Bon voyage, David Trezeguet
Arguably the most hated man in Italy in 2000, David Trezeguet went on to become a Bianconeri legend. Mark Siglioccolo charts the Frenchman's storied career.
It was July 2, when World Champions France met Italy in the final of Euro 2000. The Azzurri had dominated the game and a second half goal from Marco Delvecchio looked to have sealed an historic victory and ended 38 barren years without a trophy.
All eyes were on Juventus maestro Zinedine Zidane, who had been the hero in a home World Cup two years prior. Yet it was not he who delivered the deadly blow to seal Italy's fate following a stoppage time equaliser from Sylvain Wiltord. Up stepped the unlikely villain of the piece, with a golden goal to break a nation's heart in the 103rd minute, David Trezeguet.
The fresh faced 21-year-old rifled Robert Pires' cutback at an explosive 81kmph past a helpless Francesco Toldo, with his supposedly unfavoured left foot. For a naturally right-footed player, Trezegol was lethal with both lower limbs.
His 'crime’ against the Azzurri was rewarded with a £20m move to Serie A giants Juventus. A decade of service yielded 171 goals for the Bianconeri, placing him fourth in the list of the club's all-time top scorers, and top of the class in the foreign scoring chart.
Trezeguet's love affair with La Vecchia Signora even stood firm in the face of the Calciopoli scandal of 2006 as he, along with fellow superstars Gianluigi Buffon, Alessandro Del Piero and Pavel Nedved, decided to stay. The title that was eventually revoked was perhaps celebrated a little too vigorously according to Zlatan Ibrahimovic. “It was the fault of David Trezeguet, who made me do one drink of vodka after another. I slept in the bathtub. Now I hold my vodka much better.”
Despite his loyalty to the club, Trezegol's most successful season with Juve was his second, in which he and the club won the League in no small part thanks to his Capocannoniere-crown-clinching 24 strikes. Sharing the top goalscorer crown with Dario Hubner helped to earn Trezeguet a brace of individual accolades as he was named Serie A Footballer of the Year and Serie A Foreign Footballer of the Year in 2001-02. A successfully defended Serie A title and back to back Super Cup trophies in 2002-03 were all she wrote in a barren spell that was only halted by the Serie B crown.
That turbulent moment in Juventus' history did appear to trouble the Frenchman and gestures to President Giovanni Cobolli Gigli prior to their imminent promotion back to the top flight only fuelled the fires of his discontent. He did however give two more years of service before injuries and the ushering in of a fresh era meant that his contract was prematurely terminated in 2010.
Far from fading away into obscurity though, the forward once again made a typical Trezeguet impact upon a surprise move to La Liga minnows Hercules. His 12 goals in 31 appearances were not enough to ensure the club's survival that season, but as their top scorer he made his presence felt nonetheless.
An ill-fated move to United Arab Emirates side Baniyas followed in August 2011, in which the Frenchman made less than a handful of appearances due to injury. His next career stop was Argentina, where Trezeguet grew up, to fulfil a bucket list wish of playing for River Plate. The Argentine giants had suffered a shock relegation, and the Cobra's 13 strikes in 18 fulfilled his dream and secured his legend at his boyhood club, as the side reclaimed their place in the Primera Division.
Then-River Plate Coach Ramon Diaz deemed Trezeguet to be surplus to requirements despite his heroics. He then moved to Newell's Old Boys in the same division before his final curtain call at Indian Super League side Pune City FC. Antonio Caliendo, the forward's former agent and current Modena President, extended an offer to Trezeguet to continue his career at the club, but at 37 years young, he called time upon a memorable career.
Lauded as a French hero at Euro 2000, and the unfortunate villain at the 2006 World Cup as his penalty crashed against the crossbar in the shootout, Trezeguet will forever be remembered for his lethal instinct in the box. The speed at which he could pull the trigger and the sheer power and velocity of his shots struck fear into his opponents, and his unpredictability made him a nightmare to mark.
A proposed role at Juventus could well be the next chapter in the Trezegol story, but his legacy as a player is already cemented into Bianconeri legend.