Footballer Pietro Verkhovod (Pyotr Verkhovod): biography, sports career

Petr Ivanovich Verkhovod is an Italian professional ex-footballer who played in the position of the central defender. After the end of his career he took up coaching. He played for the national team of Italy in football and is the world champion in 1982 (and the bronze medalist of the 1990 World Cup). The winner of the Champions League Cup 1995/1996 in the Turin "Juventus". Two-time champion of the Italian "Serie A" in the "Roma" (season 1982/1983) and "Sampdoria" (season 1990/1991). In 1991 he was awarded the Order of Merit for the Italian Republic.

It is considered one of the greatest Italian centerbacks in history. At one time was the best and greatest defender in Italy, for which he received the nickname Zar (translated as Tsar). Pietro Verkhovod is a high-pace player with high-quality defensive abilities. Due to the stamina of his game and the style of the team in which he played, almost did not know the defeats except for the small. The growth of the player was only 179 centimeters, however, he could create an "air threat" for the opponent's goal.

His father is a Ukrainian soldier of the Red Army from the city of Starobelsk (Lugansk region). During the Second World War, a Soviet camp for Polish prisoners of war was located in the Starobelsky district.

Pietro Verhovod: biography

He was born on April 6, 1959 in the municipality of Calincine (province of Bergamo, Italy). He was brought up in the family of the Ukrainian soldier of the Red Army Ivan Lukyanovich Verkhovod, a native of the city of Starobelsk. Since childhood he began to get involved in football. When the boy was ten years old, his parents took him to the academy of the club "Ortirio". Here he played for the youth squad for four years, after which he was noticed by the coaches from the semi-professional club "Romanese", in which he subsequently transferred. At the age of 16 he made his debut for the main line-up. In the 1975/1976 season he played only three times.

Professional football career

At the age of seventeen, the guy already possessed excellent defensive skills in football: he boldly and accurately rushed into the tackle, could push almost every football player out of the attack of the opposing team and possessed an accurate far diagonal pass. The prospect of the young guy was noticed by the club from the "Series B" called "Como", in which he moved in 1976. Here he played for 5 years (115 games, 6 goals scored) and managed to achieve certain heights: in 1980 the "Como" team reached the highest level of Italian football - in "Serie A".

However, to play further for the club Pietro Verkhovod did not. In the next game season he was loaned to Fiorentina (1981/1982 season). For the "purple" played 28 official matches, in which he managed to score twice scored goal. Together with the "Fiorentina" Pietro Verhovod won "silver" in the Italian "Serie A".

The championship in the "Scudetto" in the "Roma"

In the 1982/1983 season, the defender was leased to FC Roma (the city of Rome) for one year. For the "yellow-red" played 30 games and gave 14 assists. At the end of the season, the Romans took first place in the Italian championship, leaving Juventus (39 points) and Internazionale (38 points) in the second and third places respectively. FC "Roma" scored 43 points and became the champion of the national championship, and Pietro Verkhovod was named the best player of the tournament.

12-year career in Sampdoria: achievements and glory

In 1983, Verkhovod becomes a member of Doriot and plays here until 1995. During this time he becomes the undisputed leader of his team and wins with her four times the Cup of Italy (1985, 1988, 1989 and 1994), twice the Supercup of Italy (1991 and 1995), and also becomes the winner of "Serie A" in the season 1990/1991 . It was playing for "Sampdoria" defender received the nickname Tsar. He was also called the Gladiator of Sampdoria.

"Juventus": a triumph in the Champions League

In 1995, Pietro Verhovod signed a contract with Turin Juventus at the age of 37 years. Together with the "old lady" he won the Champions League in 1996. The final match of this tournament was held in Rome - "Juventus" played against "Ajax" and won in a series of post-match penalties. For the "zebras" played only one season: 21 matches and 2 goals scored.

Going to Milan and finishing his career at Piacenza

In 1996, Verhovod joined the "Milan". Here he played just one season, going on the field 16 times and scoring a goal once.

In the period from 1997 to 2000 he played for the club "Piacenza". In the "wolves" held over 80 official matches and scored a scored goal 6 times. Many were amazed at the stamina and endurance of the player, regardless of his age: up to 41 years he demonstrated the highest class in the Scudet. In 2000 Pietro Verkhovod resigned.

For his football career, he played 562 games in Serie A. This figure was the seventh in the history of Italian football after Paolo Maldini, Gianluigi Buffon, Francesco Totti, Javier Zanetti, Gianluca Paglouki and Dino Zoff.

Style of play: what did Diego Armando Maradona say about Verhovod?

Pietro Verhovod was a tenacious and physically strong central defender who possessed high speeds. He was considered one of the hardest defenders of "Serie A" in the 1980s and 1990s: he could hard and cleanly roll into the legs of the attacker, push him back and fight in the fighting. His speed, reaction and ability to calculate the game of the opposing team allowed to interact perfectly in the defense. He intercepted the balls and quickly transferred them to the opponent's penalty area. Many players who played against him, can complain about the fact that Pietro played very tough and unprincipled. However, among other things, no one will ever say that Verkhovod was a sneaky or cunning football player. He was always respected for his honesty both on the field and in everyday life.

In an interview with the Argentinean magazine El Grafico, the famous football player Diego Armando Maradona said that Pietro Verhovod is one of the greatest defenders of football in its history. In addition, Maradona called the Italian his sworn football opponent and rival. On the "mundialyah" these two often encountered on the field, and the "star barrel" could not always beat Verkhovod. Throughout his football career, Maradona called the Italian defender "Halkom".

Coach career

After the completion of the playing career Verkhovod went to become a coach. In 2001, he began with a senior coach at the club "Catania" (Series C). In the period from 2002 to 2005 he worked in Fiorentina. In 2014, he served as head coach in the club from Budapest "Honved". However, after 6 months, he was fired for not fulfilling his coaching duties.