A Talent Never Given An Opportunity: Davide Moscardelli
Who were the great talents that plied their trade in Italian football from the last 20-30 years? A lot of arguments will be made for the likes of Francesco Totti, Paulo Maldini, Pavel Nedved, Ronaldo Nazario, the list goes on. How about those talents that never quite made it because of outside factors, the big name that springs to mind here is Adriano. If one was to sit down for an hour and rattle off names from this era a list of world beaters can be made, but what if we look away from the top teams in Italy and instead cast our eyes to the lower half of the Serie A and below. A small percentage of people may have heard this name and one look on YouTube a discovery of talent may surprise many, this is the story of Davide Moscardelli.
To the casual football fan this name will mean very little but to those who follow any sort of Italian football this name can really stand out. Davide Moscardelli was a serious talent, a talent that never got the light of day at the big clubs but one that worked its way through the lower leagues in Italy to become one of the biggest missed opportunities in European football.
So, who is Davide Moscardelli? Davide was born in Mons, Belgium on the 3rd of February 1980, to Italian parents working in the Air Force, who at the time were based in Belgium, not long after his birth Davide and his family moved back to their routes in Rome and settled. Davide started his football journey going between a number of Roman clubs never really making an impression or settling, not the start aspiring players look for but an essential step on his career. Davide’s career looked to be one that wouldn’t see the headlines of national papers but one that would pass by the eyes of any spectator, but one season at Guidonia Montecelio became a first huge step on the road to recognition.
This was a season that nearly never happened for Davide, without a club a week before the start of the Eccelenza Lazio (sixth tier) he got the call and swiftly signed for Guidonia. A fruitful move for the club, Davide played one season at the club scoring 22 goals and helped lift the league trophy at his first attempt. Not bad for someone without a club a week before the start of the season. However, this almost wasn’t the dream scenario because Guidonia were deducted 10 points during the season for fielding Moscardelli as the league had disqualified him for some games with issues regarding his registration. Not to be deterred, the club, with Davide went on to win the play-offs and gain the promotion their league performance had deserved.
This season did not go unnoticed, and Davide was offered his first professional contract with Serie A side Chievo, with Davide immediately moving to Serie C side Sangiovannese in a co-ownership deal. The move appeared to be a great decision for the development of Davide, with an average of 0.5 goals a game it looked as though this young man could have what it takes to reach the pinnacle of Italian football. Sangiovannese thought in the same manner and bought Davide outright from Chievo quickly shipping him on to Serie B side Triestina for 250,000 Euros, a smart bit of business from the Serie C side.
What made Davide so attractive to such a number of clubs? A tall, left footed forward, incredibly strong and without trying to sound like your typical Sunday league spectator, with a good touch and great technique for a big lad. He really did have it all to make it to the very top, and with the goal record to back it up. Besides from his footballing ability however Davide Moscardelli became arguably more recognisable, not for his football but for his facial hair. One of the greatest beards the history of the game, quite fittingly in Italy they often quote him as the man with the ‘Most famous beard in football’. Why the beard then? The story comes from a promise to his family, he would not shave the beard until he signed for Bologna. A quick internet search and it’s easy to understand why Davide’s beard gained more nostalgic traction than arguably his football does. After his retirement he changed this promise because of AS Roma, his beloved club from childhood, the club had made the Champions League semi-final, so it was big news when Davide offered to shave it all off if AS Roma went on to win the whole thing.
Back to Davide’s footballing journey he finds himself in the Serie B and the trajectory of the man did not stop here, an outstanding first season with Triestina scoring 16 goals the club sought after and finalised a deal to purchase the remaining 50% of Davide’s registration as the original deal to bring him to Triestina was again a co-ownership. This was a big statement of intent by the club and showed the confidence they had in Davide; the deal cost the club an additional 500,000 Euros. Davide would not become a regular starter having to share the forward roles with Denis Godea and Alessandro Tulli, then with a couple more attacking signings at the beginning of the 05/06 season Davide decided to join Rimini, a club who just won promotion to the Serie B the season before.
A less than ideal start to his new club Davide was again one of three forwards battling for two places in the side, Davide did score once again on his debut but only managed six goals in thirty-one games. Not an outstanding record but for someone deemed more as a second striker and to have joined a club after just being promoted it definitely was not a failure of a season for Davide. Again, the same fate become upon Davide, an influx of signings, included a couple more attackers and notably for the club goalkeeper Samir Handanovič, Davide found himself coming of the bench starting only 11 games, this however was to be a more fruitful season for the attacker scoring 9 goals.
This however was not enough to keep Davide around, an incredibly lucrative offer came in from then Russian giants Rubin Kazan, at the time a Champions League side, a whopping 1.2 million Euros for the players services, but Davide rejected this move, with the desire to play Serie A football more meaningful that the money in Russia. He went on to move to Cesena and then Piacenza, it almost never quite happened for Davide; this was until 2010 when his old club Chievo came knocking on his door once again. Unsure whether or not he would be a regular starter for the now Serie A outfit, Davide Moscardelli could finally say he was a Serie A footballer. In typical Davide fashion he went on to score on debut in a 2-1 win over Catania. 66 appearances in three seasons really made Chievo feel like home for Davide, a trust from the club in his ability allowed him to showcase his incredible technique on the big stage of Italian football and fans from all over the country were in awe of his trademark beard.
Moving to fellow Serie A side Bologna meant two things, another opportunity in the Serie A and, the shaving of his beard. This was huge news in Italy with Bologna fans asking the forward to grow the beard back, and as a man of the people Davide listened to the fans. Unfortunately for the club Davide was powerless to prevent the club’s relegation to the Serie B scoring two goals and being mainly used as a substitute. Davide’s career seemed to tail off from here with moves to three consecutive Serie C clubs ending at Pisa, but one last triumph in an up and down career, Davide would help the club achieve promotion to the Serie B after beating former club Triestina in the promotion game.
Since then, Davide Moscardelli has gone on to retire in 2020 leaving a trail of Italian clubs behind him. Ask anyone that saw this man play the game of football and they will tell you he was destined to become of the biggest names in not only Italian football but the world of football. Famous for his style of play, his technique, his flair and his acrobatic goals, Davide Moscardelli will almost certainly be remembered in Italy at least. If anyone asks of the rawest talents in football, it would be a crime to leave Davide Moscardelli’s name off the list. An online search of this man will bring up videos of just how talented he was, these are must see clips that will give anyone an understanding on how much natural ability Davide had.
Why was Davide Moscardelli never noticed from the bigger clubs in Italy then? His youth career looking back may have impacted this, as a taller player clubs saw Davide as a defensive player, using him to win ariel battles and keep the ball out of the net, Davide as we came to understand though always wanted to become an attacking player. This ultimately stumped Davide’s progression and this led him to sign for clubs in the lower leagues as an attacker, what could’ve been if he was coached as an attacker from youth level? Would we look back on this talent with the same views if he was to have played for a giant of Italian football? Who knows but we should enjoy the story we have of Davide Moscardelli.
This was the story, of more than just a man with the ‘Most famous beard in football’, but of a man who began on clay surfaces as a child, forged his way up through 6 divisions of Italian football to reach the heights of the Serie A and to leave with a legacy of footballing excellence. A talent that will never be forgotten but a talent that will rarely be remembered.
Written and Researched by BSc Cavan Campbell
