Enrico Chiesa

Enrico Chiesa (Italian pronunciation: [enˈriːko ˈkjɛːza; ˈkjeːza];[2][3] born 29 December 1970) is an Italian football coach and former striker.

Enrico Chiesa
Personal information
Date of birth (1970-12-29) 29 December 1970
Place of birth Genoa, Italy
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)[1]
Playing position(s) Striker
Youth career
1986–1987 Pontedecimo
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1988–1990 Sampdoria 1 (0)
1990–1991 Teramo 31 (5)
1991–1992 Chieti 24 (6)
1992–1993 Sampdoria 26 (1)
1993–1994 Modena 36 (15)
1994–1995 Cremonese 34 (14)
1995–1996 Sampdoria 27 (22)
1996–1999 Parma 92 (33)
1999–2002 Fiorentina 59 (34)
2002–2003 Lazio 12 (2)
2003–2008 Siena 129 (32)
2008–2010 Figline 32 (7)
Total 503 (171)
National team
1996–2001 Italy 22 (7)
Teams managed
2010 Figline
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

A prolific goalscorer, Chiesa played for several Italian clubs throughout his career, and performed regularly in Serie A for over a decade, winning titles with Sampdoria, Parma, and Fiorentina; he later also a spell with Lazio. He moved to Siena where he became a household name and, thanks to his goals, the Tuscan side stayed in the top division for many seasons. He retired with Figline in 2010, the club with which he subsequently began his coaching career. He won the 1998–99 UEFA Cup with Parma, finishing the tournament as the top scorer, with 8 goals. At international level, he represented the Italy national football team on 22 occasions between 1996 and 2001, scoring 7 goals, and was also part of the Italian squads that took part at UEFA Euro 1996 and the 1998 FIFA World Cup.

Club career

Born in Genoa, Chiesa made his early playing footsteps at amateur club Pontedecimo (1986–87). He then moved to Sampdoria, for which he made his debut on 16 April 1989 in a 1–0 loss at Roma in the 1988–89 Serie A.[4] He then played for Teramo of Serie C2 and successively Chieti of Serie C1 before returning to Sampdoria in 1992. Failing to impress, he then joined Modena in Serie B for the 1993–94 season, and later Cremonese during the 1994–95 season, where he scored 14 goals in their Serie A campaign. In 1995, he returned again with the blucerchiati, forming a notable attacking duo with Roberto Mancini, and scoring 22 goals in 27 matches in Serie A.[5][6][7]

In 1996, he was signed by rising club Parma, and contributed to his team's second-place finish behind Juventus, scoring 14 goals in the Serie A during his first season at the club. The second-place result allowed Parma to qualify for the UEFA Champions League the following season. With Parma, Chiesa won an UEFA Cup, a Coppa Italia, and Supercoppa Italiana during the highly successful 1998–99 season, in which Parma also finished in fourth place in the Serie A. Chiesa became one of the best strikers in Italian football (when not injured or out of form). During his time at the club, he also formed a successful partnership with Argentine star striker Hernán Crespo, as the duo averaged 10–15 goals a season each. They also each scored in the 1999 UEFA Cup Final victory over Marseille, a competition in which Chiesa finished top scorer, with 8 goals.[5][6]

In 1999, he was signed by Fiorentina for 28 billion lire (€14.46 million),[8] a team looking to expand and bring in better players, in an attempt to keep club captain and talisman Gabriel Batistuta. Despite making regular appearances in his first season for La Viola, Chiesa was fighting for a place with Predrag Mijatović among others, and also had spells where he was out of form, and in the end only managed 6 goals in the league. In the 2000–01 season, Batistuta left for Roma and Fiorentina were plagued with injuries and financial problems. Meanwhile, Chiesa became the main striker for the club under manager Roberto Mancini, supported by playmaker Rui Costa,[6] and scored 22 goals in 30 matches, finishing amongst the top 5 highest scorers in the league and helping Fiorentina to win the 2000–01 Coppa Italia over his former club, Parma, in the final; in the second leg at home, he set up Nuno Gomes's goal in a 1–1 draw, which allowed Fiorentina to clinch the title 2–1 on aggregate.[9] The 2001–02 campaign proved to be a very difficult one: Chiesa started the campaign off strongly, scoring five goals in the first five matches of the season, but was ruled out for the rest of the season after sustaining a serious injury to his knee ligaments against Venezia on matchday five; left without Chiesa to lead the club's attack, Fiorentina were ultimately relegated at the end of the season.[5] As a result of Fiorentina's relegation and financial troubles,[5][10][11][12] Chiesa subsequently moved to Lazio for the following season, where he however failed to play at his personal best.[5]

In 2003, he joined Siena, where he became a fan favourite and a key player in the club's Serie A history, impressively reaching double scoring figures in Serie A during his first three seasons at the club. Despite a very poor 2006–07 season in which Chiesa was not able to score a single goal in Serie A,[4] he was backed by the club and new trainer Andrea Mandorlini, who explicitly stated that he felt that Chiesa was still important to the team, and that he expected at least 15 goals from him in their 2007–08 Serie A campaign.[13] However, he played only twice, scoring no goals once again, before he was signed by Figline[14] of the Lega Pro Second Division. He scored five goals with Figline, thus giving his contribution to the team's promotion to the Lega Pro Prima Divisione. In the following season, his last as a footballer, he played a limited number of games due to suffering a fractured leg, an injury which forced him to stay out of contention for most of the season.[5]

International career

Chiesa played for the Italian team from 1996 to 2001, collecting a total of 22 caps with 7 goals.[15] Chiesa made his senior international debut in a 2–2 friendly draw against Belgium on 29 May 1996 in Cremona, marking the occasion with a goal.[16] He was subsequently selected by manager Arrigo Sacchi to play for Italy at the UEFA Euro 1996 tournament later that year, ahead of other established strikers such as Roberto Baggio, Gianluca Vialli, and Giuseppe Signori.[7][17] Chiesa appeared in two group stage matches, the first in a 2–1 defeat against the Czech Republic, where he scored Italy's only goal of the match,[18] and the second in a 0–0 draw against Germany, as Italy were eliminated in the first round.[19][20] He also was called up to the 1998 FIFA World Cup by manager Cesare Maldini as a replacement for Fabrizio Ravanelli.[21] He appeared in Italy's opening group match of the 1998 World Cup, which ended in a 2–2 draw against Chile,[22] also appearing as a substitute in the 1–0 victory in the round of 16 match against Norway.[23] Italy were eliminated in the quarter finals on penalties by hosts and eventual champions France.[24] Under manager Dino Zoff, Chiesa appeared in Italy's 6–2 friendly win over the FIFA World Stars on 16 December 1998, organised to commemorate the centenary of the Italian Football Federation, scoring a hat-trick.[25] He also scored a goal in a 4–0 victory over Wales in a European qualifying match in Bologna, on 5 June 1999.[26] He made his final appearance for Italy under Giovanni Trapattoni, in Italy's 1–0 friendly win over South Africa in Perugia, on 25 April 2001.[27] Alongside Alessandro Del Piero, Chiesa holds the unique record for the most goals scored by an Italian international coming off the bench (5).[5][28] Chiesa is currently the last player to manage 2 goals in his first two Italy appearances.[15][29]

Style of play

A prolific goalscorer, Chiesa was considered one of the most exciting and dynamic strikers in Italy during the mid-'90s. A quick, strong, hardworking, and elegant player, he was mainly deployed in a central role as a main striker throughout his career, but he could also play off of another forward as a supporting forward or on the wing, due to his vision, versatility, good technique, close control at speed, and tactical intelligence, which also enabled him to create goalscoring opportunities for his teammates. Possessing pace, stamina, good offensive movement, and a powerful and accurate shot with either foot from both inside and outside the box, he excelled during counter-attacks, and was known for his ability to make attacking runs into the area, and quickly strike the ball first time while on the run; he was also equally known for his ability to score with powerful or bending strikes from free-kicks, and is the joint ninth-highest goalscorer of all time from free kicks in Serie A, with 13 goals, alongside Michel Platini and Álvaro Recoba. Fabio Capello described Chiesa as a complete forward, and as a cross between Gigi Riva and Paolo Rossi, due to his opportunism, anticipation, and excellent striking ability, which enabled him to excel acrobatically in the air, and execute spectacular volleys.[6][7][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37] In addition to his goalscoring ability as a footballer, he was also known for his dedication, professionalism and his correct behaviour on the pitch,[6][7][30] although, despite his reputation, his career was affected by several injuries.[7][38]

Coaching career

In June 2010 it was announced that Chiesa was appointed the new head coach of Figline for the 2010–11 season.[39] The experience however lasted a very short time, as Figline was excluded from the Italian leagues in July.

Personal life

Chiesa's son, Federico, is also a footballer, who currently plays as a forward for Fiorentina.[40]

Career statistics

Club
Club Season League Cup Continental Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Sampdoria1988–89Serie A1000—10
1989–9000000000
Total 10000010
Teramo1990–91Serie C315——315
Chieti1991–92Serie C246——246
Sampdoria1992–93Serie A261——261
Modena1993–94Serie B361510—3715
Cremonese1994–95Serie A341440—3814
Sampdoria1995–96Serie A2722——2722
Parma1996–97Serie A291400223116
1997–98331075864821
1998–9930981884618
Total 9233156181612555
Fiorentina1999–2000Serie A247411143912
2000–01302265203827
2001–025500218*16
Total 59341061558545
Lazio2002–03Serie A12261114297
Siena2003–04Serie A301010—3110
2004–05361100—3611
2005–06381121—4012
2006–0723020—250
2007–082000—20
Total 12932510013433
Career total 47116441144425557203

International
Source:[41]
Italy
YearAppsGoals
199653
199710
199840
199951
200110
Total164

Honours

Club

Sampdoria[42]

Parma[42]

Fiorentina[42]

Figline[42]

Individual
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References
  1. "Enrico Chiesa - Carriera". Tutto Calciatori. Retrieved 13 February 2017.
  2. Luciano Canepari. "Enrico". DiPI Online (in Italian). Retrieved 23 October 2018.
  3. Luciano Canepari. "chiesa". DiPI Online (in Italian). Retrieved 23 October 2018.
  4. "Serie A 2006/2007 – Enrico Chiesa" (in Italian). Gazzetta dello Sport. Retrieved 11 July 2007.
  5. Marco Gay (11 June 2008). "Chiesa, addio alla serie A" (in Italian). Fanta Gazzetta. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 7 November 2015.
  6. Alberto Polverosi. "Chiesa, Enrico" (in Italian). Treccani: Enciclopedia dello Sport (2002). Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  7. "Chiesa could steal show in Euro 96". The Irish Times. 21 May 1996. Retrieved 7 November 2015.
  8. A.C. Fiorentina S.p.A. bilancio (financial report and accounts) on 30 June 2001 (in Italian), PDF purchased from Italian C.C.I.A.A.
  9. "Coppa alla Fiorentina col pareggio più bello" [The cup goes to Fiorentina with the most beautiful of draws] (in Italian). La Repubblica. 13 June 2001. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  10. "Club may go out of business if funding isn't found". ESPN.com. 1 August 2002. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  11. David Alexander (3 August 2002). "Fulham eye Di Livio as Fiorentina giveaway begins". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  12. "Benfica sign Gomes". BBC Sport. 4 August 2002. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  13. "Calcio: Mandorlini esalta Chiesa" (in Italian). Gazzetta dello Sport. 11 July 2007. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007. Retrieved 11 July 2007.
  14. "Ecco Chiesa, il Figline sogna traguardi ambiziosi" (in Italian). CalcioToscano.it. 12 July 2008. Archived from the original on 19 May 2009. Retrieved 12 July 2008.
  15. "Nazionale in cifre: Chiesa, Enrico". figc.it (in Italian). FIGC. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
  16. "Statistiche Giocatori: esordio in Nazionale con gol" (in Italian). Italia1910.com. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  17. "Sacchi da' un appuntamento a Baggio" (in Italian). Il Corriere della Sera. 19 May 1996. Retrieved 2 May 2014.
  18. Guy Hodgson (14 June 1996). "Italians left on the brink of disaster". The Independent. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  19. Dario Pelizzari. "Italia-Germania in 10 partite. Azzurri mai piegati ai Mondiali e agli Europei" (in Italian). Il Sole 24 Ore. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
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  24. "Francia avanti, ancora rigori stregati" (in Italian). Storie di Calcio. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
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  27. "Italia vincente" (in Italian). RaiSport. 25 April 2001. Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  28. "STATISTICHE MARCATORI, I GOL "DALLA PANCHINA" (TUTTE LE COMPETIZIONI)" (in Italian). Italia1910.com. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  29. "Enrico CHIESA". FIFA.com. Retrieved 23 December 2014.
  30. "Riva spiega il ' 68 agli azzurri" (in Italian). Il Corriere della Sera. 23 May 1996. Retrieved 9 November 2014.
  31. Luca Calamai; Andrea Schianchi (15 October 1999). "Toldo-Buffon, le 20 meraviglie" (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
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  34. Bruno Bartolozzi; Massimo Meroi; Andrea Schianchi (30 May 1999). "La Juve mette le ali: ecco Bachini" (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  35. ""Zola? Spiacente, ma dovevo scegliere"" (in Italian). La Stampa. 25 May 1998. p. 31. Retrieved 23 November 2017.
  36. Ivan Zazzaroni (17 October 2018). "Sognando Baggio" (in Italian). Il Corriere dello Sport. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  37. Fabrizio Salvio (13 March 2004). "Professione cecchino" (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
  38. Fabrizio Boni (22 February 2016). "In campo a 45 anni! Enrico Chiesa è di nuovo un calciatore" (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  39. "UFFICIALE: Enrico Chiesa nuovo tecnico del Figline" (in Italian). TuttoMercatoWeb. 11 June 2010. Retrieved 11 June 2010.
  40. Mason, Joshua (12 September 2016). "Serie A- Keeping in it in La Famiglia | IFD". www.italianfootballdaily.com. Italian Football Daily. Archived from the original on 26 November 2016. Retrieved 25 November 2016.
  41. Enrico Chiesa at National-Football-Teams.com
  42. "Enrico Chiesa". Eurosport. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  43. "Italy - Footballer of the Year". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 21 January 2015. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  44. Roberto Mamrud; Jarek Owsianski; Davide Rota (11 June 2015). "Fairs/UEFA Cup Topscorers". RSSSF. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
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