Silvio Marzolini

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Marzolini's first steps as footballer were in Deportivo Italiano, soon moving to the young divisions of Ferro Carril Oeste in 1955. After a discussion with the club managers asking to play in the senior team, Marzolini was suspended for two years. Nevertheless, he debuted in Primera División in May 1959, playing against Boca Juniors, that would hire him the following year. Marzolini debuted with Boca on 3 April 1960 against Estudiantes de La Plata, defeating it by 2–1. Boca finished third at the end of the season, with Marzolini playing all of the games. In 1961 Marzolini scored his first goal in the top division, but Boca did not have a great campaign, finishing fifth. Marzolini played a total of 29 games scoring 2 goals. The first achievement came in 1962 when Boca won the title, with notable players such as goalkeeper Antonio Roma, Brazilian striker Paulo Valentim and Norberto Menéndez. Boca finished first with 42 points. Marzolini was also the most capped player of the season with 28 games played. Marzolini was named as left-back in the 1966 FIFA World Cup team of the tournament while Argentina was eliminated at the quarter final stage.

In Their Own Story

In a 2007 interview with FourFourTwo magazine, English great Bobby Charlton named him in his dream eleven, describing him as a player who 'wasn’t that fast, but his positioning was so good he didn’t need to be', and that he had 'such good control that it gave him time and space to play the ball away safely'. After retiring as a player, Marzolini became manager of All Boys where he stayed from 1975 to 1976. In 1981 Marzolini returned to Boca Juniors, with which he won the 1981 Metropolitano with superstar Diego Maradona as the outstanding player of the team. Other notable players for Boca were Miguel Brindisi, goalkeeper Hugo Gatti and defender Oscar Ruggeri. Marzolini suffered a stroke in 2019 and was later diagnosed with cancer. He died on 17 July 2020, at the age of 79. His grandson Facundo Lescano, son of his daughter Maria Marta, is a footballer, currently playing in Italy for U.S. Salernitana 1919.

Reader's Guide

As a player, Marzolini won the Primera División with Boca Juniors in 1962, 1964, 1965, 1969 Nacional, and 1970 Nacional. He also won the Copa Argentina in 1969 and was a runner-up in the Copa Libertadores in 1963. With Argentina, he won the Panamerican Championship in 1960 and was a runner-up in the Copa América in 1967. Individually, he was named to the FIFA World Cup All-Star Team in 1966 and was included in the IFFHS Argentina All Times Dream Team in 2021. As a manager, he won the Primera División with Boca Juniors in 1981 Metropolitano.

Did You Know?

• Marzolini was elected as the best left back of the 1966 FIFA World Cup.
• He played all of Boca Juniors' games in the 1960 season after debuting on 3 April 1960.
• Bobby Charlton named Marzolini in his dream eleven in a 2007 FourFourTwo interview.
• Marzolini was the most capped player of the 1962 title-winning season with 28 games played.
• His grandson Facundo Lescano is a footballer playing for U.S. Salernitana 1919 in Italy.