Franco “Ciccio” Cordova was a very controversial figure in Rome. As captain of Roma he did the unthinkable: he joined Lazio.
Born in Forlì on June 21, 1944, he started playing football for Flegrea, later to be bought by Internapoli (the team that Giorgio Chinaglia and Pino Wilson played for before joining Lazio). His professional debut came with Salernitana in Serie C in 1962. He then moved to Catania in Serie A but in two years played very little. However he became a player of interest for Inter who were looking to find an eventual replacement for Mario Corso and signed for the nerazzurri for the 1965-66 season. He played just one game for Inter and in the following he was loaned to Brescia in Serie B.
After a year in Lombardy he signed for Roma and it was with the giallorossi that he found his ideal home. In 1970 he married the President Alvaro Marchini's daughter.
Marchini in the summer of 1970 decided to sell Roma’s best young players, Fabio Capello, Luciano Spinosi and Fausto Landini, to Juventus in exchange for a bunch of old timers. The fans were not impressed and for the entire 1970-71 season demanded his resignation. Despite arriving sixth that season, the best result of his three-year presidency, Marchini was forced to sell the club to Gaetano Anzalone.
Cordova in 1972 became captain and was one of the more popular players, but he was linked to the past president and never got on with the new one. After a disappointing 1975-76 season, Anzalone decided to get rid of the old players and start from scratch with a new, younger and more motivated team. Cordova was up for sale after 285 games for the giallorossi in nine years. Anzalone sold him to Verona without saying anything to the player during the negotiations. Ciccio, heartbroken, felt betrayed by the club he supported and broke his contract with Rome becoming a free agent.
Nobody was interested in signing him and he risked having to quit football at 32. He really wanted to stay in Rome, so when Lazio knocked on his door, he took the opportunity and signed for the Biancocelesti. With this move he continued to play football, in the city he loved, and could be a thorn in Anzalone’s side. Perfect.
Lazio had been looking for a playmaker ever since they disastrously sold Mario Frustalupi and Cordova was their ideal player. Not everybody at Lazio was overjoyed, especially Luciano Re Cecconi, but the fans accepted him immediately and he played three years for the Biancocelesti. He found it hard in the beginning, and legend has it that he was not really sure whether to play his first game or not. But he did.
At Lazio he played for three years, with 85 appearances in Serie A and two goals, 14 in Coppa Italia (1 goal), 3 in the UEFA Cup and five in the Intertoto Cup. He showed all his quality and was good technically even if inconsistent.
In 1979-80 he signed for Avellino but only played a handful of games. He was suspended for a year and two months following the match fixing scandal of the 1980s.
He played twice for the Nazionale in 1975 in the Euro 1976 qualifying games against Poland and Finland.
Ciccio Cordova has always been a Roma supporter but at Lazio everybody appreciated his professionalism.
Lazio career
Season | Total appearances (goals) | Serie A | Coppa Italia | UEFA Cup | Intertoto Cup |
1976-77 | 34 (3) | 30 (2) | 4 (1) | - | - |
1977-78 | 39 | 27 | 4 | 3 | 5 |
1978-79 | 34 | 28 | 6 | - | - |
Total | 107 (3) | 85 (2) | 14 (1) | 3 | 5 |
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