Giuseppe Luigi David "Joe" Bacuzzi (25 September 1916 – 1 February 1995), was an English

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

and coach who spent most of his career at

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...

. In November 1945, however, he guested for both

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

and

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

in their prestige friendlies against a touring

FC Dynamo Moscow FC Dynamo Moscow (''FC Dynamo Moskva'', russian: Дина́мо Москва́ ) is a Russian football club based in Moscow. Dynamo returned to the Russian Premier League for the 2017–18 season after one season in the second-tier Russian Footb ...

. As an international he also played for

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Personal life

Bacuzzi was born in

Clerkenwell Clerkenwell () is an area of central London, England. Clerkenwell was an ancient parish from the mediaeval period onwards, and now forms the south-western part of the London Borough of Islington. The well after which it was named was redisco ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, England into an

Anglo-Italian Italians in the United Kingdom, also known as British Italians or colloquially Britalians, are citizens or residents of the United Kingdom of Italian heritage. The phrase may refer to someone born in the United Kingdom of Italian descent, some ...

family that had settled in

. His father, Camillo, came from

Sorisole Sorisole (Bergamasque: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Bergamo in the Italian region of Lombardy, located about northeast of Milan and about north of Bergamo. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 8,507 and an area o ...

(

Bergamo Bergamo (; lmo, Bèrghem ; from the proto- Germanic elements *''berg +*heim'', the "mountain home") is a city in the alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from Switzerland, the alpine lakes Como ...

), and his mother, Natalina Clerici, from Precotto, a neighbourhood of

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

. His son,

Dave Bacuzzi David Reno Bacuzzi (12 October 1940 – 21 April 2020) was an English footballer and manager who played for Arsenal, Manchester City and Reading. He also represented England as a youth international. After a moderately successful career in the ...

, was also a notable footballer, playing as a defender for both

and

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...

. Bacuzzi Sr. lived in the

area until he died, aged 78 in 1995.

Playing career

Club career

Bacuzzi began his career with

Tufnell Park Tufnell Park is an area in north London, England, in the London boroughs of Islington and Camden. The neighborhood is served by Tufnell Park tube station on the Northern Line. History Origins and boundary ;Medieval and later manor Tufnell ...

before having trials with

. However, he failed to impress the Gunners and was subsequently signed as an amateur by

in 1935. He turned professional in 1936 and in January 1937 he made his first team debut for Fulham, playing as a

right-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

, in a 4–1 defeat away to

Chesterfield Chesterfield may refer to: Places Canada * Rural Municipality of Chesterfield No. 261, Saskatchewan * Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut United Kingdom * Chesterfield, Derbyshire, a market town in England ** Chesterfield (UK Parliament constitue ...

. However, he only made one other senior appearance that season, playing as a left-back against

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...

. Bacuzzi scored just two goals during his career and he netted his first during the 1938–39 season when Fulham defeated

Luton Town Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1885, it is nicknam ...

4–1. He was an ever-present during the same season and went on to make 70 appearances for the club before the start of the

. During the war Bacuzzi made 104 appearances for Fulham in regional leagues. He was also an active guest player and made a further 14 league appearances for several other clubs, most notably

Bury Bury may refer to: *The burial of human remains *-bury, a suffix in English placenames Places England * Bury, Cambridgeshire, a village * Bury, Greater Manchester, a town, historically in Lancashire ** Bury (UK Parliament constituency) (1832–19 ...

and

Notts County Notts County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nottingham, England. The team participate in the National League (division), National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Founded on the 2 ...

. Between 1943 and 1944 he also served with the military in

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

and Italy. His most notable guest appearances came in November 1945 when Bacuzzi played for both

and

in their prestige friendlies against a touring

. On 13 November at

Stamford Bridge Stamford Bridge may refer to: * Stamford Bridge, East Riding of Yorkshire, a village in England ** Battle of Stamford Bridge, 25 September 1066 * Stamford Bridge (bridge), a bridge in the village of Stamford Bridge * Stamford Bridge (stadium), in L ...

he helped Chelsea hold Dynamo to a 3–3 draw. Then on 21 November at

White Hart Lane White Hart Lane was a Association football, football stadium in Tottenham, North London and the home of Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Tottenham Hotspur Football Club from 1899 to 2017. Its capacity varied over the years; when changed to all-seater i ...

, together with

Stanley Matthews Sir Stanley Matthews, CBE (1 February 1915 – 23 February 2000) was an English footballer who played as an outside right. Often regarded as one of the greatest players of the British game, he is the only player to have been knighted while stil ...

and

Stan Mortensen Stanley Harding Mortensen (26 May 1921 – 22 May 1991) was an English professional footballer, most famous for his part in the 1953 FA Cup Final (subsequently known as the "Matthews Final"), in which he became the only player ever to score a h ...

, he was a member of an Arsenal XI that lost 4–3 to Dynamo. After the war Bacuzzi remained Fulham's first choice right-back and he continued playing until he was almost 40, taking his total of league and cup appearances for the club to 299. He only retired when a terrible knee injury ended his playing career at the end of the 1955–56 season. In August 1949 he scored his second goal for the club with a fortunate shot against

Wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; plural, : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large Canis, canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of Canis lupus, subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been reco ...

. It was also the club's first ever goal in the First Division. While still playing, Bacuzzi also seems to have acted as an impromptu scout for the club and was responsible for discovering

Bedford Jezzard Bedford Alfred George Jezzard (19 October 1927 – 21 May 2005) was an English footballer. Jezzard's teenage years coincided with the Second World War, and he began football as an amateur with Croxley Boys and later Watford, for whom he made th ...

England international

Between 1939 and 1946 Bacuzzi played 13 times for

. He made his international debut on 11 November 1939 against

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

in a 1–1 draw at

Ninian Park Ninian Park was a football stadium in the Leckwith area of Cardiff, Wales, that was the home of Cardiff City F.C. for 99 years. Opened in 1910 with a single wooden stand, it underwent numerous renovations during its lifespan and hosted fixture ...

. This game saw England use a substitute for the first time after Bacuzzi was injured. On 2 February 1941 at

St James' Park St James' Park is a football stadium in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It is the home of Premier League club Newcastle United F.C. With a seating capacity of 52,305 seats, it is the eighth largest football stadium in England. St James' Park ...

during his third international he scored an

own goal An own goal, also called a self goal, is where a player performs actions that result in them or their team scoring a goal on themselves, often resulting in a point for the opposing team, such as when a football player kicks a ball into their own ...

when a misplaced back header gave

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

a 3–2 win. After helping England defeat Wales 5–3 at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

on 27 February 1943, he had to wait for over three years before he made his next and final appearance. He made his last appearance for England on 19 May 1946 in a 2–1 defeat against

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, in a

Victory International The term Victory International or Victory Internationals refers to two series of international football matches played by the national football teams of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales at the end of both the First and Second World Wars. The ...

at the Stade Olympique. Bacuzzi's teammates during his international career included, among others,

Joe Mercer Joseph Mercer, OBE (9 August 1914 – 9 August 1990) was an English football player and manager. Mercer, who played as a defender for Everton and Arsenal in his footballing career, also went on to manage Aston Villa, Manchester City and Engl ...

and

Tommy Lawton Thomas Lawton (6 October 1919 – 6 November 1996) was an English football player and manager. A strong centre-forward with excellent all-round attacking skills, he was able to head the ball with tremendous power and accuracy. Born in Fa ...

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Coaching career

After retiring as a player in 1956, he was appointed

reserve team In sports, a reserve team is a team composed of players under contract to a club but who do not normally play in matches for the first team. Reserve teams often include back-up players from the first team, young players who need playing time to i ...

trainer at

and stayed in that post until 1965 when he was sacked by

Vic Buckingham Victor Frederick Buckingham (23 October 1915 – 26 January 1995) was an English football player and manager. He played for the then second division side Tottenham Hotspur. As manager he won the 1953–54 FA Cup with West Bromwich Albion and f ...

Honours

Fulham *

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

**''Winners'' 1948–49: 1

External links

www.fulhamfc.com
*

Sources

*''Soccer at War – 1939 – 45'' (2005): Jack Rolli

*''Maine Road Favourites – Where Are They Now ?'' (2006): Ian Penney with Fred Eyre

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bacuzzi, Joe 1916 births 1995 deaths English footballers England wartime international footballers Fulham F.C. players Tufnell Park F.C. players Arsenal F.C. wartime guest players Reading F.C. wartime guest players Manchester City F.C. wartime guest players Bury F.C. wartime guest players Notts County F.C. wartime guest players Derby County F.C. wartime guest players Chelsea F.C. wartime guest players Fulham F.C. non-playing staff People from Clerkenwell English people of Italian descent English Football League representative players Association football fullbacks Association football coaches