Claudio Garella

Claudio Garella (16 May 1955 – 12 August 2022) was an Italian professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.

Early life

Garella was born in Turin in 1955, to parents Piera and Domenico. He first started playing football with Auxilium Monterosa, before joining the Torino youth system.

Playing career

Garella made his Serie A debut with Torino during the 1972–73 Serie A season, appearing in the final eight minutes of a 1–0 defeat to Lanerossi Vicenza, replacing Luciano Castellini; this was his only appearance for the club. In 1973, he joined JuniorCasale, where he remained for two seasons, first in Serie D and subsequently Serie C, even scoring a goal from a penalty.

In 1975, he joined Novara, helping the club to a sixth–place finish in Serie B. The following season he joined Lazio, breaking into the starting line-up during his second season with the club at the age of 22, after initially serving as a back-up to Felice Pulici during his first season; however, he endured criticism from the Italian press during this period, due to his error–prone performances.

In 1978, he moved to Sampdoria, where he spent three seasons in Serie B, before moving to Hellas Verona. Under manager Osvaldo Bagnoli, he helped the club win promotion back to Serie A, reach the 1984 Coppa Italia Final, and played a decisive role in helping the team win the 1984–85 Serie A title for the first time in the club's history, including producing a series of crucial saves in a 0–0 away draw against Roma. His performances and role in the club's league title victory earned him a move to Napoli, in part due to the insistence of Diego Maradona, where he won a domestic double during the 1986–87 season, and narrowly missed out on another league title during his third season, which was his last at the club.