Giuseppe Wilson

Giuseppe Wilson

Wilson in a Lazio shirt
Personal information
Full nameJoseph Wilson
Date of birth27 October 1945
Place of birthDarlington, England
Playing positionCenter back
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
1964–1965Cirio18(0)
1965–1969Internapoli138(0)
1969–1979Lazio[1]296(4)
1978–1979New York Cosmos16(0)
Total468(4)
National team
1974Italy3(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.
† Appearances (Goals).

Joseph (Giuseppe) "Pino"[2] Wilson (born 27 October 1945 in Darlington, England, UK) is a former Italian footballer. Although born in Northern England, Wilson played the majority of his football career in Italy.

At club level he played as a defender for Internapoli and Lazio, as well as representing the Italian national football team three times in 1974.

Biography

He was born in Darlington to a Neapolitan woman Lina Di Francesca and Dennis Wilson, a Briton who worked as an iron and steel worker at the local factory, but had met Lina while serving with the British Army. When Joseph Wilson was just six months old, his family moved to Naples, his mother's hometown as she found it hard to settle in the UK due to the cold winters.[3] In April 2013, it's published the official biography of Pino Wilson, and the story of his entire football life up to the present day, the book is written by Vincenzo Di Michele with the title "Pino Wilson true captain of another era".[4] He has recently opened a new Italian restaurant in his native Darlington. He has named it Casa di Chirico, in respect to his grandmother's maiden name.

Club career

Internapoli and Lazio

He started his career with Internapoli in 1964-65 and he played for the side more than 150 times.[5]

He joined SS Lazio in 1969. At Lazio he would enjoy his most notable spell as a footballer, staying with them for a decade playing over 300 games for them.[5] This was a successful period for the club who won their first ever Serie A title in 1973–74 as well as the Coppa delle Alpi in 1971. The time he spent at Lazio gained him a place in the Italian national football team, and he was in the squad for the 1974 FIFA World Cup.

New York Cosmos

As his career wound down, Wilson spent a season in the United States, playing in the NASL league with the New York Cosmos during 1978, and winning the title.[2] Wilson was named the Defensive Player of the game for Soccer Bowl '78[6]

International career

Wilson's success with Lazio gained him a place in the Italian national football team, and he was in the squad for the 1974 FIFA World Cup. He made his debut in a friendly 0-0 draw against West Germany in 1974, and he made two appearances at the 1974 World Cup, making 3 appearances in total for Italy.

Honours

References

  1. "Giuseppe Wilson Statistics". EnciclopediaDelCalcio.com. 22 June 2007.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Wilson's NY Cosmos stats
  3. TheAdvertisersSeries.net
  4. Vincenzo Di Michele. "Pino Wilson Vero Capitano d'altri tempi ". Fernandel Editore, 2013. ISBN 8895865871
  5. 5.0 5.1 Giuseppe Wilson at National-Football-Teams.com
  6. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2jxOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=9-0DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6817,5857954&dq=cosmos+nasl+champions&hl=en