Nevio Scala (Italian pronunciation:[ˈnɛvjoˈskala]; born 22 November 1947) is an Italian football sporting director, coach and former player.
Throughout his footballing career, he played as a midfielder for several Italian clubs, and won several titles during his time with A.C. Milan. As a manager, he is mostly known for his role as head coach of Parma during the club's golden age of the 1990s, which saw him lead the team from Serie Btoseveral European triumphs.
As a coach, he led Calabrian third division club RegginatoSerie B in 1988, and then moved to Serie B club Parma. He held that position for six years, leading the Emilian club to its first promotion to the Italian top flight in 1990, and subsequently turned the team into one of the major clubs in the Italian Serie A, thanks also to the relevant financial backing from chairman and Parmalat founder Calisto Tanzi, winning several domestic and European titles. During his time at Parma, Scala won the Coppa Italiain1992, the Cup Winners' Cup and the European Super Cup in 1993, and the UEFA Cupin1995. He also managed runners-up medals in the Coppa Italia in 1995, in the Cup Winners' Cup in 1994, and twice in the Supercoppa Italianain1992 and 1995, while his best result in the league were third-place finishes during the 1992–93 and 1994–95 Serie A seasons. He left Parma in June 1996.[2][3][4]
During the 1996–97 season, Scala accepted an offer from Luciano Gaucci to become head coach of struggling Perugia, but did not manage to escape relegation to Serie B for his side, missing out on potential salvation by a single point.[3]
He currently lives in his hometown city of Lozzo Atestino, where he is member of the local city council since 2007,[5] after running unsuccessfully as mayor in 2007.[6] He is currently active as a football pundit for Rai Radio 1, where he regularly comments Serie A games and gives his answers to live phone comments and questions on Sunday late night show Domenica sport.[7]
In the early 2010s, Scala expressed a desire to return to coaching, being linked with Motherwell F.C.[8] and later with A.S. Roma[9] in 2010.
In July 2015, he was confirmed as new chairman of a refounded Parma, after the original club folded due to financial issues,[10] while former player Luigi Apolloni was chosen as head coach.[11] Parma managed to return to the professional Italian leagues that season, and clinched promotion from Serie D into Lega Pro on 17 April 2016.[12] Scala resigned from chairmanship in November 2016, in disagreement with the club owners' decision to sack head coach Luigi Apolloni and technical director Lorenzo Minotti, both former players of his during his days as Parma manager.[13]
Scala was a pragmatic manager, who was known for his high-tempo, offensive–minded, possession–based style, which was inspired by Dutch total football; he was also influenced by the calm style of Nils Liedholm and the charisma of Nereo Rocco, under whom he had played. He was also influenced by Helenio Herrera and Giovanni Trapattoni. His tactical approach was in stark contrast to other styles popular in Italy at the time, which were either the gioco all'italiana inspired by the man-to-man markingofcatenaccio, or Arrigo Sacchi's zonal4–4–2.[14][15][16][17][18] Scala instead used a fluid and innovative 5–3–2 formation, which could easily transform into a 3–5–2 formation when attacking, with the full-backs, such as Antonio Benarrivo and Alberto Di Chiara at Parma, frequently running into spaces to overload the flanks and give his team a numerical advantage.[14][15][19][20] He used this system at almost every club he managed, except Spartak Moscow, where he did not have players suited to this formation and used a 5–2–3 instead.[15] He is credited as being a pioneer of this 3–5–2 or 5–3–2 formation, which later became highly popular in Serie A.[21] At Parma, Scala used a zonal marking system off the ball throughout most areas of the pitch, and a high defensive line, but also used elements of man-to-man marking in defence, with a non systematic use of the offisde trap. He also made use of a ball-playing sweeper – Lorenzo Minotti – flanked by two stoppers: Luigi Apolloni and Georges Grün. He also deployed an intelligent deep-lyingplaymaker in midfield, such as Daniele Zoratto.[14][15][16][22] Scala also often used a sweeper-keeper, such as Cláudio Taffarel, Luca Bucci, or Gianluigi Buffon, who was adept with his feet, and who was also capable of rushing out of goal quickly to beat opponents who had beaten the offisde trap and clear the ball away from danger.[14][18][23][24][25][26] Scala's Parma were known for being hard-working, compact defensively, and capable of scoring from swift counter-attacks. The team often made use of switches of play to stretch their opponents.[27] His style was not only spectacular, but also successful.[28]
Scala also believed in the importance of the psychological aspect of the game, and in discussing issues with his players, as well as creating a united dressing room environment through fun, leadership, and good humour.[15][18] Known for his ability to develop youth talent, he also felt it was important to give his younger players freedom rather than indoctrinate them through tactical discussions.[15][29] He also found ways to incorporate several talented players into his team; for example, upon the arrival of Gianfranco Zola at Parma, he successfully moved Swedish footballer Tomas Brolin into midfield, in order to accommodate for the Italian in the role of second striker.[30] Scala's style even served as an inspiration for Zola as a manager.[31]
