4 August 2010
4th August 1999: the return of Del Piero
The 4th of August has long been in Alessandro Del Piero’s memories. Exactly 11 years ago, in 1999, the captain saw an end to his nightmare and the return to the field after the serious knee injury suffered in Udine in November 1998.
Perhaps it’s a matter of destiny but in 1999, Juventus were forced to start their season earlier than usual. Back then, the team was forced to play in the Intertoto, the preliminary competition leading to the UEFA Cup. The bianconeri decided to move from Turin to Cesena. On that evening, for the return of the second round, Juventus played against Russian side which they had already beaten 4-0 in the first leg.
The match was just a formality. It ended 5-1 with a hat-trick by Inzaghi, a goal by Tacchinardi and a final goal by Del Piero. The goal was not a determinant one but of great symbolic value. The goal was scored on the 31st minute, 21 minutes after his coming on to the field for Kovacevic, but most of all nine months after the terrible injury which did not stop him from breaking all the records in the history of Juventus.