Arrigo Sacchi was born on 1 April 1946 and is an Italian former professional football coach.
16 Facts About Arrigo Sacchi
2.
Arrigo Sacchi has twice managed AC Milan, with great success.
3.
Arrigo Sacchi was never a professional football player and for many years worked as a shoe salesman.
4.
Arrigo Sacchi had grown up watching attacking sides, such as Budapest Honved, Real Madrid, Brazil and the Netherlands.
5.
Arrigo Sacchi started his career managing his local club, Baracca Lugo, because he was not good enough to play for them.
6.
Arrigo Sacchi then took over at Rimini who were playing in the Serie C1, and almost led them to a title.
7.
Arrigo Sacchi received his breakthrough when he moved to Fiorentina as a youth coach.
8.
In November 1991, Arrigo Sacchi was appointed manager of the Italy national team, replacing Azeglio Vicini.
9.
Arrigo Sacchi based his Italian selection predominantly on Milan players, especially in the defensive line which featured Paolo Maldini and Franco Baresi; the attacking line was led by talismanic 1993 Ballon d'or winner Roberto Baggio of Juventus.
10.
Arrigo Sacchi successfully led Italy through the qualification campaign to reach the 1994 FIFA World Cup.
11.
Arrigo Sacchi had brief spells in the Spanish La Liga, taking charge of Atletico Madrid in 1998 after his second spell with the Rossoneri, where he left his post in March of that season, with them languishing in the bottom half of the table.
12.
Arrigo Sacchi briefly returned to Parma in 2001, replacing Alberto Malesani, but resigned after only 3 matches for stress reasons, to be replaced by Renzo Ulivieri.
13.
Defensively, Arrigo Sacchi's teams adopted a zonal marking system, which had already been introduced by his predecessor Nils Liedholm, and were known for their defensive strength, conceding few goals; indeed, the defensive quartet of Maldini, Baresi, Costacurta, and Tassotti, which Arrigo Sacchi deployed both at Milan and with the Italy national team, is regarded as one of the greatest defences of all-time.
14.
Arrigo Sacchi believes in the Dutch concept of Total Football, insisting that young players should be coached in all aspects of football rather than into specialist positions, helping the team both with or without the ball.
15.
Arrigo Sacchi is remembered for his outspokenness, stubbornness and his meticulous, obsessive attention to detail when preparing tactical solutions and perfecting plays, which his players were then expected to memorise and implement consistently during matches.
16.
Arrigo Sacchi is credited as an innovator, popularising high pressing from his teams, the offside trap, and a high defensive line with no more than 25 metres between defence and attack.