Il Capitano Alessandro Del Piero (80 Viewers)

Elvin

Elvin

Senior Member
#15,626
Nov 25, 2005
36,856
#15,626
sk8ergurl said:
http://wwwrm1.ansa.it/site/notizie/awnplus/english/news/2007-02-23_12343989.html

love the Phnom Penh part :cool:
Click to expand...
I thought it should be posted fully here :)
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Soccer: Del Piero 10+ in publishing
Juve legend gives his take on life in Hornby- style book

ROME (ANSA) - Alessandro Del Piero has never been an ordinary footballer so perhaps it is appropriate that his autobiography should be slightly out of the ordinary too.

Rather than settling for the standard ghost-written 'story of my life', the Italy and Juventus legend has just published an unusual book that gives his take on the world with the help of a series of Top 10 lists.

Del Piero said the idea for 10+ came from High Fidelity, a novel by British writer Nick Hornby, who is also the author of the definitive work on soccer fandom, Fever Pitch.

In High Fidelity Hornby's main character is obsessed with his Top 5s. But Del Piero, who was part of Italy's victorious World Cup-winning squad, explained that he had to alter this to Top 10s, because 10 is the shirt number he has worn all his career.

The lists cover every aspect of his life, from football - his top 10 goals and his 10 free-kick secrets - to his musical, literary and cinematic tastes and more personal areas, like his 10 biggest regrets.

And there are a few surprises inside.

Former England captain David Beckham, for example, heads the ranking of "footballers I would have liked to play with". The Englishman ranks well ahead of Argentine soccer genius Diego Maradona, who came only 10th. Former Juve greats Roberto Baggio and Michel Platini did not feature on the list at all. Del Piero's hit parade of "fundamental values" is led by "respect" and "drive" with "love" back in 10th place.

Indeed, Juve's all-time top scorer does not seem to be the most romantic of souls.

His wife Sonia comes third on the list of "things I cannot do without", after the soccer ball and his home.

Del Piero works up most passion when writing about how he plays.

"There is a moment of profound solitude when you are about to do something and your opponents don't know what and, above all, you don't know either," he writes.

"At that moment soccer is no longer a team game. You are alone with the ball that's coming towards you. "You become what you are about to do, you disappear into the movement. Those are moments of absolute grace".

Del Piero also talks about his decision to stay with Juventus after the club was relegated for the former management's role in the Calciopoli referee-rigging scandal.

Unlike several big name former team-mates, such as fellow Azzurri stars Fabio Cannavaro and Gianluca Zambrotta, Del Piero resisted the temptation to move elsewhere to continue playing in the top flight.

He suggests Juve were the scapegoat of the scandal. The other clubs found guilty of misconduct - AC Milan, Fiorentina, Reggina and Lazio - were all allowed to stay in Serie A. Del Piero is currently helping shoot Juve back into the big time. Juventus are leading Serie B and Del Piero is the second division's joint top scorer with 11 goals.

He pulled off a magnificent hat-trick last weekend in the 5-0 thrashing of Crotone. Del Piero has scored over 200 goals for Juventus and won a vast array of trophies with the club. These include the 1996 Champions League and seven Serie A titles (including the 2005 and 2006 crowns Juve was stripped of because of Calciopoli). The book is another string to the bow of the popular 32-year-old, who moonlights as an actor in TV commercials.

Del Piero also recently lent a hand presenting one of Italy's most popular satirical shows, Le Iene. He even outwitted a co-presenter who tried to trip him up.

Seeking to show that soccer players are not the brightest bunch, the presenter asked him what was the capital of Cambodia.

But Del Piero had the last laugh because he knew the answer - "Phnom Penh" he fired back, to everyone's amazement.
 
sateeh

sateeh

Day Walker
#15,632
Jul 28, 2003
8,020
#15,632
he deserved a straight red for the challenge, totally uncalled for and now modena's captain could injured very seriously.It looked really bad and he was stretchered off
 
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