When I wake up in the morning and look myself in the mirror , I see a rather ugly man , with a beard that need tended , whose ears stand straight out , nose pointing in the completely wrong direction and a man with bags under his eyes . But I see also a happy man in my own reflection , a man who is proud of every second that passed during his life.
Gino Bolseri in Flero and Roberto Clerici in Voluntas was not only the first to understand that my ideal spot on the plane was in front of the defense . They were also the first people (besides my father Luigi and mother Lidia ) that always reminded me that if you try using shortcuts so you have time certainly presented before, but that day will always be where you are standing there face to face with yourself and with your demons and loses everything. You simply burn up in hell as you have helped to construct .
However, I have something burning inside me , a small Olympic torch which I always carry within me a flame that is constantly burning, made ​​of desire and passion . To extinguish it, I must completely submerge my soul , and what I mean by this is something that the leaders of the Arabian club Al Sadd ( who in 2011 qualified for the World Cup for club teams ) had to understand.
" Andrea, they want you, they where from Qatar. "
When my agent Tullio Tinti calling me without saying hello and goes straight to the point , it means always that he is serious .
" What .. what ... excuse me , what did you say? "
" You are going to play in Qatar ! "
" Are you out of your mind ? Will never come in question. "
" What do you say? "
"I'm just saying it 's too early . "
My last season with Milan was about to start and I felt not the slightest desire to emigrate.
" Even Guardiola has played in these parts . "
" He was at the end of his career. "
"Well, okay then , but it would be decent of you if you could meet them anyway. "
" When will they come ? "
" They're already in Milan. Put on a tie so I'll come and pick you up in an hour. "
They were waiting for me at " Principe di Savoia, an extraordinary luxury hotel near Central Station, moreover, the same hotel where Beckham was staying while he played in Milan.
The Arabs had booked a huge suite. In place behind an equally huge desk sat the owner of the club surrounded by various directors and a long line of lawyers.
" Ciao , the contract is clear."
" Good morning to you too, it's a pleasure to meet you all. "
" You will look great in our shirt. "
" The pleasure all mine , my name is Pirlo , Andrea Pirlo . "
" You do not have to decide now , you have a few minutes to think it through. "
" In reality, I came here to try to understand who you are. "
There was a kind of language -rate incompatibility between us , a sort of collision with time. They traveled already in the future while I concentrated on the present. But I'll readily admit , they made a good impression on me, for now I know that Santa Claus really exists.
" Andrea, how many children do you have? "
" Two . "
" We have an excellent English School in Doha. "
" But I like that my children speak Italian ... "
"No problem, then we build a new school and hire only Italian teachers."
"Do you like to drive, Andrea? "
" Yes. "
" We would be delighted if you wish to receive a few Ferrari's as a gift. "
" A few... ? "
" And would you miss Italy so we always made ​​available a private jet . "
"But ... "
" The contract is done, it's just typing. It is in four years. "
" Thank you, but ... "
" For $ 40 million. "
Saw that Tinti was very pale and started sweating , he looked as if he would faint .
" 40 million in 4 years , of course , not a season , we can not overdo it, or how , given the crisis today. "
" Yes, I understand very well , but ... "
" But you would not think it is enough , we can always discuss about it. "
It simply became too much, if they had offered to turn the desert into an English garden , I might have agreed , but before I tried to sense more so , I wanted to finish the negotiations here and now.
" Thank you, and I mean really , but I can not , unfortunately. Come to you means I finished my career and I think I have more to give , in Europe and in Italy. If I am in a few years would change the sentence I promise to hear from me to you. "
" Eleven million . "
" Tullio , let's go ... "
"Twelve . "
" Tullio ... "
" Thirteen . "
I was practically forced to grab on Tullio to drag him away, for he was in utter ecstasy and had all the pens in front , but I fled the scene with him dragged with me. I looked fleetingly at the clock and saw that it showed 21:21 . Twice my favorite number. Fate whispered sweetly in my ears : " You did the right thing ."
The 21th is the day when my father was born , the day I got married, the day I debuted in Serie A. It did my shirt number , which I never abandoned . The brings luck with it ...
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What a legend
