Giuliano Taccola

Who is Giuliano Taccola?

Giuliano Taccola was an Italian professional football player.

He played for 2 seasons in the Serie A for A.S. Roma.

During his second Serie A season in 1968/69, his level of performance dropped due to fever and high heart rate, but the manager Helenio Herrera decided to continue to play him. On March 2, 1969 he injured his ankle in a game against U.C. Sampdoria, and two weeks later, after a game against Cagliari Calcio, to which he accompanied the team, he suffered a seizure in the locker room. He died in an ambulance on the way to the hospital, with official cause of death being heart failure due to pneumonia.

According to a 2004 interview by Ferruccio Mazzola in L'espresso, Taccola was a victim of performance-enhancing drugs, the use of which allegedly was widespread under Helenio Herrera.