Juventus have sent a very special message of congratulations to captain Alessandro Del Piero on his 34th birthday.
“On behalf of all of Juventus and the Bianconeri fans, I wish our captain many more extraordinary nights like the one he gave us in Madrid on Wednesday,” noted President Giovanni Cobolli Gigli.
His brace defeated Real Madrid 2-0 in the Champions League, earning a standing ovation from the Bernabeu.
Del Piero will be celebrating his birthday in Verona this afternoon, where Juve have travelled to take on Chievo.
That’s not the only major milestone for the Italian international, as it will also be his 377th Serie A appearance in a Juventus shirt.
This puts him level with legend Gaetano Scirea in second place behind all-time record holder (and former club President) Giampiero Boniperti on 444.
Del Piero was born on November 9, 1974 in Conegliano, a small town near Treviso, and now lives in Turin with wife Sonia and one-year-old son Tobias.
His first club was Padova, but he joined Juve in 1993 and set numerous records. He is their all-time top scorer in all competition (246 goals) and in Europe (46 goals) with the most official appearances (564).
Since his Serie A debut in a 1-1 draw away to Foggia on September 12, 1993, Alex has won five Scudetti (plus two revoked under Calciopoli), a Serie B title, a Coppa Italia, four Italian Super Cups, the Champions League, European Super Cup, Intercontinental Cup and Intertoto Cup.
He has won the last two Capocannoniere titles back-to-back in Serie B and A as well as lifting the World Cup in 2006.