Igor Netto

Igor Aleksandrovich Netto (Russian: Игорь Александрович Нетто; 9 January 1930 – 30 March 1999)[1] was a Soviet footballer, considered one of the greatest Soviet players ever. He started out playing on the left of defense but, due to his offensive mentality, dribbling and technical abilities turned into a dynamic central midfielder. His versatility and footballing intelligence allowed him to play a number of positions across defense and midfield.

In this Eastern Slavic name, the patronymic is Aleksandrovich and the family name is Netto.

Igor Netto
Igor Netto (left) and Lev Yashin in 1961
Personal information
Full name Igor Aleksandrovich Netto
Date of birth (1930-01-09)9 January 1930
Place of birth Moscow, Soviet Union
Date of death 30 March 1999(1999-03-30) (aged 69)
Place of death Moscow, Russia
Position(s) Midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1949–1966 FC Spartak Moscow 368 (36)
National team
1952–1965 Soviet Union 54 (4)
Teams managed
1967 AC Omonia
1968 FC Shinnik Yaroslavl
1969–1970 Iran (Assistant)
1970–1971 Iran
1973–1975 FC Spartak Moscow (Assistant)
1975 FC Spartak Moscow
1976–1977 Panionios
1979 Neftchi Baku
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Ice hockey and club career

Besides football, Netto played 22 games in the 1948–49 and 1950–51 seasons as an ice hockey forward for Spartak.[2] He quit because of the high level of traumatize intrinsic to hockey.[3][4]

During his club career he played for FC Spartak Moscow from 1949 until 1966, scoring 37 goals in 367 league games, winning five Soviet championships and three cups.

International career
Igor Netto, Sergei Salnikov and Lev Yashin at the 1958 World Cup

He was the captain of the USSR national football team from 1954 to 1963. He led the country to the gold medal in the 1956 Summer Olympics,[1] and victory at the first ever European Championship in 1960. He missed all but one match in the 1958 FIFA World Cup due to injury, and also played all four matches in the 1962 FIFA World Cup when the Soviet Union reached the quarterfinals. In total he collected 54 international caps and four goals.[5]

Netto was a person of exceptional honesty, which was revealed most remarkably during the 1962 FIFA World Cup match against Uruguay. At a 1–1 score, Igor Chislenko managed to strike through the net, and the resulting goal was mistakenly counted by the referee who has not seen the ball trajectory. Hearing protests from the Uruguayan keeper, Netto confirmed with Chislenko that the ball went through the net, and convinced the referee to discount the goal. Netto's team won that match anyway.[3][4]

Managerial career

After retiring in 1966 he had a long, though unsuccessful career as a coach, training AC Omonia, FC Shinnik Yaroslavl, Iran, Panionios and Neftchi Baku. Netto was awarded the Order of Lenin in 1957. The stadium of Spartak Moscow reserves team is named after him.[4]

Personal life

Netto was of Estonian and Italian descent. He was known as goose for his hissing voice, as well as goose-like walk and head shape. On 9 January 1960 he married Olga Yakovleva, an actress. They divorced around 1987 when Netto was suffering from Alzheimer's disease.[3][4]

Career statistics

International goals
#DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.16 September 1955Dynamo Stadium, Moscow, Soviet Union India11–1WinFriendly
2.2 December 1956Olympic Park Stadium, Melbourne, Australia Indonesia4–0Win1956 Summer Olympics
3.27 July 1957Dynamo Stadium, Moscow, Soviet Union Finland2–1Win1958 World Cup qual.
4.15 August 1957Olympic Stadium, Helsinki, Finland Finland0–10Win1958 World Cup qual.
Correct as of 7 March 2016[6]

Honours
Spartak Moscow
Soviet Union
Individual

References
  1. Igor Netto Archived 6 March 2014 at the Wayback Machine. sports-reference.com
  2. Нетто Игорь Александрович. spartak-history.ru
  3. Elena Grigorievskaya (9 January 2014) Рыжие волосы, Гусь и приключения на ипподроме. Самые интересные истории, связанные с Игорем Нетто. gazeta.ru
  4. Игорь НЕТТО. rusteam.permian.ru
  5. Igor Netto. national-football-teams.com
  6. "Igor Netto - national football team player". eu-football.info.
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