Rise of the Underdog: Serie A stunned as fair Verona claim shock Scudetto

"Lads, we can't possibly realise what we've achieved right now."

Those were the words of defensive midfielder Domenico Volpati in 1985 when addressing his Hellas Verona team-mates after they had sealed a shock Serie A title.

It was, and remains, the crowning moment in the club’s turbulent history, with the Yellow and Blues more accustomed to the pain of relegation than the joy of silverware.

While now back in the top flight after earning promotion in the 2018-19 season, Verona are no strangers to Serie B, having won the second division title in 1982 - only three years before their ultimate triumph.

The 1984-85 Serie A season was a memorable one, not only because of how it ended, but for how it started too.

Following the Calcio Scommesse scandal of the early 1980s, this campaign saw referees randomly assigned to matches to remove the chance of officials being bribed and having an unfair influence on matches.

Though the exact impact of this change is up for debate, the final standings of Serie A that season are hard to ignore, with reigning champions Juventus finishing sixth and Verona claiming a title that proved a group of determined men, and not financial might, were still capable of glory.

Verona’s side that season was an eclectic mix, with the arrivals of German midfielder Hans-Peter Briegel and Danish striker Preben Elkjaer proving particularly key in the final third as they scored 17 league goals between them.

Italian talisman Giuseppe Galderisi ended the campaign as the club’s top scorer with 11 goals, and his previous experience of winning the Scudetto with Juventus ensured Hellas could rely on a cool head up front.

Hellas Verona

While the goals flowed freely, the Mastiffs were built upon an imposing defence that leaked a league-low 19 goals across 30 matches.

As their pragmatic manager, Osvaldo Bagnoli, readily admits, Verona’s tactics throughout the season were far from revolutionary.

"Football is a simple game. Concepts like pressing and playing zonally aren't indispensable,” Bognali said. "The important thing is to have the luck to find the right men, then put them in the right positions and let them be free to express themselves. It's their willpower that comes above everything.

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“I have led players who have deserved to win the Scudetto without inventing new tactics, without Machiavellianism or any secrets. Football is one game and one game only."

This approach combined with Bagnoli’s ability to get the most out of his players ultimately paid off as Verona went on an incredible run that saw them lose just two league matches and memorably beat reigning champions Juve 2-0.

That match saw one of the more iconic moments of the Yellow and Blues’ season as Elkjaer clinched victory with a composed finish despite one of his boots falling off after a darting run down the left flank. It was a show of perseverance that summed up Verona’s entire season as they punched well above their weight.

While Napoli boasted Diego Maradona, Juventus relied upon Michel Platini and Inter fielded a red-hot Alessandro Altobelli, Bagnoli’s side were arguably without a star name as he assembled a squad of players that had often failed to make the grade elsewhere.

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"It was a puzzle and the right pieces were always the right people before being the right athletes,” Bagnoli said. "It was possible above all because everyone was hungry and wanted to show their former clubs that they were wrong to let them leave.

“We needed to be together for some years, to get to know each other well then the results began to arrive. We worked a lot on the players, who were either strong or very strong, but no one was a Martian or a phenomenon who came down from another planet."

Verona ended the season four points clear of second-placed Torino, who also thrived in a more open Serie A season where the giants of Italian football struggled to stamp their usual authority.

But, as most underdog stories go, Verona’s fairytale was a fleeting one as they finished the following season in 10th - 17 points shy of title winners Juventus.

By the 1989-90 season the Mastiffs found themselves relegated to Serie B, with many fans left struggling to believe they had even claimed the title only five years before.

Over three decades later and Verona’s triumph has only become more difficult to believe as underdog stories become harder and harder to come by in Italy’s often lopsided top flight.