Franco Marchegiani was born in Citta Sant'Angelo (Pescara), on February 28, 1965.
He grew up in nearby Pescara's youth sector and joined the first team squad in 1983. He stayed two years in Serie B but only played one game.
In 1985 he was loaned to Frosinone in Serie D. He played 33 games with 1 goal for the "Ciocari" who finished 7th in their group.
In 1986 he was back with the Pescara "Delfini" in Serie B. The "Adriatici" won promotion under Giovanni Galeone. Marchegiani played 13 league games. He also played alongside a young Cristiano Bergodi.
The following season in Serie A Marchegiani played more, making 25 league appearances and 5 in Coppa Italia. The Biancazzurri finished 14th and stayed up.
In 1988-89 however Pescara were relegated (one of their few victories was 3-1 away to Roma). Marchegiani played 31 league games and 8 in Coppa Italia with 1 goal (against Lazio in Coppa Italia).
Lazio were also his next team for two seasons. He played under Giuseppe Materazzi and then Dino Zoff between 1989 and 1991. In his first he played 16 league games with 1 goal (Ascoli) and 2 in Coppa Italia and Lazio finished 9th while in his second he played 14 league games with 2 goals (Sampdoria x2) and Lazio finished 10th.
In his third season he had made 5 league appearances and 1 in Coppa Italia before he was sold to Pisa in the autumn transfer window.
In Pisa he spent two years in serie B with 6th and 8th place finishes. He made 19 appearances under Luca Giannini, Ilario Castagner, Vincenzo Montefusco and Mauro Viviani.
His career then went downhill. In 1993 he went to Lecce in Serie A but never played and in January returned to Pescara in Serie B and played 12 games.
In January 1995 he went to Pontedera in C1 and played 10 but the Granata were relegated.
Then it was a year each with Avellino (B, 16 games), Nocerina (C1, 18 games and 2 goals), Ascoli (C1,18 games), Chieti (C2, 25 games). He then spent his last two years at amateur level with Morro d'oro (Teramo) and Notaresco (Teramo).
In 2002 at 37 he retired.
Marchegiani was a midfielder. The high point of his career was playing for Lazio in Serie A. He played a total of 38 games with 3 goals. He played under legend Dino Zoff and alongside the likes of Rubén Sosa, Thomas Doll and Karl-Heinz Riedle to name a few. His career then faded and he spent the majority of his playing days in the lower divisions. One of his biggest satisfactions would have been winning promotion and playing in Serie A with his local team Pescara.
Lazio Career
Season | Appearances (goals) | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
1989-90 | 18 (1) | 16 (1) | 2 |
1990-91 | 14 (2) | 14 (2) | - |
Jun-Oct 1991 | 6 | 5 | 1 |
Total | 38 (3) | 35 (3) | 3 |
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