LEGENDS CORNER | Straight to the heart - Sergio Brio tells his story | OneFootball

As many as 378 official matches with the Juventus shirt on his back, Sergio Brio spent 12 seasons in Bianconero - from 1978/79 until 1989/90 - and his time with the club was littered with strong emotions and unforgettable successes.

Between the 1970s and 1980s, he formed a formidable defensive unit - along with Gaetano Scirea, Claudio Gentile and Antonio Cabrini - that is remembered as one of the greatest in the history of Italian and world football.

Always with his sleeves rolled up, whether it was summer or winter, whatever the weather, it didn’t matter - that was his way. That was how he approached matches, a clear signal for the forwards coming up against him that he was ready to go to battle.

He won 12 trophies in Bianconero, and wore the captain’s armband as well. He won four Serie A titles, three Italian Cups, an Intercontinental Cup, a European Cup, a UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup, a UEFA Cup and a European Super Cup. He then won another UEFA Cup as assistant to Giovanni Trapattoni in 1992/93.

Now as a Fan Ambassador of Juventus, Sergio is a firm part of the history of Juventus.

So, we thought we would speak to him to learn a little more about him.

Enjoy the read.

Chapter IV

“This is my fourth life at Juventus. The first was when I arrived from Lecce at 18: I spent time on loan at Pistoiese in Serie C and Serie B, and then I returned to Turin and stayed here for 12 years. The third life came after my playing days, when I got a call from Mister Giovanni Trapattoni, who offered me a job on his staff. I was studying at Coverciano at the time, to be a coach, and initially I said no because of that and because I’d planned to spend time with my family. But he insisted and, along with my wife, we agreed.”

MANY CAREERS IN ONE LIFE

“I worked with Trapattoni in Turin and Cagliari, and then I coached in Belgium too. I ended my coaching career there and began to work in television as a commentator. Then, a few years ago, I met Francesco Calvo…”

A FOURTH LIFE AT JUVENTUS

“We spoke and he had the idea to involve me in something that the club care a lot about, and that I do too: the relationship with the fans. We’ve done a good job in a lot of depth trying to understand the needs of our fans, and I’m delighted to be back in the Juventus family at 68 years of age.”

WHAT IS JUVENTUS FOR SERGIO BRIO?

“Everything. It’s my life, it’s my family. I’ve often put Juventus before my actual family, I’ve fought for this club, this club helped me grow into a man with people who taught you, literally, how to live. I’ll always be eternally grateful to this club and have an enormous sense of gratitude. For my part, I gave everything for Juventus, and I even cried for the club, just like that night in Athens.”

SERGIO AND TURIN

“I feel at home in this city, and over the years I’ve seen it change a lot. When I played here everything closed in the evening, but it’s better now, I really like here.”

A ROLE WITH THE FANS

“I’m a Juventus Fan Ambassador, so I maintain relationships with the supporters, meeting them on matchdays and working with them when they organise events. It’s a role I’m passionate about because I know them, I know their needs, understand what they’re lacking and what we can be more attentive to. They are an integral part of our family, they are the 12th player and it’s not just a figure of speech, I thought it as a player too and we have to let them know that they are important. We’re organising gatherings of the Official Fan Clubs, we’ve already done two in Lombardy and Calabria and they went really well. It’s rewarding to be happy with how they’ve gone, and sometimes they go on for hours. We eat together, maybe watch a match, and they understand that the club is close to them. Contact with them is important, we’re working on it, and working with them to resolve any problems they may have.”

A JOURNEY OF GENERATIONS

“How has fandom changed over the years? A lot, because the world has too. Football has changed and we have changed. Just look at how Juventus is structured now, it’s a company and a real one. Everything was different in my day, football was a bit more basic, a bit more bread and butter. I’ve seen this sport change from top to bottom, and I can’t say if it’s for better or worse, it’s just different. We trained with fans waiting for us outside or when we left the dressing room, the contact was total back then. Now players have to be attentive to other aspects, about what to communicate even, and social media has accelerated that. Even the relationship with the press was different, journalists would even come into the dressing room, almost the showers, to interview us. They had our phone numbers. But the fans, deep down, are the same as always, especially Juventus fans. And the reason is simple, Juventus fans know just one word: victory. Even when I was playing we were booed if we drew, and I won’t deny that it annoyed us at times, because maybe we came off a run of wins, but that’s what it means to be at Juventus, because this club only thinks about winning, as Giampiero Boniperti used to say.”

REMEMBERING THE PRESIDENT

“Only those who knew him can really tell the story, and know how much Juventus mattered to him. He looked after the club’s interests on all levels. When I arrived, I couldn’t believe I had a president who protected me and with whom I could talk to always have the best advice in any situation.”

CHANGES IN DEFENCE

“My role has changed a lot, I played a different type of game. I was a marker, like Gentile, but it’s not true that we played defensive football. In possession he and Cabrini pushed on, and Scirea got involved too. Gaetano had a past life as a midfielder with Atalanta, so everybody helped offensively. The toughest player I marked was Marco van Basten, without a doubt, he had two feet, was tall, and had a habit of moving towards his teammates so he was harder to predict and read. And if he turned you, he was gone. You couldn’t even push him onto a weak foot because he didn’t have one…”

THE BEST MEMORY

“The Intercontinental Cup final, we even won it with a penalty that I scored. Making that walk to the penalty spot you experience a lot of things. That day in Tokyo I took the first penalty. I’d taken them in training but never in a game, and I knew if it went to penalties the first would have been mine. It was a tough game, I marked Castro and Borghi and did well, they were great players, but I was really tired and was feeling it. There were dozens of photographers and I didn’t want to be the one to miss. Trapattoni saw me and asked how I was, he told me that I’d be able to take an unstoppable penalty. He changed my world, at that moment and at other times. Before taking it the referee even made me wait, but it went perfectly and I felt the weight lift off my shoulders.”

HIS ONLY RED CARD

“Scirea was never sent off and I was only sent off once, in Napoli-Juventus, when Diego Maradona scored an incredible free-kick. At the end of the first half, I was battling with Bagni, and we were both sent off. I’m still convinced today that I didn’t touch him.”

WHO DO YOU SEE YOURSELF IN?

“I’d say Federico Gatti, he’s physically like me, but he can be even better than me. He has been here for two years and still has room for improvement.”