DEL BOY'S NO PLONKER NOW
ALESSANDRO DEL PIERO has carried the weight of expectation from Italian fans on his shoulders for 10 years.
And after failing to deliver on the big stage, the Juventus player admitted he was delighted to have played a role in the Azzurri's fourth World Cup triumph.
Del Piero was one of, in team-mate Simone Perrotta's words, a "
team without stars" that raised the spirits of a nation whose football has been tarnished by a major corruption scandal at which Del Piero's club is the centre.
He said: "
I think every game we played we started to believe in ourselves a little more."
Even though Del Piero played only a bit part in the team's success he admitted the World Cup win was still the highlight of his high-profile career.
He said: "
When you are still a baby you dream of winning a World Cup.
"I am very happy and this is a special moment for me. We are world champions and that is unbelievable."
Del Piero revealed the World Cup win was a career-defining moment after many disappointments in the days when he was seen as his country's star player.
In Euro 96 he was first touted as a superstar but indifferent performances at the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000 followed. By 2002 his star appeared to be on the wane and Del Piero had to settle for the No.7 shirt, handing his favourite No.10 jersey to Francesco Totti who was seen as the Azzurri golden boy.
The 2002 campaign and Euro 2004 were further blank years for Italian football but it is only in his twilight years that Del Piero has finally achieved something in the blue jersey, albeit not as a regular starter.
Del Piero said: "
This was my first World Cup Final and comes 10 years after I won the World Club Championship with Juventus.
"I can say my career has now reached a climax - all I need now is to start winning golf tournaments."
When asked about Italy's previously poor record in penalty shoot-outs Del Piero said: "
The penalty curse is over and this victory is the fruit of a team that worked together and believed in itself at the right time.
"I tried to encourage the others but there comes a point when you have to think about yourself as you prepare to shoot."
Del Piero also spared a thought for troubled Juventus general manager Gianluca Pessotto, who fell from a topstorey window in Turin and is still in intensive care.
He said: "
I thought of Gianluca before, during and after the game and when I get back to Turin I will go and visit him."
The Daily Record
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