Zbigniew Boniek is described by many as one of the best forwards Polish football has ever produced.
Known for his blistering pace and acceleration the former Juventus and Roma speedster was among the greatest dribblers of his time and also displayed superb technique.
Boniek started his career with the youth team of his hometown club Zawisa Bydgoszcz before earning his first professional contract with Widzew Lodz in 1975. With them he spent seven years, making 172 appearances and scoring 50 goals.
"People think that the pinnacle of my career was my transfer to Juventus in 1982," Boniek said. "However, the only significant change that I saw when I moved to Turin was that my earnings increased considerably. The reason is that at the time Widzew Lodz were a very strong team.
"In fact, a year before my move to Italy we reached the third round of the UEFA Cup where we eliminated strong teams like Manchester United and Juventus before we were ousted by eventual winners Ipswich Town.
"At Widzew Lodz we had a great team but, unfortunately, the club were lacking in terms of organisation and infrastructure when compared to bigger clubs in western Europe."
Then, in 1982, he completed his move to Juventus where in Boniek's words he had several high points but also experienced episodes that left their mark on him forever.
"In Turin, I had everything I have ever dreamed of as a player," Boniek, who made 81 appearances for 'La Vecchia Signora', scoring 14 goals, remarked.
"I had joined a team that was always expected to win. In fact, our defeats made the headlines more than our victories. But the set-up at Juve made it ideal for a player to focus solely on his football and we tasted some memorable nights there.
"Winning the 1983 Cup Winners' Cup (vs Porto) and the Super Cup (vs Liverpool) the following year, rank high in my achievements.
"However, the following year I played in the Champions Cup final against Liverpool in Heysel and that proved to be quite traumatic. Seeing so many people losing their lives when they had come to enjoy a game of football was unacceptable for me.
"We eventually won that match following a non-existent penalty after I was tripped half a metre outside the box. But we had little cause for celebration as the image of football was tainted.
"Football meant so much to me but after that tragedy I began to see the game in another perspective... things were different after that final."
In 1988, Boniek moved to Roma with whom he finished his career. But the only piece of silverware he managed to win for the Giallorossi was the Coppa Italia in 1990-91, beating Sampdoria 4-2 in a two-legged final.
"At Roma I spent four great years even though we did not win much," Boniek said.
"In Italy, they say that it is very difficult to win cups with Roma and I think they are right because there is a lot of pressure to handle at that club and it is not easy to deal with.
"Also, if you look at the history of Roma, they haven't achieved the same level of success like clubs from the north such as Milan, Inter or Juventus."
Boniek's highlight of his career was reached in 1982 when he helped Poland finish third in the World Cup in Spain.
"I played in three World Cups and personally I think that the team that played in Argentina 1978 was without question the best Poland has ever had.
"However, in Argentina it seemed like things were done in a way to favour the host country. So, I'm not adding anything more on that," said Boniek who played 80 times for his country, scoring 24 goals.
"Four years later in Spain, things were different. In Poland there were a lot of political changes and many countries preferred to stay away from eastern Europe and play friendlies against us. We ended up going to the World Cup without knowing exactly how strong we were.
"But, the team played really well, beating some great teams like France and Brazil in what was our country's best performance in an international competition."
After hanging up his boots, Boniek had some unsuccessful spells as coach. Today, he is not involved in football 100 per cent and prefers to manage his own marketing business instead. His only contact with the sport is when he works as an analyst for Italian TV stations. He still lives in Rome.
'Zibi' Boniek reckons that the match-fixing scandals that rocked the Italian game these past few years did not change many things in football. The English style is the one to follow to make progress.
"I think that after calciopoli, little things have changed in Italy," Boniek said.
"OK, they said that in 2005 and 2006 the championship was not played fairly but do you think that these things have stopped today? I don't think so.
"From how I see it, the measures taken by the federation left little effect on the game. On the contrary, attendances have dwindled considerably. You see teams like Roma and Juventus with just a few thousand spectators watching their home matches.
"Italy must upgrade its sports infrastructure. The stadiums are not spectator-friendly. There are parts at the Olimpico from where you hardly recognise the players.
"Instead, in England you have a big city like London with various stadiums very close to each other and with full houses every week. You have fans very close to the players. They are more involved in the game and create a great atmosphere.
"Italy must follow the England example if they want the fans to return to the stadiums."
Times of Malta