Paolo Pulici

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Pulici arrived at Torino in 1967 from Legnano, initially rejected by Inter because they believed his left-foot only shooting could not match Sandro Mazzola. What set him apart was not just his talent but his temperament: a fast, dynamic, physically strong forward who was particularly gifted in the air and known for acrobatic goals. In 1972, coach Gustavo Giagnoni excluded Pulici from the starting lineup for two months, devoting him to technical refinement with the help of youth team coaches. That investment paid off immediately: in 1972–73, he emerged as Serie A's top scorer with 17 goals alongside Gianni Rivera and Giuseppe Savoldi. The pinnacle came in the 1975–76 season. Under the management of the era's tactical architects, Torino won the Scudetto, and Pulici scored 21 goals in the season, played in tandem with strike-partner Francesco Graziani. The pair were nicknamed 'i gemelli del gol' ('the goal twins'), and Pulici's goal was decisive in the final round of the season against A.C. Cesena. The same season brought the Coppa Italia trophy from 1970–71, completing a double that still echoes in granata lore. In the two seasons that followed, Pulici claimed the Capocannoniere title twice more, in 1974–75 (18 goals) and 1975–76 (21 goals). When he eventually left Torino in 1982, moving to Udinese and then Fiorentina, the city lost not just a player but a symbol: the idea that a small town boy from Roncello could become the all-time record goalscorer for one of Italy's most historic clubs.

In Their Own Story

The lights at the Stadio delle Alpi hummed their low, electric note as the away fans' section fell into a sullen murmur. It was the final round of the 1975–76 season, and the ball had been worked into the box. Pulici, already tracking, shouldered a defender so hard the man's studs tore a line into the turf. The keeper came for the ball. Pulici came for the keeper. A thud, a stumble, and the ball was loose at his feet. One touch to control, one touch to place. The net rippled. The away end groaned. In the granata section, a man in a faded '76 scarf stood up, arms wide, and simply shouted the name that belonged to no one else: 'Puliciclone!' The sound rolled down the concrete tiers like something alive, and for a moment the whole stadium was one heartbeat. That goal against A.C. Cesena sealed the Scudetto for Torino.

Reader's Guide

The Puliciclone Era, 1967–1982. Pulici's story is the story of Torino's post-1970s renaissance, the decade when the club stopped hoping and started winning. The turning point is the 1972–73 season. Key dates: the 1970–71 Coppa Italia triumph, and the 1975–76 Scudetto. The figures who defined it: Pulici up front, strike-partner Francesco Graziani, and the coaching staff who built a team around his physicality rather than against it. That Scudetto season proved Torino could be a Serie A contender, not just an also-ran. Pulici topped the scoring chart three times, a feat that cemented his reputation as Italy's most dangerous striker. The figures around him shifted, but his role did not: he was the target, the finisher, the man the whole attack orbited. Why it still matters: for a granata supporter, Pulici is the counter-argument to every 'Torino is a small club' remark. He is proof that this city, this shirt, can produce a forward who makes the giants of Italy adjust their game plans. When you wear the granata, you carry that weight. That is the spine of the identity, and Pulici is its sharpest edge.

Did You Know?

• Pulici was initially rejected by Inter Milan because the club believed his left-foot only shooting could not match that of their striker Sandro Mazzola.
• He was nicknamed 'Puliciclone' by journalist Gianni Brera, a pun on his family name Pulici and 'Ciclone' (Italian for 'cyclone').
• Pulici made his full international debut on 30 March 1973 in a 5–0 win over Luxembourg in a World Cup qualifier in Genoa.
• He was the first player ever inducted into the Torino FC Hall of Fame in 2014, included in the 'Forwards' category.
• Since 1990, Pulici has taught the game of football at Sportiva Tritium 1908 in Trezzo sull'Adda, at the football school that bears his name.