, the play-off kicked off.
After a goalless first half, the Bolognese side outclassed team from Milan and won 2–0. The Scudetto, to this day their last, was finally theirs, despite everything that had taken place. Bologna never gave up. Time and again, just when it seemed like it couldn't get any worse, it did – but they just kept on going and the reward for their perseverance was the Scudetto.[4][5]
Squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
|
|
Transfers
| In | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pos. | Name | from | Type |
| GK | William Negri | Mantova | |
| Out | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pos. | Name | To | Type |
| MF | Renzo Ragonesi | Catanzaro | |
Competitions
Serie A
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bologna (C) | 34 | 22 | 10 | 2 | 54 | 18 | +36 | 54 | Qualification to European Cup[a] |
| 2 | Internazionale[b] | 34 | 23 | 8 | 3 | 54 | 21 | +33 | 54 | |
| 3 | Milan | 34 | 21 | 9 | 4 | 58 | 28 | +30 | 51 | Chosen for Inter-Cities Fairs Cup |
| 4 | Fiorentina | 34 | 14 | 10 | 10 | 43 | 27 | +16 | 38 | |
| 4 | Juventus | 34 | 14 | 10 | 10 | 49 | 37 | +12 | 38 |
(C) Champion
Notes:
- ^ Inter qualified as defending champions.
- ^ After the title tie-breaker with Bologna (2–0).
Matches
| 25 September 1963 3 | Bologna | 2-0 | Atalanta | Bologna |
| Bulgarelli 31', 68' | Stadium: Comunale Referee: Giuseppe Cirone |
| 29 September 1963 4 | Bologna | 2-0 | Fiorentina | Bologna |
| Nielsen 20' Bulgarelli 30' | Stadium: Comunale Referee: Concetto Lo Bello |
| 6 October 1963 5 | Modena | 1-4 | Bologna | Modena |
| Toro 66' | 11', 43', 50' Nielsen 72' Pascutti | Stadium: Stadio Alberto Braglia Referee: Giulio Campanati |
| 23 October 1963 7 | Sampdoria | 2-0 | Bologna | Genova |
| Frustalupi 17' Wisnieski 20' | Stadium: Stadio Luigi Ferraris Referee: Bruno De Marchi |
| 17 November 1963 10 | Inter | 0-0 | Bologna | Milan |
| Stadium: Stadio San Siro Referee: Bruno De Marchi |
| 8 December 1963 13 | Catania Calcio | 1-3 | Bologna | Catania |
| Fanello 63' | 46', 49', 75' Nielsen | Stadium: Stadio Cibali Referee: Antonio Sbardella |
| 5 January 1964 16 | Messina | 0-2 | Bologna | Messina |
| 64' Perani 80' Pascutti | Stadium: Stadio Giovanni Celeste Referee: Antonio Sbardella |
| 26 January 1964 18 | Genoa | 0-2 | Bologna | Genova |
| 52' (pen) Haller 76' Pascutti | Stadium: Stadio Luigi Ferraris Referee: Cesare Jonni |
| 9 February 1964 20 | Atalanta | 1-1 | Bologna | Bergamo |
| Magistrelli 36' | 28' Fogli | Stadium: Comunale Referee: Alessandro D'Agostini |
| 16 February 1964 21 | Fiorentina | 0-0 | Bologna | Firenze |
| Stadium: Comunale Referee: Concetto Lo Bello |
| 22 March 1964 26 | Roma | 0-1 | Bologna | Roma |
| 17' (pen) Haller | Stadium: Stadio Olimpico Referee: Francesco Francescon |
| 26 April 1964 30 | Bologna | 1-0 | Catania Calcio | Bologna |
| Nielsen 18' | Stadium: Comunale Referee: Giorgio Genel |
| 3 May 1964 31 | Mantova | 0-0 | Bologna | Mantova |
| Stadium: Stadio Danilo Martelli Referee: Francesco Francescon |
Championship tie-breaker
| 7 June 1964 | Bologna | 2-0 | Inter | Roma |
| 17:00 | Facchetti 75' (aut.) Nielsen 84' | Stadium: Stadio Olimpico Referee: Concetto Lo Bello |
Coppa Italia
First round
| 8 September 1963 | Udinese | 0-2 | Bologna | Udine |
| 10' Haller 40' Nielsen | Stadium: Stadio Moretti Referee: Sergio Ferrari |
Second round
| 13 November 1963 | Hellas Verona | 0-1 | Bologna | Verona |
| 93' (o.g.) Peretta | Stadium: Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi |
Third round
Quarterfinals
| 10 June 1964 | Juventus | 4-1 | Bologna | Torino |
| Bercellino II 11' Sívori 32' Menichelli 40', 46' | 42' Renna | Stadium: Comunale Referee: Aurelio Angonese |
Mitropa Cup
Quarterfinals
| 20 June 1964 | OFK Belgrado | 2-2 | Bologna | Belgrado |
| Milosev 52' Cebinac 78' | 61' Vinicio 84' Corradi | Stadium: Omladinski Stadium Referee: Fehervari |
Semifinals
| 1 July 1964 | Bologna | 2-2 | Sparta Prague | Bologna |
| Corradi 9' Pantani 39' | 10' (aut.) 59' (aut.) Tentorio | Stadium: Comunale Referee: Mayer |
| 9 July 1964 | Sparta Prague | 3-0 | Bologna | Prague |
| Mráz 69' Mašek 77' Dyba 85' | Stadium: Stadion Letná Referee: Schiller |
Statistics
| Competition | Points | Home | Away | Total | DR | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | Gs | Ga | G | W | D | L | Gs | Ga | G | W | D | L | Gs | Ga | |||
| Serie A | 54 | 17 | 13 | 3 | 1 | 33 | 10 | 17 | 9 | 7 | 1 | 21 | 8 | 34 | 22 | 10 | 2 | 54 | 18 | +36 |
| Spareggio | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | +2 | |
| Coppa Italia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 6 | +2 | |
| Mitropa Cup | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 7 | −2 | |
| Totals | 20 | 15 | 4 | 1 | 40 | 14 | 23 | 12 | 8 | 3 | 29 | 17 | 43 | 27 | 12 | 4 | 69 | 31 | +38 | |
Players statistics
Appearances
- 36. Helmut Haller
- 35. William Negri
- 35. Harald Nielsen
- 35. Francesco Janich
- 35. Carlo Furlanis
- 34. Giacomo Bulgarelli
- 34. Romano Fogli
- 30. Marino Perani
- 29. Paride Tumburus
- 28. Mirko Pavinato
- 25. Ezio Pascutti
- 16. Antonio Renna
- 12. Bruno Capra
- 3. Héctor Demarco
- 3. Bruno Franzini
- 2. Edmondo Lorenzini
- 1. Sidio Corradi
Goalscorers
- 22. Harald Nielsen
- 8. Giacomo Bulgarelli
- 8. Helmut Haller
- 8. Ezio Pascutti
- 6. Marino Perani
- 1. Paride Tumburus
- 1. Héctor Demarco
- 1. Romano Fogli
- 1. Carlo Furlanis
References
- ^ . www.enciclopediadelcalcio.it. Archived from the original on 23 December 2019. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
- ^ After spareggio against Inter competing of Scudetto.
- ^ "Cinque calciatori del Bologna accusati di "doping, La capolista rischia la penalizzazione di tre punti". La Stampa. 5 March 1964.
- ^ Giuseppe Bagnati (19 February 2009). "Quando Bologna-Inter decideva lo scudetto". Gazzetta.it.
- ^ "Il Bologna di Bernardini e lo storico spareggio". gazzetta.it.
- ^
.C.F. Chiesa
— p. 291 - ^ Round rescheduled to 19 January 1964 due to match of Italian National football Team.
- ^ Panini. p. 147..
- C.F. Chiesa (2019). calcio serie a. ISBN 978-88-3324-184-5.
- Almanacco illustrato del calcio - La storia 1898-2004,Modena. Panini,2004.
- Gli scudetti dimenticati: Bologna 1963-64 - Giallo a lieto fine,Manaresi Filippo, 1999.
- Il grande romanzo dello scudetto, Chiesa Carlo F.
- Federico Monti (2017). calcio serie a. ISBN 978-88-7381-866-3.
External links
- "Serie A 1963-64 su RSSSF.com".