Andrea Pirlo: Top 5 Defining Moments Our Coverage Sponsored by Vermont Harvest
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Andrea Pirlo made his New York City FC debut on Sunday afternoon.
The 32,041 fans at Yankee Stadium erupted as the Club's third Designated Player came onto the field in the 56th minute in place of Mehdi Ballouchy. Pirlo was involved in not one, but two of New York City FC's goals in the second half as the Club beat Orlando City SC 5-3.
In correlation with that moment going down in New York City FC lore, we take a look back at the Top 5 Defining Moments of Andrea Pirlo's illustrious and successful domestic and international playing career.
Brescia v Juventus
Serie A
April 2001
Back on loan at his boyhood club Brescia from Inter, Pirlo teamed up with one of his boyhood heroes Roberto Baggio for a half-season spell which prompted AC Milan into signing the youngster.
Still only 22 years old, Pirlo had only just been converted from an attacking midfielder into a deep-lying playmaker by Brescia manager Carlos Mazzone as a result of Baggio occupying the No. 10 role.
It proved to be a natural fit for Pirlo and it was the position he would remain in through a glorious, trophy-laden career for both club and country.
On April 1, 2001, Baggio came up against his former side and one Pirlo would go on to represent with distinction in the future, Juventus.
In the match, Pirlo truly announced himself as a future star with a stunning long range pass which Baggio famously converted to clinch an unlikely 1-1 draw against the title chasers at Stadio delle Alpi.
Italy v France
FIFA World Cup Final
July 2006
Although the match is likely to be remembered more for the abrupt end to Zinedine Zidane’s career, Pirlo was named Man of the Match in Berlin following an outstanding performance in the heart of the Azzurri midfield.
Pirlo was named Man of the Match on three occasions during the competition as Italy went on to lift the most prestigious trophy in the game, earning third place in the official Player of the Tournament award.
He converted his penalty in the shootout against France in the final to put Italy on the brink of a first World Cup win in 24 years.
He reflected lyrically afterwards: “I took a long, intense breath. That breath was mine, but it could have been the manual worker who struggles to make it to the end of the month, the rich businessman who is a bit of a s***, the teacher, the student, the Italian expats who never left our side during the tournament, the well-to-do Milanese signora, the hooker on the street corner. In that moment, I was all of them.
“You won’t believe me, but it was right in that very moment I understood what a great thing it is to be Italian. It’s a truly priceless privilege.”
AC Milan v Liverpool
UEFA Champions League Final
May 2007
In the midfielder’s 2013 autobiography “I Think, Therefore I Play,” Pirlo described AC Milan’s defeat to Liverpool in the 2005 UEFA Champions League Final as the most painful of his career.
The Rossoneri were cruising at halftime, holding a 3-0 advantage, but an unprecedented second-half turnaround from the Merseysiders left Pirlo contemplating giving it all up for good.
"When the torture of the game was finished, we sat like a bunch of half-wits in the dressing room. We couldn't speak, we couldn't move - they'd mentally destroyed us,” he revealed years later. “The damage was already evident even in those early moments, and it only got more stark and serious as the hours went on. Insomnia, rage, depression, a sense of nothingness. We'd invented a new disease with multiple symptoms: Istanbul syndrome.
"I no longer felt like a player, and that was devastating enough. Even worse, I no longer felt like a man."
Two years later, AC Milan were handed a shot at redemption in Athens when they met Liverpool once again in the biggest match in European club soccer.
They would not pass it up. Pirlo’s free-kick deflected off Filippo Inzaghi to give Milan a 1-0 lead on the stroke of halftime which they doubled after the break through the same player.
That was enough to give Pirlo the revenge he craved and a second UEFA Champions League winners’ medal.
Italy v England
UEFA European Championship Quarterfinal
July 2012
Not too much was expected of Italy at Euro 2012 but they went on to surpass all expectations, reaching the final of the competition.
Unfortunately for the Azzurri, they met a Spain side who were simply too good for them in the final but they still had cause to look on their time in the tournament fondly – especially their quarterfinal against England.
Many amateur psychologists postulated after the penalty shootout win that Pirlo’s chipped “Panenka” penalty had been crucial in breaking England’s spirit, causing confidence to ebb away from the Three Lions.
However, it was a decision taking on the fly, according to the man himself.
He remembers: “I made my decision at the last second when I saw Joe Hart doing all sorts on his line. As I began my run-up, I still hadn’t decided what to do. Then he moved and my mind was made up.
“It was impromptu — the only way I could see of pushing my scoring chances close to 100 percent. There was no showboating — that’s not my style. Many so-called experts perceived all manner of meanings in that episode. A secret desire for revenge; something I’d practiced between games. Well, for one thing, we hardly trained towards the end of that tournament — the constant travelling between Poland and Ukraine ate into our time and energy.
“Anyway, can you really plan something so far in advance? If you can, you’re either Totti, a clairvoyant or stupid.”
That settles that, then.
Juventus v Real Madrid
UEFA Champions League Semifinal
May 2015
Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti identified Pirlo’s presence as the determining factor in the fateful first-leg of their Champions League semifinal against underdogs Juventus a few months ago.
"Pressure on Pirlo made us open our midfield line too much," Ancelotti explained after the game. "It allowed them to find a through ball for (Carlos) Tevez, something that happened a lot in the first half."
The playmaker wreaked havoc again in the second leg with another sumptuous midfield display which proved that, even at the age of 36, Pirlo is still one of the most decisive players in world soccer.
Although they lost the final to Barcelona, the Old Lady gave a good account of themselves and Pirlo was his usual creative self, nearly leading an unlikely fightback after Ivan Rakitic’s early strike.
