When Filippo Inzaghi finally confirmed his retirement, it wasn’t only the opposing defenders who breathed a sigh of relief. The man who Sir Alex Ferguson famously labelled as being “born offside” also kept many a referee’s assistant busy throughout his career, and their flag-raising arms are sure to be a bit more rested now that “Super Pippo” has hung up his boots.
A player who could be frustrating and rewarding in equal measure, Inzaghi was a player who defied current footballing convention. Appearance-wise, his wiry frame wasn’t that of a typical centre-forward, and the more time he got on the ball, the poorer he would sometimes do.
He also gained a reputation for gesticulating when decisions didn’t go his way, and was not shy of going to ground to try and win a free kick or penalty. But to focus on all that (which foreign teams and press often did) would be to miss what made him a truly great centre forward. His instinct for goal was second to none, and his ability to find space at the last second made many a world-class defender look foolish as SuperPippo knocked the ball into the back of the net.
His twenty-one year career began in 1991 with hometown club Piacenza. He made only a couple of appearances for them before scoring his first professional goals on loan at Leffe. After bagging thirteen goals there, he moved to Verona, again on loan, and again grabbed thirteen goals. Those seasons gave Piacenza enough confidence in him to keep him for the 1994/95 season, and he rewarded that confidence by scoring fifteen in thirty seven games, helping them to the Serie B title on the way.
The first of his 156 Serie A goals didn’t come for Piacenza, however. Parma had been tracking his progress, and signed him for the 95/96 season. He didn’t make the immediate impact that they hoped; he only scored two league goals, one of which ironically came against Piacenza. He did however also manage to score his first couple of European goals that season, of which more will be discussed below.
Atalanta were the next club to take a gamble on him, and it proved to be a very wise one. Inzaghi finished the season as capocannonieri with twenty four goals. That earned him a big money move to Juventus, and also his first cap for Italy. The man who would be Super Pippo made his debut for the Azzurri against Brazil at Le Tournoi in France, and laid on an assist to his new Juve teammate Alessandro Del Piero as the match finished 3-3.
It was at Juve that the Inzaghi that Ferguson would later say was born offside came to international prominence. Forming part of an attack that also featured Del Piero and Zidane, Inzaghi made an immediate impact, helping his new side to both the Supercoppa Italiana and the Scudetto in his first season, bagging twenty seven goals in all competitions. Six of those goals also came in the Champions League, and Inzaghi almost had his hands on the cup he had dreamed of lifting as a child, only for Juve to lose 1-0 to a Pedrag Mijatovic goal in the final.
Inzaghi stayed with Juve for another three seasons, bagging another sixty three goals in the process. He also made strides with the Azzurri during that period, going to both the 1998 World Cup and forming a part of the squad that reached the final of Euro 2000.
The arrival of David Trezeguet at Juve started to limit his chances however, and so it was that he made what was to be his final move, joining Milan in 2001. It was a transfer that benefitted both player and club. After a relatively quiet first season with the rossoneri (relatively being the operative word; he still scored sixteen goals), he exploded in his second season at the San Siro, grabbing 30 goals in all competitions, including seventeen in Serie A and twelve on the way to his first Champions League victory – which came against his former club, Juve.
The Scudetto followed the season after, but Inzaghi’s contribution was fairly minimal as knee injuries began to plague him. He scored only three Serie A goals that season, and the next season was worse as he failed to find the net at all in the league.
He was able to recover for the 2005/06 season, and his new found fitness resulted in a return to goal scoring form as he grabbed twelve goals in twenty three league games, as well as four Champions League goals in five games. His evergreen form earned him a place in Marcello Lippi’s 2006 World Cup squad, where he scored one goal en route to the Azzurri’s famous victory.
By now 33 years old, Inzaghi arguably saved his most important goals for the next season. Although he only managed two goals in the league, it was in Europe that he left his mark, scoring six goals in twelve games. One of those was the decisive goal against Bayern Munich in the quarters. That paled into insignificance however when compared to the two he scored in the final against Liverpool to win his second Champions League trophy and help Milan gain revenge against Liverpool for that game in Istanbul in 2005.
Some might have viewed that as a good time to bow out – not Super Pippo. His goals the next season helped Milan win the European Supercup against Sevilla, as well as the FIFA World Club Championship against Boca Juniors, meaning he became the first player to score in all international competitions.
Inzaghi wasn’t quite finished there. Although blighted by injury, he still managed to break the record for goals scored in European competition in 2010 when he came off the bench to score twice against Real Madrid in the San Siro, giving him 70 European goals. His chance to stretch that number was cut short by injury; he only managed nine games that season.
It looked like it might be a sad end for him in his last season – injuries and falling out of favour with Milan manager Allegri meant he managed only nine games. Going into the last game of the season against Novara, he hadn’t been able to find the net. Would his last season really end without a goal?
Of course not – linking up with another man playing his last game for Milan, Inzaghi picked up Seedorf’s pass and scored the winning goal. He celebrated as he always did – like a kid who has just scored in the world cup final.
In all, Inzaghi won nearly everything a European player can and scored 288 goals at club level, and 25 at international level. If you were to ask him which were the most important, it’s likely he would be unable to chose. He was a man born to score goals, and each one meant the world to him.
We can only hope he brings that same passion with him as he starts down the road of management, starting with the Milan U17s. If he teaches the strikers there everything he knows, the linesmen in the primavera leagues are going to get some very sore arms …
Follow Marco Rinaldi on Twitter @marcoarrinaldi
