Guglielmo Gabetto (Italian pronunciation: [ɡuʎˈʎɛlmo ɡaˈbetto]; 24 February 1916 – 4 May 1949) was an Italian footballer who played as a forward.
Aside from goalkeeper Alfredo Bodoira, he is the only player to win the Italian championship with both Torino and cross-city rivals Juventus.[1]
Biography
Gabetto was born in Turin, Italy, in the Aurora district of the Piedmont capital.[1]
He died in a commercial aeroplane tragedy as one of the victims of the 1949 Superga air disaster, when a plane carrying almost the entire Torino Football Club squad, the Grande Torino, crashed into the Superga hill near Turin. He was buried in the Cimitero Monumentale in Turin.[1]
Club career
Gabetto began his career with Juventus in 1934, scoring 102 goals for the club in seven seasons, 85 of which came in the league; he is still today one of the club's best goalscorers.[1]
In 1941 he was acquired by local rivals Torino, for a notable sum of 330,000 Lit.; the same season, Torino bought two other Juventus players: Felice Borel, and Alfredo Bodoira. He formed a notable attack alongside Ezio Loik and Valentino Mazzola, becoming a key player in the Grande Torino side which dominated Italy, winning five consecutive Serie A titles. Only he and his teammate Piero Operto were originally from Turin. In total, he scored 127 goals for Torino in 225 matches.[1]
International career
Gabetto also made six appearances for the Italy national team between 1942 and 1948, scoring five goals, the first of which came on his debut against Croatia on 5 April 1942.[2]
Style of play
Regarded as one of the best Italian players of his generation, and one of Italy's greatest-ever strikers, Gabetto was a complete, creative, fast, and technically gifted forward, who was known for his flair, coordination, speed, and dribbling skills. Nicknamed il barone ("the baron," in Italian), he usually played as a centre-forward, and possessed "acrobatic" characteristics that apparently allowed him to produce "near-impossible" goals. The precision and the power of his kicking made him an impeccable and highly prolific goal-scorer, which made him an idol of the Torino fans, who affectionately called him "Gabe."[1][3]
Honours
Juventus[1]
- Serie A: 1934–35
- Coppa Italia: 1937–38
Torino[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Gabetto, Guglielmo" (in Italian). Enciclopedia del Calcio. Retrieved 30 May 2015.
- ^ "Nazionale in cifre: Gabetto, Guglielmo" (in Italian). FIGC. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 30 May 2015.
- ^ "2 novembre 1941: Guglielmo Gabetto esordisce con la maglia del Torino" (in Italian). www.toronews.net. 2 November 2017. Retrieved 20 January 2020.
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