Ten years ago Francesco Farioli was finishing his philosophy degree at an Italian university. Now he’s coaching Nice, an ambitious French side where the team’s captain is five years older than him. Farioli’s path in soccer has been an unusual one and he never had a playing career of his own. But on Sunday the 34-year-old Italian coach has the chance to put Nice on top of the French league when it hosts Brest. A win will guarantee first spot for Nice.
Nice, which has been bankrolled by British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe since 2019, is unbeaten in six games this season, securing away wins at defending champion Paris Saint-Germain and title contender Monaco. Farioli’s making a name for himself, but his obscure path into soccer started at Florence university, where the philosophy student received the grade of 105 out of 110.
There, he wrote a thesis that was far removed from the norm called ‘Filosofia del Gioco. L’estetica del calcio e il ruolo del portiere’ (Philosophy of the Game. The aesthetics of football and the role of the goalkeeper). Goalkeepers have a unique wider vision of play and also have more time to observe what’s happening on the field than other players, who are squeezed for time on the ball and run more.
The position fascinated famed French author Albert Camus. He was a keen goalkeeper in his youth, which later earned him the mocking scorn of fellow literary great and friend Jean-Paul Sartre. Camus’ works dealt with themes of irrationality and absurdity, and he insisted that what he knew about human nature came about through studying soccer. Farioli was a fast-learning student of the game.
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