Mario Malatesta was born in Rome on February 29, 1908.
He began his football career in the youth teams of Alba Roma (who would later merge with Fortitudo and Roman to become AS Roma in 1927) and continued with Edera Trieste when his family moved up north. He made his professional debut with Spezia in 1928 where he was doing his military service.
In 1929 he was still carrying out his military duties when he was transferred to Rome so as a consequence he signed for Lazio. He stayed three years with the Biancocelesti. He was an excellent midfield player, nicknamed “Admiral” due to his strong charisma and fighting spirit. He appeared in 71 Serie A games for Lazio and scored 16 goals.
In 1932 he signed for Milan but rarely played. In 1933-34 he started playing for Sampierdarenese (from 1937 called Liguria and in 1946 merged with Doria and became Sampdoria) and stayed until 1940. With the club from Liguria he holds the record of appearances both in Serie A and in total (157 and 189 respectively).
He closed his career first at Ascoli and then Aosta. He then managed a number of clubs in the 1940s before being in charge of AC Milan’s youth where he “discovered”, among many, Giovanni Trapattoni and Giovanni Lodetti. The two would go on to win everything at Milan in the 1960s. After a year as head coach for Olympiakos, he returned to Milan as a talent scout.
He died in Rome on November 19, 1970.
Lazio Career
Season | Serie A Appearances | Serie A Goals |
1929-30 | 23 | 9 |
1930-31 | 22 | 6 |
1931-32 | 27 | 1 |
Total | 72 | 16 |
Sources