The Joy of Six - the Enzo-Leicester Connection

[kushiro]

Just a bit of fun this one. And a token of thanks to @Plastik Man, who's helped me out massively with the Mile Straight (see recent thread). 

 

His icon is this picture:

 

 

That's World Cup winning Italian manager Enzo Bearzot. And he's the first in this Joy of Six - a journey through football trivia looking at Enzos great and small, and how they all somehow connect to Leicester City.

 

 

1) Enzo Bearzot. 

 

It was 1982 when he led Italy to their third World Cup triumph,  knocking out that great Brazil side on the way.

 

 

 

After he died,  Italian football decided to honour his memory by creating the 'Enzo Bearzot Award',  given annually to the Italian manager who makes the most outstanding contribution to world football. 

 

Only once has it been awarded to an English club manager, and that of course, was in 2016:

 

 

 

2) Enzo Scifo

 

Leicester lad Peter Shilton holds the record for most England appearances with 125,  But that total would have been lower if it hadn't been for this stroke of luck in the last 16 of Italia 90:

 

 

Had that gone in, Shilton would only have 122 caps, Lineker would only have 45 England goals, there would have been no Gazza's tears, no 'Have a word with him', no post-World Cup football boom - and we wouldn't have been relegated last season because the English game would have gone bankrupt some time in the mid 1990s. Probably. 

 

So Enzo Scifo' has a lot to answer for.

 

His name came from his Sicilian parents,  and he'll reappear later on.

 

 

3) Enzo Gambaro

 

Who's he?

 

Well, he was a defender who played for Parma, Napoli, Fiorentina and Milan in the 1980s and 1990s.

 

 

Bizarrely, he joined Grimsby Town in 1996, but only ever played one game for them, as substitute.  That made him (as far as I know) the first Enzo to appear in English football (two years before a handsome 18 year old turned up at The Hawthorns).  Who were Grimsby's opponents that day? Of course it was Leicester City.

 

On March 9th 1996 Martin O'Neill was wondering what he'd got himself into. Since taking over as manager at Filbert Street, City had won just one of thirteen matches. But for the home game against Grimsby, a new face was waiting to make his debut. O'Neill had signed a scruffy 29 year old striker from Birmingham CIty called Steve Claridge. 

 

He made an instant impact, 'his industry and tenacity drawing huge applause', as City won 2-1, Emile Heskey scoring twice to revive our promotion hopes.

 

Enzo Gambaro made rather less impact, coming on for 24 minutes before disappearing from English football for good.

 

 

4) Enzo Francescoli

 

To introduce our next Enzo, let's go back to Belgium and Mr. Scifo. Earlier in Italia 90 he'd tried a similar shot to the one that hit Shilton's right hand post;

 

 

The captain of Belgium's opponents that day was Enzo Francescoli, one of the true legends of Uruguayan football.

 

 

 

After the World Cup, Francesoli decided to stay in Italy, jioining Cagliarii, who had just been promoted to Serie A. The young manager who got them promoted and then signed Francescoli was?

 

You've probably guessed that already:

 

 

 

5) Enzo Maresca

 

Joy or Pain?

 

It's fascinating isn't it. Not one of us has the foggiest idea how this will work out.  Is this the start of the glorious Maresca era - an East Midlands version of Pep-ball taking us back to the Premier League followed by a series of top ten finishes and a return to European competition? Or will it all go horribly wrong, as a club shattered by relegation realises that a few tactical tweaks and changes of personnel aren't remotely sufficient to halt the downward momentum?

 

Just in case you missed it back in June, here's the story of his first adventure in English football:

 

 

 

6)  The One and Only

 

The best has been saved for last.

 

The proper pronunciation of Enzo does not have a soft 'z' in the middlle. It should sound like 'Entso'.  It's derived from the German name Heinz. 

 

Those who study these things tell us that several common English names like Harry and Henry come from the same lineage. And surnames too - like Hanson, Anson and Henson.

 

What?

 

Henson???

 

 

No doubt our new manager has been reading up on our history, trying to get a feel for the traditions of the club.

 

 

I wonder if anyone's told him about this fella:

 

 

 

 

 

[kushiro]

The only thing missing is a Leicester - Enzo Ferrari connection. 

 

Any ideas?

[davieG]

1 hour ago, kushiro said:

The only thing missing is a Leicester - Enzo Ferrari connection. 

 

Any ideas?

A bit tenuous

 

 

Ferrari Enzo  |  Spotted in Leicester, United Kingdom

 

 

 

http://www.exoticspotter.com/ferrari-enzo-leicester-united-kingdom-209865

[kushiro]

12 hours ago, davieG said:

A bit tenuous

 

 

Ferrari Enzo  |  Spotted in Leicester, United Kingdom

 

 

 

http://www.exoticspotter.com/ferrari-enzo-leicester-united-kingdom-209865

 

Still a bit tenuous - our first Italian, in the pits before a grand prix:

 

 

 

[Plastik Man]

14 hours ago, kushiro said:

The only thing missing is a Leicester - Enzo Ferrari connection. 

 

Any ideas?

It would be hilarious if he'd had a fling with a lass from Earl Shilton he met testing at Mallory Park. But unlikely! 😆

 

Perhaps visited Donnington for a Grand Prix? There could be stories to be told by the folks in Castle Donnington?!

[jayfox26]

14 hours ago, kushiro said:

Just a bit of fun this one. And a token of thanks to @Plastik Man, who's helped me out massively with the Mile Straight (see recent thread). 

 

His icon is this picture:

 

 

That's World Cup winning Italian manager Enzo Bearzot. And he's the first in this Joy of Six - a journey through football trivia looking at Enzos great and small, and how they all somehow connect to Leicester City.

 

 

1) Enzo Bearzot. 

 

It was 1982 when he led Italy to their third World Cup triumph,  knocking out that great Brazil side on the way.

 

 

 

After he died,  Italian football decided to honour his memory by creating the 'Enzo Bearzot Award',  given annually to the Italian manager who makes the most outstanding contribution to world football. 

 

Only once has it been awarded to an English club manager, and that of course, was in 2016:

 

 

 

2) Enzo Scifo

 

Leicester lad Peter Shilton holds the record for most England appearances with 125,  But that total would have been lower if it hadn't been for this stroke of luck in the last 16 of Italia 90:

 

 

Had that gone in, Shilton would only have 122 caps, Lineker would only have 45 England goals, there would have been no Gazza's tears, no 'Have a word with him', no post-World Cup football boom - and we wouldn't have been relegated last season because the English game would have gone bankrupt some time in the mid 1990s. Probably. 

 

So Enzo Scifo' has a lot to answer for.

 

His name came from his Sicilian parents,  and he'll reappear later on.

 

 

3) Enzo Gambaro

 

Who's he?

 

Well, he was a defender who played for Parma, Napoli, Fiorentina and Milan in the 1980s and 1990s.

 

 

Bizarrely, he joined Grimsby Town in 1996, but only ever played one game for them, as substitute.  That made him (as far as I know) the first Enzo to appear in English football (two years before a handsome 18 year old turned up at The Hawthorns).  Who were Grimsby's opponents that day? Of course it was Leicester City.

 

On March 9th 1996 Martin O'Neill was wondering what he'd got himself into. Since taking over as manager at Filbert Street, City had won just one of thirteen matches. But for the home game against Grimsby, a new face was waiting to make his debut. O'Neill had signed a scruffy 29 year old striker from Birmingham CIty called Steve Claridge. 

 

He made an instant impact, 'his industry and tenacity drawing huge applause', as City won 2-1, Emile Heskey scoring twice to revive our promotion hopes.

 

Enzo Gambaro made rather less impact, coming on for 24 minutes before disappearing from English football for good.

 

 

4) Enzo Francescoli

 

To introduce our next Enzo, let's go back to Belgium and Mr. Scifo. Earlier in Italia 90 he'd tried a similar shot to the one that hit Shilton's right hand post;

 

 

The captain of Belgium's opponents that day was Enzo Francescoli, one of the true legends of Uruguayan football.

 

 

 

After the World Cup, Francesoli decided to stay in Italy, jioining Cagliarii, who had just been promoted to Serie A. The young manager who got them promoted and then signed Francescoli was?

 

You've probably guessed that already:

 

 

 

5) Enzo Maresca

 

Joy or Pain?

 

It's fascinating isn't it. Not one of us has the foggiest idea how this will work out.  Is this the start of the glorious Maresca era - an East Midlands version of Pep-ball taking us back to the Premier League followed by a series of top ten finishes and a return to European competition? Or will it all go horribly wrong, as a club shattered by relegation realises that a few tactical tweaks and changes of personnel aren't remotely sufficient to halt the downward momentum?

 

Just in case you missed it back in June, here's the story of his first adventure in English football:

 

 

 

6)  The One and Only

 

The best has been saved for last.

 

The proper pronunciation of Enzo does not have a soft 'z' in the middlle. It should sound like 'Entso'.  It's derived from the German name Heinz. 

 

Those who study these things tell us that several common English names like Harry and Henry come from the same lineage. And surnames too - like Hanson, Anson and Henson.

 

What?

 

Henson???

 

 

No doubt our new manager has been reading up on our history, trying to get a feel for the traditions of the club.

 

 

I wonder if anyone's told him about this fella:

 

 

 

 

 

Another great read, thanks for the effort you go to in finding out all this information! 👍 

[kushiro]

9 hours ago, Plastik Man said:

It would be hilarious if he'd had a fling with a lass from Earl Shilton he met testing at Mallory Park. But unlikely! 😆

 

Perhaps visited Donnington for a Grand Prix? There could be stories to be told by the folks in Castle Donnington?!

 

Well, some people mischievously think Mezut Ozil is some kind of reincarnation of Enzo Ferrari, based on the fact that they look remarkably similar, and Ozil was born just after Ferrari died.

 

 

Any connection to Leicester? 

 

Well, only the photo that Robert Huth cited as the turning point in the 2016 title win.

Arsenal news: Robert Huth reveals changing room selfies inspired Leicester to beat Gunners to Premier League title | The Independent | The Independent