Originally posted on March 7, 2013 on Soccer Newsday
Italian soccer is famous for its defenders, and until recently, has been the foundation of how teams, both national and domestic, played their game. Players, such as Milan greats Franco Baresi and Paulo Maldini, Juventus masters Claudio Gentile and Gaetano Scirea, and Inter legends Giuseppe Bergoni and Tarciso Burgnich, are names so honoured in Italy that fans around the country have profound respect for these players, no matter what club they support.
However, the style of play in Italy is changing. No more is catenaccio the default system of choice for managers. Review the starting lineups of Serie A on any given weekend, and you will find most teams playing with only 3 true defenders on the back line, with the emphasis on strong midfield play, and moving the ball with quicker passes to the forwards.
The art of defending has not been lost on Italians. Players like Giorgio Chellini, Leonardo Bonucci, Angelo Ognonna, Andrea Barzagli, Domenico Criscito and Ignazio Abate are all very good defenders in their own right. But none of these players compare to the last great Italian defender: Alessandro Nesta.
Nesta was born and raised in the capital of Italy, the son of a proud Lazio fan. So proud was his father Giuseppe, that when his son was scouted and then eventually offered a contract by rival club Roma, he turned the offer down. The young Nesta would join the Lazio Giovanili, or youth squad, in 1985 and played in various roles, including midfield and in attack. But he would soon find his calling as a defender.
Nesta would be promoted to the Lazio senior squad in 1993, making his first appearance on March 13, 1994, just a week before his 18th birthday, in a 2-2 draw with Udinese. For most people, including myself, Nesta “broke” on to the calcio scene later that spring, when he was involved in a training incident with Paul Gascoigne, causing the Englishman to break his leg. Ironically enough, it was Gazza that was tackling Nesta.
At the time, Nesta was quoted in the Gazzetta dello Sport, telling them “(Gascoigne) made a normal tackle as I was kicking the ball.” At the time, I recall thinking that this poor kid had ruined any kind of career he may have had by injuring Lazio’s “star” player. I may have made a small error in judgement there.
Nesta would soon become a household name while playing at Lazio, and in 1996 was named to the Azzurri squad for the UEFA Euro Cup in England before ever making an appearance for the national team. He would watch the tournament from the bench, seeing his squad eliminated in the group stage, and would not earn his first cap until later that year, becoming a regular for the national side.
In 1997, Nesta became captain of the Roman team. His skill to ensure he marked his man was immense, and his tackling ability was second to none. He was, in every sense of the term, smooth as silk, on the pitch.
He would help lead his team to a Coppa Italia win against Milan in 1998, and the following year in winning the old UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup, beating Mallorca, 2-1, and the European Super Cup against Manchester United. That season, Nesta would lift his first scudetto, and only Lazio’s second, in a surprised and contentious manner on the last day of the season.
On May 14th, Juventus had a 2 point lead over Lazio, and were away to mid-table Perugia, while Lazio were at home to Reggina, with Juventus needing only a tie to win the title. Lazio beat Reggina without any difficulty, 3-0, however Juventus lost its game 1-0 in rain-soaked conditions, in which the game had to be suspended for nearly 90 minutes by referee Pierluigi Collina. Many considered the pitch to be unplayable, but the match went on, and Juventus would lose the game and the title. The laziali faithful rejoiced at the Stadio Olympico, and Nesta would become a hero.
That summer, Nesta helped lead Italy to a runner-up position in the UEFA Euro 2000 Cup, narrowly missing out on winning the tournament. This was his best international tournament, as he was injury free for the entire tournament; however he would not be so lucky in an Azzurri shirt in the future.
Nesta would play an additional 2 years in the capital, leading the team to a 3rd place finish in 2001, and a 6th place finish in 2002. With Lazio’s President Sergio Cragnotti, and his company Cirio, which owned 51% of the club, in financial troubles, Nesta was transferred to Milan for €30 million that summer.
He would have an extremely successful decade playing with the northern giants, winning the scudetto in 2004 and 2011, the Coppa Italia in 2003, and two Champions League titles, in 2003 and 2007. He would also help Milan win the FIFA Club World Cup, scoring a goal to break a 1-1 game versus Boca Juniors that the rossoneri would go on to win 4-2.
He would, however, start his injury troubles while at Milan, playing in only 14 games in the 2006-2007 season due to a shoulder injury, and missing the entire 2008-2009 season, save for a brief quarter hour substitution appearance during Milan’s last game of the season.
His international career was also hampered by these injuries. In South Korea, during the 2002 World Cup, Nesta would miss the Round of 16 knockout game that saw Italy lose to co-hosts South Korea. During the 2006 World Cup in Germany, Nesta would sustain a groin injury in the group stage, and would watch his teammates on an improbable run to become World Cup champions.
Nesta would retire from the Azzurri in the summer of 2007, having played his last game in an Italian shirt the previous October, as he realized that his body could not take the additional abuse and decided to focus on his club career. After winning the scudetto in 2011 with Milan, Nesta signed a one-year contract extension, which he said would be his last year in with the rossoneri.
In the summer of 2012, speculation was that Nesta would join an MLS team. In late June, Nesta was in Montreal visiting his friends Marco Di Viao and Matteo Ferrari, who were playing for the Montreal Impact, while Italy was marching their way to the UEFA Euro Cup final.
As fate would have it, I was in Montreal for work related purposes, and watched Italy beat Germany in Montreal. The morning after the game, I was in the lobby of the W Hotel getting a coffee, only to overhear the following:
“Checking out, sir. Name please?”
“Nesta… Alessandro Nesta”.
I immediately turned around, and saw Nesta standing at the counter, and waited for him to finish checking out. I spoke briefly with him (here, here, and here), asked him what his thoughts were of MLS, and if he would be signing with Toronto FC (as was the rumour at the time). He was non-committal on where he would be signing, saying instead he was off to the airport for a much deserved vacation in Florida with his family. A few days later, he would end up signing for the Montreal Impact. He played 8 games in his first season with Impact, and brings his wealth of experience to the team.
He has said he expects that the 2013 season will likely be his last season playing soccer, and then wants to spend two years resting in Miami, to have his body recover from 11 surgeries he has sustained in his career, and spend time with his young family. Once he has recovered, coaching is what he sees in his future. “I want to coach…I don’t know where. In Europe, or USA or in Canada,” he said.
While his career may be coming to a close, Nesta has proven to be on the greatest defenders of his generation, and the last great Italian defender.
