La Mozzafiato
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front row: Teobaldo Pulli, Romualdo Nori, Garimberto Sacca, Alissandru Àita, Aristione Marcia
back row: Marco Fidanza, Marco Di Lamio, Sinesio Abela, Luigi Raffin (c), Michael Musella, Natale Bisesi
La Mozzafiato, Atrescan for "The Breathtakers", is the name given to the Atrescan national football team that won the Copa d'Aeia three times in a row from Midrasia 1994 to Renneque 1996. The name is usually used today to refer to the general Atrescan football team of the 1990s. The team had an unbeaten run stretching from March 1993 to June 1997 when they were knocked out of the 1997 Copa d'Aeia semi-finals by Midrasia. The team is widely regarded as one of the greatest national sides in footballing history.
The team was coached by Atrescan coach Leo Narducci, who is credited with transforming Natale Bisesi into one of the first examples of an inverted fullback, and regularly bolstered their midfield allowing midfielders to press higher and support the attack. Between 1993 and 1997 the team managed 35 wins, 3 draws and zero defeats, one of the highest win ratios over multiple years of any international team. La Mozzafiato held great cultural significance back in Atresca and their presence is often attributed with the popularisation of football in many overseas countries, especially in Catai, Arabekh and Majula.
The team is generally said to have ended around 1998 with the retirement of captain Luigi Raffin and defensive midfielder Marco Di Lamio, by which the team had suffered an underwhelming round-of-16 exit at the 1998 Copa. Narducci resigned in 2002 after winning another Copa in 2001, with Atresca going without a Copa victory for almost 20 years.
Lineup and key players
Narducci's team usually played in a 4-2-3-1 formation, although in practice it was more of a 4-3-3, with the wide midfielders often pressing high up the pitch due to introduction of the inverted fullback with Bisesi playing at right-back. The team was built around a strong spine of Raffin in goal, Fidanza at centre-half, Di Lamio in midfield and Marcia up front, and much of the team's play was fed through these four key players. Narducci played a style of intense, fluid football, utilising quick passing and overlapping runs on the attack and an intense press whilst off the ball.
Notable fixtures
Results
Honours
- 1994
- 1995
- 1996