MILAN – On 5 November 1933, Giuseppe Meazza wrote his name into the Nerazzurri history books as he bagged all four goals in Inter’s 4-1 win away at Lazio.
At Rome’s Stadio Nazionale, Arpad Weisz’s Ambosiana-Inter side took on Karl Sturmer’s Lazio in Week 9 of Serie A. The Nerazzurri had strengthened in the summer on the request of the Hungarian coach, with Alfredo Pitto and Ricardo Faccio coming in to bolster the midfield, and were arriving at the Stadio Nazionale off the back of a midweek derby win over AC Milan. Inter were top of the table, two points clear of Triestina and Juventus, with the Bianconeri set to visit Milan the following week in a crunch match.
In addition to the great Meazza, the Inter side that lined up against Lazio that night was also blessed with the midfielder Giuseppe Viani and the deadly goalscorer Virgilio Levratto. The Nerazzurri were ahead after just 12 minutes: Inter midfielder Renato De Manzano won the ball back in the centre of the park and played it to Meazza, who deftly beat Ezio Sclavi in the Lazio goal.
The 1-0 lead would last just ten minutes, as the home side equalised through Piero Pastore on 21 minutes. A closely fought, error-strewn 30 minutes followed, but there were no more goals before half time.
The second half, however, was a veritable one-man show.
In under half an hour, between the 47th and 76th minutes, Giuseppe Meazza – the local lad from Porta Vittoria – wowed the crowd with his sumptuous talent.
The first goal stemmed from a great move from Viani and De Manzano, with Meazza picking up the ball, dribbling past the Lazio defence and finding the back of the net with a powerful, precise shot. Next, he allowed Levratto to take the initiative, ghosting into the box to score into an empty net from a Francisco Frione assist. Finally, with under 15 minutes until full time, Meazza headed home a Levratto corner to complete a 4-1 win at the Stadio Nazionale, with Carlo Ceresoli producing some fine late saves to maintain the margin of victory.
As the Nerazzurri left to the applause of the Lazio fans, they entered the club history books. For the first time ever, after three draws and two defeats, Inter had beaten Lazio in Rome. Meazza, who is still Inter’s top scorer in the fixture with 18 goals, had become the first Nerazzurri player to score four goals in a single Serie A game. Meazza’s feat would later be emulated by Bruno Quaresima in 1947/48 and Roberto Boninsegna in 1973 and 1974, with the latter emerging as the great man’s successor.
Though Inter did beat Juventus in their next game, Weisz’s Inter were unable to stop the Bianconeri from winning the title, finishing in second place.
For Meazza, however, there was more to come. Back at the Stadio Nazionale, on 10 June 1934, he would become a World Cup winner with Vittorio Pozzo’s Italy. Yet nothing could erase the memory of that history-making night against Lazio in November. Meazza was Italy’s first great player. And he was Inter through and through.
Roberto Brambilla
