Giancarlo Antognoni: Fiorentina (1972 – 1987)
Adored by many, Antognoni was a silky-smooth, elegant playmaker during the ’70s and ’80s for la Viola. He made his debut as an 18-year old with the club he would go on to captain, lifting the Coppa Italia just three years later. For a player of such quality and finesse who became the club’s emblem, he remained a down-to-earth figure always playing for the team, as former colleague Giancarlo De Sisti noted:
“Giancarlo was a great, not just as a player, but as a man. You knew he was world class. But rather than think he was a primadonna, he listened to all and took advice from those above and below him”.
Antognoni was also part of Italy’s victorious 1982 World Cup team, although unfortunately, missed the final due to injury. During his time in Florence, he played over 400 games, scoring 61 goals in total, and such is the club’s love for him, they celebrated ‘Antognoni’s Day’ in 2011 – 24 years after he wore the famous purple shirt for the last time.
Still, upon his retirement Florentine fans didn’t have to wait too long to see another long-haired superstar grace their number 10 shirt, as a certain Roberto Baggio emerged…
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