MILAN – Evaristo Beccalossi has told Inter Channel’s Memorabilia show that it was an "honour" to wear the Nerazzurri’s No.10 shirt during his time with the club.
Beccalossi, who played for Inter between 1978 and 1984, began by recalling the day of his Nerazzurri debut.
"I kicked off my time at Inter with two goals on my debut. It was an honour to wear the No.10 shirt for seven years. I actually wanted the No.8 but the club chose the No.10 for me. Some great players had worn that shirt. I started from nowhere so to get to Inter was a dream. The fans really helped me – I still remember the love they showed me."
The Italian provided fans with some fascinating insight of life at Inter back in the late 1970s.
"In my first year at Inter, the majority of the players had come up from the youth academy. The whole group was really in sync with coach [Eugenio] Bersellini right from the word go. He’d built up a fantastic group of exclusively Italian players.
"The pre-season training camps were much harder back then – they were very different. I was part of the group that went on the first-ever tour of China, though I was struggling with injury and didn’t actually get on the pitch."
Beccalossi also revealed that he is still very much in touch with the rest of the 1979/80 Scudetto-winning side.
"We still see each other – we go to dinner quite often and spend some good quality time together. We had a very tight group and it’s little wonder we still manage to see each other despite it being years down the line.
"In my time San Siro was almost always full and it was incredible to see the fans shouting my name. It was one of the best times in my career and I will never forget it."
The 1979/80 Scudetto was unique in that Inter led Serie A from the first until the last day of the season, with Beccalossi admitting it was a magical experience.
"It was an incredible journey. We used to play from memory – everything was perfect, and obviously we got the rub of the green at times too. Up front [Alessandro] Altobelli and [Carlo] Muraro were in scintillating form, but behind me I had players like [Gabriele] Oriali, [Gianpiero] Marini and [Giuseppe] Baresi.
"Juventus were very strong during that time – they provided much of the spine of the Italian team for the 1978 and 1982 World Cups. It was always tough to play them because they were a side with bags of character."
Beccalossi also looked back on one of his finest hours as an Inter man: a wonderful brace against AC Milan in the derby on 28 October 1979.
"Our preparation for the game was unbelievable. The match made me realise what the Milan derby is all about. It always gave me a massive boost to feel the love from the fans around the city. Thankfully, back then we always did very well in the derby."
Beccalossi departed Inter in 1984, eventually returning to hometown club Brescia.
"I left Inter when I was 27 years old and still a starter. The club wanted to go with other players. I then retired at Brescia at 32. I didn’t find it hard to stop playing – I was lucky because I had other things lined up away from football."
The Italian also had some advice for young players starting out in the game today.
"Over the years, I’ve known a lot of young players and I always try to convey some of the values that are missing in the game nowadays. Youngsters need to believe in themselves. Even when the going gets really tough, they need to keep going because sooner or later a door will open."
Last but not least, Beccalossi was asked for the highlight of an Inter career that included one Scudetto and one Coppa Italia triumph.
"In my eyes, the best thing was that the Inter fans really identified with us. They still have nice memories of me today."
Tune into Memorabilia on Inter Channel this evening for the full interview!
