Jan Arpas

Jan Arpas

Date of Birth: 07.11.1918

Content:
  1. Early Career at ŠK Slovan Bratislava
  2. Dominance in Slovak League
  3. Controversial Move to Juventus
  4. Promising Debut and Decline at Juventus
  5. Sudden Disappearance and Return to Slovan
  6. International Career
  7. Honours

Early Career at ŠK Slovan Bratislava

Jan Arpáš began his football career in 1939 with ŠK Slovan Bratislava, which was known as SK Bratislava and Sokol at the time.

Dominance in Slovak League

From 1940 to 1944, Arpáš led Slovan to four Slovak League championships and was named top scorer three times. He scored an impressive 111 goals in the independent Slovak League and remained the league's all-time top scorer until Róbert Semeník broke his record.

Controversial Move to Juventus

In 1947, Arpáš was set to join Juventus alongside Slavia Prague's Stanislav Kocourek. However, the deal with Kocourek fell through, and Arpáš joined Juventus alone. It was later discovered that Arpáš had falsified his birthdate, being at least five years older than his claimed age of 1918.

Promising Debut and Decline at Juventus

Arpáš made his Juventus debut on September 14, 1947, and scored two goals in a 3-1 victory over Alessandria. However, he struggled to score consistently and was eventually replaced by Pietro Magni. Arpáš became isolated and withdrawn, communicating with teammates and management only during matches.

Sudden Disappearance and Return to Slovan

In April 1949, manager Renato Cesarini noticed Arpáš's absence from training. After learning that he was not in his room, Juventus received a cable from Bratislava informing them that Arpáš was well, had returned to his family, and requested his release.

Upon his return to Bratislava, Arpáš played three more seasons for Slovan. He won two Czechoslovak League titles in 1950 and 1951.

International Career

Arpáš represented Slovakia 12 times between 1939 and 1944, scoring four goals. He made his debut in the country's inaugural match against Germany and scored the opening goal. In his final match for Slovakia, he scored a hat-trick in a 3-7 loss to Croatia.

Despite being considered a star of Czechoslovak football, Arpáš was never selected for the Czechoslovak national team due to tensions between Czechs and Slovaks after World War II.

Honours

Slovak League Champion: 1939/40, 1940/41, 1941/42, 1943/44
Czechoslovak League Champion: 1950, 1951
Top Scorer, Slovak League: 1940/41, 1941/42, 1943/44

© BIOGRAPHS