Annibale FROSSI

Annibale Frossi started his career with Udinese in 1930, sometimes playing as a central striker. Due to his myopia he was forced to wear glasses even on the field, which gave him a disadvantage in the aerial game. As one of the best players, the right winger won promotion to Serie B with Udinese in 1930 and contributed to avoiding relegation. He played for several other clubs in Serie B, notably Padova, until he was discovered by the legendary coach Vittorio Pozzo for the 1936 Olympic tournament. Frossi became the tournament's top scorer with seven goals, scoring in all four games. He scored the decisive goal in the first game against the United States, a hat-trick against Japan, the 2-1 goal in extra time of the semifinal against Norway and two goals that earned victory against Austria in the final. After the Olympics Frossi made only one appearance each with the national A-team and B-team, both in 1937. In 1936 he had joined Inter-Milano, with whom he played actively until 1942, winning two Italian Championships and one Cup. In 147 appearances he scored 49 goals. During World War II he played briefly for Pro Patria and Como, ending his active career in 1945.

After his active career Frossi coached a considerable number of teams, including Inter-Milano for a short period in the 1956-57 season. Even though his team was victorious in 11 of 12 matches he was dismissed because his defensive tactics of 5-4-1 were not accepted. His system was a predecessor of the famous Italian “catanaccio” (lock-out), which was further developed in the 1960s. Frossi held a degree in law and worked as an office manager at Alfa Romeo. Towards the end of his life he was a columnist for the newspaper Corriere della Sera in Milan. In his home town Udine, a city street near the local Stadium has been named after him.