Pierpaolo Manservisi was born in Castello d'Argile (Bologna), on August 4, 1944.
As a player he was formed in the Fiorentina youth sector. He then made his first team squad debut on May 31, 1964 in a home game against Bari. That would remain his one and only game for the "Viola" under Giuseppe Chiappella.
In 1964 he moved west to another Tucan town and joined Lucchese in Serie C. Under Leo Zavatti he played 34 league games with 8 goals. The "Pantere" finished 13th.
In 1965 he stayed in Tuscany but moved to the coast and joined Livorno in Serie B. Under Carlo Parola (Juventus legend but also former Lazio), the "Labronici" had a decent season and finished 7th.
In 1966 he joined Livorno's main rivals and joined fellow Tuscans Pisa in Serie B. In his first year the Nerazzurri came 12th and Manservisi played 23 games with 3 goals.
In 1967-68, under Renato Lucci, the Pisani won promotion to Serie A. Manservisi played 38 games and scored 11 goals.
The following year, in Serie A, Pisa struggled and with 15th place were relegated. Manservisi played 29 games with 3 goals (Verona, Vicenza, Verona again).
In 1969 he finally made it out of Tuscany and went south to Napoli in Serie A. There he found the manager who had given him his debut, Giuseppe Chiappella. The "Partenopei" had a satisfactory season and finished 6th. Manservisi played 24 league games with 3 goals (Torino, Milan, Lazio), 3 games in Coppa Italia and 6 games in the Fairs Cup with 1 goal (Ajax).
In 1970 he joined Lazio, in a deal that saw Gian Piero Ghio go the other way. The Romans had Juan Carlos Lorenzo as manager until May 30, when Bob Lovati took over. Lazio were relegated but as a small consolation won the Alps Cup. Manservisi played 10 league games plus 3 in Coppa Italia. He scored the opening goal in Lazio’s 3-1 win in Basel to lift the Alps Cup.
In November 1971 he returned to Napoli on loan while Alessandro Abbondanza came to Lazio. Chiappella was still there and they finished 8th. The "Azzurri" were also losing finalists in the Coppa Italia (Milan 0-2). Manservisi played 19 league games with 3 goals (Samp, Vicenza, Cagliari) plus 6 games in Coppa Italia.
In 1972-73 he returned to Lazio, who in the meantime under Tommaso Maestrelli were back in Serie A. Lazio had an excellent season and went close to winning the title, eventually coming third (it all went down to the last game of the season). Manservisi played 28 league games with 1 goal (Napoli) plus 1 game in Coppa Italia. So a good season for Manservisi and Lazio, who also won both derbies (2-1, 2-0).
The following year was even better for Lazio. The Biancocelesti won the Scudetto with the crazy gang of 1974. Manservisi however played less, 4 league games, due to the blossoming of young Vincenzo D'Amico. So, a triumphant year for Lazio who again also won both derbies (2-1, 2-1).
The 1974-75 season Manservisi left Lazio and joined Mantova in Serie C. He stayed two years with the "Virgiliani" who finished 11th and 6th. He played 57 league games with 4 goals.
He then had a couple of years in Serie D with U.S San Felice, near Modena and then went back to his roots as player manager with Libertas Argile (near Bologna) at regional amateur level.
Manservisi was a slim and agile player. He was nicknamed "Uccellino" (Little Bird) for his physique. He was a very tactically astute and versatile player and could play in several roles. He played mainly on the left wing but could carry out both defensive and attacking tasks.
At Lazio he played 70 games with 5 goals. He will forever be part of Lazio's first historic Scudetto squad. In a recent interview he said "that team was a real madhouse but we were by far the best team", he also stated "it's something I can't explain but even if you only pull on the Lazio jersey once, you become Laziale forever".
Lazio Career
Season | Total games (goals) | Serie A | Serie B | Coppa Italia | UEFA Cup | Fairs Cup | Anglo Italian Cup | Cup of the Alps |
1970-71 | 20 (3) | 10 | - | 3 | - | 2 | ​ | 5 (3) |
1971-72 | 6 (1) | - | 2 | 4 (1) | - | - | ​ | ​ |
1972-73 | 31 (1) | 28 (1) | - | 1 | - | - | 2 | ​ |
1973-74 | 13 | 4 | - | 7 | 2 | - | ​ | ​ |
Total | 70 (5) | 42 (1) | 2 | 15 (1) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 (3) |
Sources