Giovanni Francini

Giovanni Francini ( born August 3, 1963 in Massa) is an Italian former footballer who was active during his playing career for Torino Calcio AC Reggiana, SSC Napoli, Genoa and Brescia Calcio. In addition, he completed eight games for the Italian national football team.

Career

Association

Giovanni Francini began his career in the youth team of Torino Calcio, for the first team he in the 1980/81 season his first five games in Serie A completed. The defender has been used more often in the following season, could not even play in the starting eleven and it was awarded for the 1982/83 season for AC Reggiana in the second- highest division, Serie B. There, the defender was an integral part of the defense and returned a year later to Turin. The defender managed after his return the leap into the trunk squad and placed with Torino on a secure midfielder rank. In the summer of 1987, Napoli took him under contract. In his first season with Napoli he reached the second place in the Serie A and got it just three points less than the AC Milan.

In the 1988/89 season Francini won the UEFA Cup his first trophy with the southern Italian club. In the finals of the VfB Stuttgart was defeated in return game with a Gesamtskore of 5:4 gates. A year later, Francini earned Naples with a total of 51 points in Serie A and won the Italian championship. In the same year, also winning the Italian Super Coppa was won. The defender was not able with the team in the years that followed on this success and placed instead in the safe midfield. In 1994 he left Naples and joined the league rivals Genoa.

The defender played a few games duty and joined a few months later the club. He agreed with Brescia Calcio on a collaboration. With only 12 meters he rose with Brescia knocked off as Table in the B series from and been put through to the next season as a 16 the second highest league in almost the Serie C1, as the team had only one point above the relegation Fidelis Andria and the relegation ensured. Then Francini ended his active career at the age of 32 years.

National

Francini was first appointed in 1984 by then- coach Azeglio Vicini in the squad of the Italian U- 21 team, for whom he made ​​his debut on 31 October 1984 in the match against Switzerland. In his sixth application for the U -21 on 18 December 1985 he scored in a 3-0 home win over Belgium his first goal. The defender completed on November 15, 1986 against Switzerland, his first cap for Italy. The highlight of his national career appointment to the Italian squad for Euro 1988. Francini was not used at the tournament and completed after only one game for the national team.