Narciso Soldan

Narciso Soldan (11 December 1927, Nervesa della Battaglia, Veneto – 30 July 1987, Conegliano, Veneto) was an Italian professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper in the Italian Football League.

Career
Treviso–Catania (0–0) during the 1951–52 Serie B season. From left to right: Soldan, Ruzza (Treviso Calcio) and Italo Rebuzzi.

Soldan began his playing career at the very late age of 19, having never previously kicked a ball. One day, while attending a local club match at Vittorio Veneto, he became fascinated by the goalkeeper's role on the playing field. At the end of the match he went onto the pitch, along with some friends, and had them take some shots at him. The team's coach, Enrico Colombari, approached Soldan and an agreement was made whereby Soldan signed his first professional football contract with Vittorio Veneto for the 1946–47 season. For the remainder of the season, he was loaned out to his local team, F.C. Nervesa, to gain some experience and match practice.[1]

The following year (1947–48), Narciso Soldan was playing in Italy's third division: Serie C - North League: Group H.[2] After a fantastic season, Vittorio Veneto arrived in 3rd place and just missed promotion to the "New" Serie C.[1]

The 1948–49 season didn't go as well for Vittorio Veneto as the previous one had. The club was now playing in the new, recently named Promozione Interregionale - 4th Division: Group E. The team struggled for long periods throughout the season but managed to finish in a respectable 10th position. On the one hand while the team wasn't performing so well, for Narciso Soldan, it became the turning point in his career. After having a great season defending his goal, coach Enrico Colombari decided to try his luck by taking young Soldan for trials in Milan under the watchful eyes of Giulio Cappelli, then Manager of F.C. Internazionale Milano.[1] Soldan spent two seasons with Inter in Serie A, before moving to Catania in Serie B in 1951, where he took part in the club's 4–1 defeat to Legnano in the Serie A promotion play-offs during his second season. He subsequently played for Torino and Triestina in Serie A.[1]

He returned to play in Milan during the 1956–57 Serie A season, but to join Inter's cross-city rivals A.C. Milan. Despite competition from Lorenzo Buffon, he managed to win two league titles during his time with the club, and also reached the 1958 European Cup Final, only to be defeated 3–2 by Real Madrid in extra-time. During the 1959–60 season, he joined Torino F.C. in Serie B and helped the team win the second division title to obtain Serie A promotion; after two seasons with the Turin club, he ended his career with Treviso in Serie C in 1962.[1]

Career statistics

Club
Season Club Division Games Played Table Position Awards / Comments
1946–47 Nervesa Youth Team ? ? On loan from Vittorio Veneto
1947–48 Vittorio Veneto Serie C ~ Lega Nord : Girone H ? 3rd Relegated to the "new" 4th Division ~ Campionato Interregionale
1948–49 Vittorio Veneto Promozione Interregionale ~ IV : Girone E ? 10th Taken to Milano, by Coach Enrico Colombari, for trials with Inter
1949–50 Internazionale Serie A 21 3rd Bronze Award for third place
1950–51 Internazionale Serie A 21 2nd Silver Award for second place
1951–52 Catania Serie B 34 4th -
1952–53 Catania Serie B 34 3rd Lost Serie A Promotion Play-off in Florence : Legnano 4-1 Catania
1953–54 Torino Serie A 27 9th -
1954–55 Triestina Serie A 27 12th -
1955–56 Triestina Serie A 27 16th -
1956–57 Milan Serie A 17 1st Champions of Italy ~ 6th Scudetto
1957–58 Milan Serie A 11 9th European Champion Clubs' Cup Finalist : Real Madrid 3-2 Milan (aet)
1958–59 Milan Serie A 8 1st Champions of Italy ~ 7th Scudetto
1959–60 Torino Serie B 32 1st Serie B Champions ~ Promotion to Serie A
1960–61 Torino Serie A 9 12th -
1961–62 Treviso Serie C 22 10th Girone A

Honours
Milan[1]
Torino[1]
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References
  1. "Narciso Soldan" (in Italian). magliarossonera. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
  2. During that period, Italy's Serie C was overcrowded with teams and the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) decided that the top two teams of each group in the various leagues would all combine at the end of the season to form a "New" Serie C, thus reducing numbers and increasing the quality of the competition. The relegated teams were then placed into a "New" 4th Division which was a regional-based competition.
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