Piazza, Wilson

Club

Wilson Piazza was born February 25, 1943 in the city of Ribeiran das Nevis , Minas Gerais , in the family of Jose Piazzi and Regina Da Silva Piazza. The family was not rich, and therefore, at the age of 15, Piazza left school to go to work. He got a job in the office of Avinida Antonio Carlos , a tire company. The company had its own team, in which Piazza quickly became a leader. After several years of work in Avinida, he left to work at the Mercantil De Minas Gerais bank, already starting to think about quitting football in favor of a banking employee career, but still his love for football did not let Piazza go: he had to play football for some time until noon, and from 12 to 9 pm to work in the bank, where he was engaged in the reduction of the daily banking balance. Sometimes there was so much work that Piazza stayed in the bank until midnight and even slept in the bank, unable to go home.

“I wanted to be a professional. Even if I were to play in the worst team in the world, I would make this dream come true ”

At the age of 18, Piazza began playing for the Renascens club, which at that time was an amateur club where he spent 3 seasons, becoming one of the most powerful midfielders in the state. At the same time, Piazza worked at a bank, where he left only after moving to Cruzeiro , which took place in 1965 , making his debut in a match with Santos led by Pele . The game ended with a score of 4: 3 in favor of Cruzeiro. In the first year, Piazza, together with the team, won the state championship , and then in the Brazil Cup . A year later, the club won its second title of the best state team, and in all won 10 Mineiro leagues. True, 1968 passed almost without the participation of Piazza, he broke his leg in the match of the national team with Uruguay on Maracana , having received a blow from Luis Cubilla . The atmosphere in the club was almost fraternal, all the players, with the exception of one, were from Minas Gerais, which helped the team play. In total, from 1964 to 1979, Piazza played 559 games and scored 39 goals.

Team

In 1967, Piazza was called up to the Brazil national team , looking for new players after the failure in England . In the national team, he won a place at the base, composing a duet of central midfielders with Gerson . But with the appearance of Clodoaldo in the national team, Piazza was offered a place in the center of defense, which he refused. But still, in order to play as part of the national team, Piazza was forced to give way to head coach Mario Zagalo and go on the defensive. The transfer of the talented midfielder to the defense caused a heated debate in the Brazilian press, even the football player’s mother asked on the pages of newspapers to return to his son his traditional place on the field. The biggest problem for the football player himself was his small growth, which, in the fight against world champions, the British , could lead to fatal consequences for the team. At the World Cup itself, Piazza’s fears did not materialize, the only problem was the match with England, which was foully fouled several times, but Piazza refused to take revenge on the founders of football, focusing on the game. Piazza also held several matches in the tournament as a central midfielder, replacing Clodoaldo. Piazza went to the 1974 World Cup as a substitute and spent only 3 games ^[1] . In total, Piazza spent 66 matches and scored 6 goals.

Total: 51 matches; 34 wins, 13 draws, 4 losses.

Total: 17 matches; 12 wins, 3 draws, 2 losses.

Team

  Brazil national team

• World Champion : 1970
• Rio Branco Cup Winner (2): 1967, 1968
• Doom Cup Winner: 1971

  "Cruzeiro"

• Brazil Cup Winner: 1966
• Finalist of the Roberto Cup : 1969
• Silver medalist of the Brazilian Championship (2): 1974, 1975
• Brazilian bronze medalist: 1973
• Champion of the State of Minas Gerais (10): 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1977
• Minas Gerais State Championship silver medalist (5): 1970, 1971, 1976, 1978, 1979
• Libertadores Cup Winner: 1976
• Libertadores Cup Finalist: 1977

Personal

• Brazil Silver Ball Winner: 1972

• Profile on FIFA.com
• Player profile on worldfootball.net (German)
• Profile on SambaFoot (inaccessible link) (Russian)
• Piazza matches in Brazil
• Profile on brasilnacopa (inaccessible link) (port.)
• Article at terceirotempo.ig.com.br (port.)
• Article at beautifulteam.net