Tacchinardi, Alessio (Crema, 23/7/75)
With a love of the crunching tackle and the long legs to get forward to support the attack this largely defensive midfielder first came to prominence in the legendary Atalanta youth set-up. Juventus saw something they liked and brought him in to bolster their side in 1994 where he went on to play for 10 years. That brought six Scudetti, a Coppa Italia, Champions League and an Intercontinental crown. When the two parted company, he could not face going elsewhere in Italy and so took up the challenge at Villarreal in Spain.
Tacconi, Stefano (Perugia, 13/5/57)
The moustachioed net minder was something of a sex symbol in Serie A in the 1980s. An early career in the lower Divisions was transformed by his arrival at little Avellino where his performances caught the eye of La Vecchia Signora. It was in Turin that he enjoyed his best years, picking up a couple of League titles, a European Cup, Cup-Winners Cup, UEFA Cup and World Club Cup. In 1992 he moved for a brief postscript at Genoa to close a career which, though not always entirely convincing, was nonetheless played out at the highest level.
Tancredi, Franco (Giulianova, 10/1/55)
His name will never be forgotten among Roma fans as the man who guarded the goal during their famous Scudetto triumph of 1983. Opening days at Giulianova, Milan and Rimini never hit the headlines but a move to the Giallorossi in 1977 saw him write his way into legend as he played close to 300 Serie A games for the capital club. A quiet, unassuming figure he was adored by the Roma faithful and pulled off some amazing saves thanks to his excellent reflexes.
Tardelli, Marco (Capanne di Careggine, 24/9/54)
If any image has endured from Italy’s World Cup win of 1982 it is this legendary midfielder’s gaping-mouth goal celebration. It was the pinnacle of a tremendous career which brought him just about every honour on offer. Kicking off his career close to his native Lucca with little Pisa, he graduated to Como in Serie B before stepping up to Juventus in 1975. He formed a key part of a side which dominated Serie A in the 1970s and early 1980s - taking five Scudetti, a couple of Italian Cups, all three major European competitions and, of course, the World Cup. Switched to Inter late in his career and then tried a season in Switzerland before hanging up his battling boots. He was to prove a winner as a Coach too with his Italy Under-21 side going to European Nations glory. But it proved harder to repeat at club level where he failed his biggest challenge with Inter and subsequently flopped as Egyptian national manager.
Tassotti, Mauro (Rome, 19/1/60)
After skipping hometown Lazio he never looked back over 17 roller-coaster seasons with Milan. The full-back started out in Serie B with the Rossoneri, helped them get promoted, then watched them flop back down again in 1983. But the Berlusconi age was just around the corner and that brought silverware galore to Tassotti with five League titles, three European Cups and a couple of World Club Cups. He was also part of Arrigo Sacchi’s party to USA ’94. But his international career ended in ignominy with a ban for an elbow on Spaniard Luis Enrique’s nose. Quit the game in 1997 but now to be seen at Carlo Ancelotti’s side on the Milan bench
TERNANA (Founded: 1925. Stadio Libero Liberati - Capacity: 20,095)
A couple of seasons in the 1970s were the high point of this little club’s history. For most of their early days they were resident in the lower reaches of Italian football and their two historic promotions to Serie A in 1972 and 1974 were both followed by immediate relegation. The club suffered financial collapse in 1987 but has slowly built its way back into a credible force - in Serie B at least.
Thuram, Lilian (Pointe-a-Pitre, Guadeloupe, 1/1/72)
This smart but strong defender was an overnight hit with Parma after making the step into Serie A from Monaco. Over five seasons with the Emilia Romagna club he was never anything less than 100 per cent reliable while also helping his country to both World Cup and European Nations honours. By 2001 it was time for one of Italy’s giants to recognise his skills and along came Juventus to give him three League titles in his first four seasons. His strength in the tackle is legendary and wherever he has gone he has given the defence a distinctly impenetrable look.
Tognon, Omero (Padua, 3/3/24)
A Milan stalwart for a over a decade in the 1940s and 1950s, he played 14 times for his country and won a single Scudetto in 1951. In total he gathered over 300 Serie A games for the Rossoneri at the heart of their midfield.
Tommasi, Damiano (Negrar, 17/5/74)
Verona were the first club to give a showcase to the talents of this hard-grafting midfielder and he swiftly rose to Serie A with Roma and later the Italian national team. He played over 200 games for the Giallorossi and helped them to the title 2001 before a serious injury in pre-season of the 2004 looked to have finished his career. He showed great determination to fight his way back from injury and decided to play on for Roma on the professional footballer’s equivalent of the minimum wage as he was so happy to be back playing any level of football again.
TORINO (Founded: 1906. Stadio Delle Alpi - Capacity 69,041)
The Granata can rightfully claim to be one of calico’s elite despite their current Serie B surroundings. Founded in 1906 it took them a little over a couple of decades to grab the first of no fewer than seven League crowns. The next one came in 1943 and it heralded the opening of an era of unprecedented success for the Turin side. They won five Scudetti on the trot to match the performance of city rivals Juventus back in the 1930s. The ‘Grande Torino’ side ran riot, rarely scoring less than 100 goals a season and containing most of the great players of the era including Valentino Mazzola, Ezio Loik, Romeo Menti and Mario Rigamonti.
In a country struggling to rebuild after World War II they were national heroes and were transferred en masse into the Italian national team. But on May 4, 1949 disaster struck as the team was on its way back from a friendly in Lisbon. The plane they were flying in struck the hills above Turin at Superga and everyone on board was killed. There were still four games left to play in the season but, after a 0-0 draw with closest rivals Inter, the Italian Federation awarded them their fifth Scudetto in a row and let them conclude the season with their youth team.
It took over a quarter century for the championship to return to Torino and it was an emotionally charged moment when they secured that title once more in 1976. Since then the club has known a dip in fortunes and bobbed up and down between Serie A and B although they did memorably reach the UEFA Cup Final in 1992 only to lose out on aggregate to Ajax. Last summer they thought they had secured a return to the top Division, but financial problems have left them fighting to get out of Serie B once again this term.
Torricelli, Moreno (Erba, 23/1/70)
This marauding full-back famously quit his career as a joiner when Juventus plucked him from semi-professional obscurity in 1992. It proved to be a wise decision as he played a part in a string of honours including three Serie A titles, the Champions League and World Club Cup. His success at club level also saw him catapulted into the full national team as well. After six successful seasons in Turin he switched to Fiorentina and played four more good years before trying his luck in Spain and finishing off with little Arezzo in Serie B.
Totti, Francesco (Rome, 27/9/76)
A Roma boy born and bred, this outstanding attacker helped carry his club to an historic third Scudetto in 2001. He was already a legend to the Giallorosso faithful by that time as his outstanding displays and resistance to overtures from other clubs had won their hearts completely. Dogged by a dodgy temperament, he has been able to keep his petulance in check more often as his career has progressed but nonetheless let himself down on the big stage at the last European Nations by spitting on the deliberately provocative Christian Poulsen. But to focus on these brief let-downs is to miss the point of one of the most gifted footballers Serie A has seen in the last 10 years. Few have his vision for the first time pass, rarely has anyone scored such a high number of spectacular goals and probably nobody has ever ‘carried’ a team so much since the days of Diego Maradona at Napoli. Over 300 Serie A games and more than 120 goals are already to his credit at club level.
Trapattoni, Giovanni (Cusano Milanino, 17/3/39)
A fine defensive midfielder in his playing days, he made over 270 Serie A appearances for Milan between 1959 and 1971 gathering a couple of League titles and two European Cups and the Intercontinental crown before ending his playing days with Varese. He was also capped 17 times by his country including one famous match where he managed to mark the great Pele out of the game. If his days as a player were brilliant, they were eclipsed by his managerial exploits. At the helm of Juventus he grabbed six Scudetti, all three major European Cups and the World Club Cup. When he moved to Inter after 10 great years in Turin he helped the Nerazzurri to their last League title in 1989. He then went to Germany and won the League there with Bayern Munich and also took Benfica to their first title in Portugal for 10 years. In between times he came as close as anyone to bringing the Serie A crown back to Fiorentina but also had a disappointing spell as Italian national Coach. His love of the game is still intact as up until recently he took charge of Stuttgart in Germany’s Bundesliga.
Trezeguet, David (Rouen, France, 15/10/77)
One of the most natural finishers of recent times, he was handed his Serie A chance by Juventus after making the switch from Monaco and already boasts a phenomenal strike rate for the Turin club. Although not renowned for his work rate, few can boast a better ratio of goals per game for their club. Three times a League champion in his first five seasons with the Bianconeri, he also broke Italian hearts at Euro 2000 with his goal in the Final to take France to victory.
TRIESTINA (Founded: 1918. Stadio Nereo Rocco - Capacity 32,000)
It has been almost half a century since they graced the Italian top Division, but for many years it was unthinkable to lift a Scudetto without having to take on the boys from Trieste. They were part of the first ever unified Serie A set up in 1929 and stayed there pretty much uninterrupted until 1959 for a total of 26 seasons. By rights they should have been relegated in 1947 but with the city still under Allied control - and its ownership contested by Italy and Yugoslavia - they played most of their home games away from Trieste. The following year the Italian Federation decided to revoke their relegation, play a 21-team Serie A and it proved to be their most successful season under legendary Coach Nereo Rocco as they finished joint second behind the great Torino team. It was never quite to be the same again and they dropped down in 1957 only to bounce back to complete their final Serie A season in 1958-59. Since then it has been a downward spiral but they now fight it out in Serie B with the hope of an historic return to the top.
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