Gianpiero Combi
Italian legend Gianpiero Combi was one of the finest goalkeepers in the world in the pre-Second World War era. A one-club
man throughout his career, he represented Juventus for more that 12 years during one of the most successful periods in the
club's history. Famed for his remarkable agility which earned him the nickname 'Rubberman', he was also the first choice
goalkeeper for the Italian national team for many years and was the first goalkeeper to captain a World Cup winning team.
Combi was born in Turin on 20 November 1902, and remained based in his home city throughout his life. His potential was
quickly spotted by Juventus, and he spent much of his teenage years working his way through the club's youth system. Over
the next few seasons, Combi was almost an ever present fixture in the Juventus goal, and the understanding that he
developed with full-backs Virginio Rosetta and Umberto Caligaris would become a famous part of the club's history.
Although Juventus were always a strong team in the early years of Combi's career, they had never been able to claim any
major honours but the 1925-26 season would change all that. The season included a remarkable run where Combi kept ten
consecutive clean sheets between 25 October 1925 and 21 February 1926, with Juve winning nine of those matches. In total
the run without conceding a goal lasted for 934 minutes of play, a record in Italian football. With Combi conceding just
14 goals in 22 games, Juve won their group by eight clear points to enter the northern championship play-off. In a play
off that went to three matches, they edged past Bologna and went on to face Alba Roma, where a crushing 12-1 aggregate win
game them the title and Combi his first domestic honour.
Italy chose not to enter the inaugural World Cup in 1930, but Combi did claim another international title in that year in
the Central European International Cup. The tournament ran across three years, but in the final match on 11 May 1930
Italy had to beat Hungary to finish as champions. Combi kept a clean sheet in the match, and Italy's prolific forward
line secured a comfortable 5-0 victory. The following year, he captained his country for the first time in a match
against Czechoslovakia in Rome.
The early years of the 1930s also brought Combi his greatest run of success at club level. In 1930-31, he missed just
five league games as Juventus won the Serie A title - their first in the national league era and third overall. The team
would go on to win the league in each of the next three seasons as well, and Combi missed just five more league games in
the whole of that run, having been ever present in both the 1931-32 and 1932-33 seasons. He was the first goalkeeper to
appear in four consecutive league title winning seasons, and still one of just two to achieve that feat (Zoff).
He appeared in every one of Italy's five games at the 34' WC and was captain for all but the first. The part that Combi
played in leading his team to the final was crucial. When the quarter-final against Spain went to a replay, he kept a
clean sheet in that second meeting as Italy won 1-0, and repeated the feat in the semi-final against Austria's highly
fancied 'Wunderteam'. In that match he made several key saves to help his team through to the final. In the final, he was
matched against another of the greatest goalkeepers of the era, Czechoslovakia's František Plánička. Although
Czechoslovakia took the lead, it was Combi who came out on top as his team recovered to win 2-1 after extra-time giving him
the honour of receiving the Jules Rimet Trophy as the winning captain.
He was a constant in the team that won the CEIC 35', appearing in 4/5 years before he retired in 34'. Combi stayed at Juventus after his retirement, serving as a technical advisor and a scout. In 1951, he was appointed as joint manager of the Italian national team alongside Carlino Beretta and Toni Busini, and led the team for five matches without suffering defeat. Five years later, he died in Turin at the age of just 53. He is still recognised by the club as one of its greatest legends, with at one point suggestions being made that the club's stadium should be named after him.