Famed Inter Milan and Italy forward Mazzola dies at 83

Sept 19 - Former Italy forward Sandro Mazzola, who spent all 17 years of his senior career at Inter Milan, has died at the age of 83, the club said on Saturday.

Mazzola, considered a club icon at Inter, scored 158 goals in 565 appearances, helping them win four Serie A titles and two European Cups. He was part of the Italy side that won the Euros in 1968 and reached the World Cup final in Mexico two years later.

"Sandro Mazzola was one of the greatest footballers in history. Not only in the history of the Nerazzurri," Inter said in a statement on their official website, using a nickname for the team. "He was Inter’s history: he joined the club as a boy and never left it."

Mazzola was 6 years old when his father Valentino, also an Italy international, died in the Superga air disaster, a plane crash in May 1949 that killed the entire Torino team on their way back from a match in Lisbon.

At 18, Mazzola made his senior debut when Inter fielded their youth side in a match against Juventus, after the Italian federation overturned a decision awarding Inter a 2-0 victory following a pitch invasion by Juventus fans and ordered a replay.

Mazzola, who had been a club mascot at Inter as a child, finished a school exam before travelling to Turin, where he scored Inter's only goal from a penalty in a 9-1 defeat to Juventus.

He quickly became a first-team regular, helping Inter win their first European Cup in 1964 by scoring a brace as they beat Real Madrid 3-1 in the final. He played a key role when Inter won the title again the next season.

Mazzola retired as a player in 1977 and later served as Inter's sporting director. He also became the sporting director of Torino, his father's club.

"The star with the moustache shone on the pitch, and still does today. As he often said, he had one final wish: to be remembered as a good man, someone who keeps fighting even when winning is impossible, like in that 9-1," Inter said. REUTERS