Sandro Mazzola, Inter and Italy football great, dies aged 83
The former playmaker won four Serie A titles and two European Cups with Inter before helping Italy claim the 1968 European Championship.
Sandro Mazzola, one of the defining figures of Inter Milan’s dominant 1960s side, has died aged 83, the club announced.
Mazzola spent 17 seasons with Inter, making 565 appearances and scoring 158 goals. He won four Serie A titles and back-to-back European Cups in 1964 and 1965.
He scored twice in Inter’s 3-1 victory over Real Madrid in the 1964 European Cup final, a performance that drew praise from Hungarian great Ferenc Puskas.
Mazzola also made 70 appearances for Italy, scoring 22 goals and winning the 1968 European Championship. He was involved in the debate over how best to use him alongside AC Milan’s Gianni Rivera during Italy’s 1970 World Cup campaign.
He finished runner-up to Johan Cruyff for the 1971 Ballon d’Or. His father, Torino captain Valentino Mazzola, was among those killed in the 1949 Superga air disaster.
Inter described Mazzola as one of football’s greatest players. Yahoo Sports reported the club’s announcement; the supplied material does not state the cause or exact date of his death.
