31 July 2024
A Juventus legend has left us: Bruno Garzena has passed away at the age of 91.
Garzena was born on 2 February 1933. His quick defensive actions and his place of origin earned him his on-pitch nickname: the Venarian Hawk. Giampiero Boniperti called him “the quintessential full-back.” This is how he liked to tell his story: "I wasn't a star, there were others in Juve. I would tell my opponents: 'This is not going to be a fun day for you today', and then play my game.”
THE ERA OF ARTISTS
"The football of my time was very romantic, more fun. We felt like artists." This is how Garzena described his fascination with a world that he strongly wanted to be a part of, starting with his try-out with Juventus: "I lived with my parents on Corso Vercelli, we had a shop on Via Rondissone. Yes, I know, I was on the other side of town. But cycling to the Piazza d'Armi, where we used to train at the time, was a game. I didn't even keep my hands on the handlebars and I had one shoe different from the other, we had just come out of the World War.” Thus, a very strong bond was born with the squad he loved. His self-declared idol was Virginio Rosetta (pictured with him), the Juve full-back of the Quinquennio d'Oro (Five Golden Years). He made his Serie A debut at 20 years old on 10 May 1953, in Juventus vs Inter. Vittorio Pozzo, manager of the two-time world champion national team in 1934 and 1938, made a clear judgement: "The boy has what it takes."
ONE ON ONE
Garzena played on the left wing and also on the other side, if necessary. Grit and concentration were his hallmarks. His duels with the opposing wingers would be the talk of the match. They were direct confrontations filled with ups, downs and tackles. "In those days there were no double teams, no sweeper. You had to manage on your own." He would very rarely venture past midfield, as football at this time did not expect full-backs to push forward. In this sense, it was normal to never have scored a goal: "This never caused me any problems, also because, in those days, it was very difficult for someone playing on defence to move forward in search of a goal. And then, for me, the important thing was to prevent my direct opponent from scoring, that was my job."
SUCCESFUL YEARS
Garzena spent eight years on the first team, with a path that has been anything but linear. After his debut in 1952-53, he went to Alexandria to cut his teeth and returned in 1954. Gradually he earned his place as a starter. His best season was the one that ushered in a great cycle. Bruno did not miss a single game in the 1957-58 season, which culminated in a championship. "I think that our attack with Charles and Sivori (pictured behind him), if he decided to push forward and score goals, he could do it. The result only depended on how many goals we scored, because scoring them was not a problem." After a brief season away in 1960-61 in Vicenza, he spent one more year as a bianconero in 1961-62. He had a total of 186 appearances with Juventus, with two league championships and two Italian Cups.
LOVE FOR FOOTBALL
After Juventus, Garzena won two more championships for Modena and Napoli, to retire at the age of 31. In Hurrà Juventus, in 1988, he recounted the reasons for this choice to retire early. "In fact, in 1964, although I was still relatively young, I stopped playing for good because I wasn’t having as much fun as I used to. At the beginning of my career, it was quite different, class and flair took precedence over pure athleticism, which I think has taken over in today's football.” His regard for the profession that he enjoyed so much remains unchanged. "Undoubtedly, football has built my existence, because it educated me, trained me and made me quite wealthy. In one word, it has given me everything."
STORIES FROM BRUNO
“My love affair with Juve lives on.” Bruno never stopped following his team from the stands. Those who were fortunate enough to know him were able to appreciate his extraordinary talents as a storyteller. His stories placed you in a fascinating world of football, where the pitch became the venue for duels, like an epic, knightly poem. One of his favourites was his duel with one of the foreign superstars he had met in his career: the Uruguayan Alcides Ghiggia from Roma. "My duels with Ghiggia went down in history. Truthfully, many words were written about our episode—the newspapers may have exaggerated. He was an extraordinary winger, who would destroy you even if you were playing well. But one day I didn't understand the insistence on going around me, waiting for me and passing me again, over and over, under my nose. He must have juked me a hundred times, but we won the game 3-0 and Ghiggia didn't score. I didn’t take kindly to that move and one time made him fly to the ground. So I gave him my hand to lift him up and said: 'And I didn't even get a good hit on you.' I didn't see him the rest of the match, he went into hiding.”
