Delio Onnis

{{Infobox football biography

| name = Delio Onnis

| image = Delio Onnis en 1978 (AS Monaco).png

| caption = Onnis in 1978

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1948|3|24}}

| birth_place = Giuliano di Roma, Italy

| height = 1.80 m

| currentclub =

| position = Striker

| youthyears1 = 1963–1967

| youthclubs1 = Almagro

| years1 = 1966–1968

| clubs1 = Almagro

| caps1 = 18

| goals1 = 11

| years2 = 1968–1971

| clubs2 = Gimnasia

| caps2 = 95

| goals2 = 53

| years3 = 1971–1973

| clubs3 = Reims

| caps3 = 65

| goals3 = 39

| years4 = 1973–1980

| clubs4 = Monaco

| caps4 = 232

| goals4 = 187

| years5 = 1980–1983

| clubs5 = Tours

| caps5 = 110

| goals5 = 64

| years6 = 1983–1986

| clubs6 = Toulon

| caps6 = 74

| goals6 = 39

| totalcaps = 594

| totalgoals = 393

| manageryears1 = 1990–1991

| managerclubs1 = Toulon

| manageryears2 = 1992–1995

| managerclubs2 = Paris

}}

Delio Onnis (born 24 March 1948) is a former Italian-Argentine professional football player who played as striker. Born in Italy, his family emigrated to Argentina in his youth and he was nicknamed "El Tano" (the Italian) in Argentina.{{cite web|url=http://frenchfootballweekly.com/2013/10/18/french-footballs-greatest-ever-striker-delio-onnis/|title=FRENCH FOOTBALL’S GREATEST EVER STRIKER: DELIO ONNIS|publisher=frenchfootballweekly.com|access-date=19 January 2020|date=18 October 2013}}{{cite web|url=https://www.marca.com/2009/08/12/futbol/futbol_internacional/liga_francesa/1250058548.html|title=Delio Onnis, the DNA of the goal|publisher=Marca.com|access-date=19 January 2020|date=8 December 2009|first=Jaime |last=Rincon }}{{cite web|url=https://www.asmonaco.com/joyeux-anniversaire-delio-onnis/|title=Happy birthday Delio Onnis|publisher=asmonaco.com|access-date=19 January 2020|date=24 March 2019}}

With 299 goals, he is the all-time top highest goalscorer in the history of Ligue 1 in France, and was the league's top scorer on five occasions. He played the majority of his career for Reims, Monaco, Tours and Toulon. With Monaco, he won one league title and one Coupe de France.{{cite web|url=https://www.lequipe.fr/Football/FootballFicheJoueur14180.html|title=Delio Onnis|publisher=lequipe.fr|access-date=19 January 2020}}

Career

Onnis was born in Giuliano di Roma in Italy, but moved to Argentina before he was 3 and subsequently gained Argentinian citizenship. Beginning his football career as a youth player for Almagro, he made a successful transition to the senior team and subsequently earned a move to Gimnasia La Plata where he played alongside players like Roberto Zywica. He was the star striker for the team that finished third in 1970 which brought him to the attention of scouts from Europe.

In 1971, he joined Reims at the same time as his compatriot Zywica, finishing his first season with 22 goals and his second season with 17. In 1974, the newly promoted Monaco signed him and over the next seven seasons he was their top scorer every year, eventually scoring 223 goals, with 157 in the league. In 1976, the club were relegated, but Onnis stayed with them and helped them regain their top flight status for the 1977-78 season that saw them finish as league champions, and the following season win the Coupe de France.

In 1980, despite playing in one of the best teams in Division 1, he signed for newly promoted and inexperienced team Tours, where he was twice again Division 1 leading goalscorer. In 1983 Tours were relegated, and as a result he joined Toulon, where he finished his career in 1986.

International career

Onnis was never called up for Argentina which had a policy of favouring players who remained in the domestic league, and throughout the 70s and 80s he, like Carlos Bianchi, was behind compatriots such as Mario Kempes and Leopoldo Luque in the Argentinian pecking order.{{Cite web|url=https://onefootball.com/editorial/39612715|title=Copa America Stars: Delio Onnis (Argentina) | OneFootball}}

Scoring titles

Carlos Bianchi had been signed as his replacement at Reims in 1973–74. Bianchi went on to win five scoring titles over the next six seasons, including four back-to-back between 1975 and 1979, Onnis breaking Bianchi's run in 1974–75. Following Bianchi's return to Argentina in 1980, Onnis went on to win four back-to-back scoring titles of his own, leaving them with five apiece and meaning that in eleven seasons between 1973–74 and 1983–84 they won five scoring titles each with only Vahid Halilhodžić's win in 1982 for Nantes breaking their dominance.{{efn|Twice the title was shared. In the first instance with Erwin Kostedde in 1979–80, and then with Patrice Garande in 1983–84}}

Career statistics

rowspan=2\|Club !rowspan=2\|Season !colspan=3\|League !colspan=2\|Coupe de France !colspan=2\|Europe !colspan=2\|Total
class=wikitable style=text-align:center \|+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
rowspan=3\|Reims \|1971–72 \|rowspan=2\|Division 1 \|32	22	8	4	colspan="2"\|—	40	26
1972–73 \|33	17	3	2	colspan="2"\|—	36	19
colspan=2\|Total !65\|\|39\|\|11\|\|6\|\|colspan="2"\|—\|\|76\|\|45
rowspan=8\|Monaco \|1973–74 \|rowspan=3\|Division 1 \|31	26	9	10	colspan="2"\|—	40	36
1974–75 \|37	30	1	0	2{{efn\|Appearances in European Cup Winners' Cup}}	1	40	31
1975–76 \|33	29	1	0	colspan="2"\|—	34	29
1976–77	Division 2 \|32	30	6	4	colspan="2"\|—	38	34
1977–78 \|rowspan=3\|Division 1 \|35	29	9	8	colspan="2"\|—	44	37
1978–79 \|34	22	5	3	3{{efn\|Appearances in European Cup}}	1	42	26
1979–80 \|30	21	7	5	4{{efn\|Appearances in UEFA Cup}}	4	41	30
colspan=2\|Total !232\|\|187\|\|38\|\|30\|\|9\|\|6\|\|279\|\|223
rowspan=4\|Tours \|1980–81 \|rowspan=3\|Division 1 \|38	24	5	3	colspan="2"\|—	43	27
1981–82 \|38	29	7	5	colspan="2"\|—	45	34
1982–83 \|34	11	7	1	colspan="2"\|—	41	12
colspan=2\|Total !110\|\|64\|\|19\|\|9\|\|colspan="2"\|—\|\|129\|\|73
rowspan=4\|Toulon \|1983–84 \|rowspan=3\|Division 1 \|36	21	5	1	colspan="2"\|—	41	22
1984–85 \|30	17	1	0	colspan="2"\|—	31	17
1985–86 \|8	1	1	0	colspan="2"\|—	9	1
colspan=2\|Total !74\|\|39\|\|7\|\|1\|\|colspan="2"\|—\|\|81\|\|40
colspan=3\|Career total !481\|\|329\|\|75\|\|46\|\|9\|\|6\|\|565\|\|381

Honours

Monaco

Individual

French Division 1 top scorer: 1974–75, 1979–80, 1980–81, 1981–82, 1983–84
French Division 2 top scorer: 1976–77
French Division 1 Foreign Player of the Year: 1980{{cite web |url=https://www.rsssf.org/miscellaneous/franpoy.html |title=France – Footballer of the Year |first1=Erik |last1=Garin |first2=José Luis |last2=Pierrend |publisher=Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation (RSSSF) |date=18 January 2018 |access-date=10 April 2018 |archive-date=5 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905115225/http://rsssf.com/miscellaneous/franpoy.html |url-status=live }}

Records

Ligue 1 all-time highest goalscorer: 299 goals

References

{{cite book

| author=Barreaud, Marc | title=Dictionnaire des footballeurs étrangers du championnat professionnel français (1932–1997) | year=1998 | publisher=L'Harmattan, Paris | isbn=2-7384-6608-7}}

{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071020025621/http://futbolfactory.futbolweb.net/index.php?ff=historicos&f2=00001&idjugador=787 |date=20 October 2007 |title=Futbol Factory profile}} {{in lang|es}}
{{BDFA|2449}}
[http://a.s.monaco.free.fr/joueurs/onnis/fiche.php Monaco profile] {{in lang|fr}}