One of the most loved Italian footballers of all time, the Divine Ponytail, Roberto Baggio. A story forever intertwined with the World Cup; it is one of expectation and ultimately heartache. For a country with such a rich history at the World Cup, it’s strange to think we might never see them at a World Cup again. Baggio sits top of the pile in finding the back of the net. He’s the only Italian to score at three World Cups, with 9 goals across the 1990, 1994, and 1998 World Cup, putting him level with Christian Vieri and Paolo Rossi.
His calm, zen-like presence on the pitch is at odds with the level of stardom he had. His nickname linked to his famous ponytail and his Buddhist beliefs, converting to Buddhism in the 1980s and using his faith to help him with recovery from injuries. His was a career littered with moves to many of Italy’s big clubs but also horrendous luck with injuries, particularly to his knee at crucial stages of his career. But he scored goals. Plenty of them.
In 1990, Baggio would become one of the stars of the tournament, a hero for the host nation, as Italy finished 3rd. He went into the tournament as the most expensive player in the world, a contentious transfer between rivals Fiorentina and Juventus that would leave a bitterness for years to come and a riot at the time. He put that to one side to star when needed
At the 94 USA World Cup missed penalties would bookend the tournament. Diana Ross struck her shot wide in the opening ceremony (more on that later in the tournament) and Baggio would miss the decisive penalty in the final shootout against Brazil. Brazil would win its 4th World Cup and Italy would go home with nothing. Baggio had lit up the tournament, scoring five goals in total, a couple against Nigeria in a scintillating last-16 match against Nigeria where the Divine Ponytail scored an 88th minute equaliser and an extra-time winner, an 88th-minute winner in the quarter-final against Spain, and both goals in a 2-1 win against Bulgaria in the semi-final. The final wasn’t the best spectacle, 0-0 and all the way to penalties, where Baggio missed his penalty to give Brazil the win at the sweltering Rose Bowl.
By 1998 Baggio had moved between Juventus and AC Milan and onto Bologna, scoring an outstanding 22 Serie A goals in the World Cup season. It wasn’t quite the same Italy side but he still managed two goals in the tournament before the hosts, and eventual winners, France knocked Italy out on penalties 4-3. At the quarter final stage. This time, he took the first penalty and scored.
So much promise from one of the best players in the world. Three tournaments that would all end in heartache, all with defeats in penalty shootouts, but it’s 1994 in the USA that he’s most remembered for by many fans, and that’s unfortunate.
We’ll end on a profound quote by the man himself:
“Only those who have the courage to take a penalty miss them.”
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