Benito Carbone’s football journey has spanned countries, cultures and generations, but one chapter still stands above all others: Sheffield Wednesday.
Long before coaching Inter Milan’s youth and shaping Italy’s next generation, one teammate and one club changed everything.
That teammate was Paolo Di Canio who helped Sheffield Wednesday became a second home. He’s now explained all to Gazzetta dello Sport.
Paolo Di Canio and the partnership that changed everything
Carbone doesn’t hesitate when it talks about Di Canio. The pair played together at the Owls for one and a half seasons, from August 1997 to September 1998.
Carbone was already at Hillsborough, having joined in October 1996. Di Canio arrived in August 1997, and the connection was instant. First up, was a famous unveiling photo that saw the pair pictured sharing an uncooked frozen pizza. Then came the connection on the pitch.
Together, the two Italians formed one of the most creative and fondly remembered partnerships in Sheffield Wednesday’s modern history. In their only full season together, Di Canio led the club with 14 goals, while Carbone contributed nine of his own.
According to the latter, the connection was instant, instinctive and almost telepathic.
“Our families were always together, our children were the same age,” he recalls.
“On the pitch, we understood each other instantly, just a look was enough. Di Canio was the best teammate I’ve ever played with.”
Why survival at Sheffield Wednesday felt like winning titles
Yet despite the partnership’s brilliance, Sheffield Wednesday’s season was a struggle.
There had been high expectations following Di Canio’s arrival but instead the Owls struggled for consistency. The club spent most of the campaign fighting relegation, eventually finishing 16th and surviving by the narrowest of margins.
Most fans do not remember it fondly, but Carbone has a different stance. For the Italian, survival with Sheffield Wednesday wasn’t a footnote, it was a triumph.
“Staying up at Sheffield Wednesday was like winning titles,” he adds.
A Premier League era that forged a footballer
Benito Carbone, perhaps, is looking beyond Sheffield Wednesday to his own experiences. His years playing in England were defined by challenges and breakthroughs.
He faced defenders like Tony Adams, earned compliments from Rio Ferdinand, and carved out a reputation as one of the league’s most unpredictable midfielders.
At Sheffield Wednesday, he had freedom, and a partnership with Di Canio that gave him joy. The fight for survival even added purpose. And he looks back on the time fondly, in a Premier League still being forged.
“It wasn’t such a global league yet, but it was a very difficult championship,” he concluded.
“There were a lot of English players, and the game was very much about the second ball: passing, aggression, heart. I faced very tough defenders like Tony Adams. Rio Ferdinand once told me he didn’t sleep the night before playing against me. What a compliment!”
For Carbone, Sheffield Wednesday was never just another stop in his career.
It was the place where football became family, and where one teammate helped changed the course of his life. That is why survival felt like triumph, and why this chapter still means everything.
