Top 10 Italy Strikers: 1998 – 2012 – Number 1

Date: 24th August 2012 at 8:55am
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1 – Francesco Totti

The top two were close. Who deserves the greater recognition, the standard poacher who topped his potential, or the football genius who only expressed half his talent? In the end we chose Francesco Totti over Christian Vieri, if only because Totti won the World Cup and reached a Euro final, while Vieri’s highest achievement remains a World Cup quarter-final. It makes all the difference in the world.

Even so, Totti played in full gear in only one of his four international tournaments (that being Euro 2000), and the fact that he still makes it to the top of the list leads us to a rather sour reflection – that in terms of strikers, this should be remembered as the decade of wasted talent for the Azzurri.

Along with Totti, Italy had Alessandro Del Piero and Antonio Cassano – three superbly gifted fantasisti, such as had not appeared in the same generation in Italy since the distant golden era of the 1930/40s. And yet, for one reason or another, none of them truly made a tournament his own the way that Roberto Baggio or Paolo Rossi previously did. Totti’s Euro 2000 is the only exception, in which his class, his two goals, his back-heel assist in the final and his marvellous semi-final chipped penalty (now so widely imitated) give us one of the reasons to put him up top.

The other main reason relates to his tactical imprint. Totti was a trequartista unlike any other, capable of generating and inventing play from almost any position on the pitch. This talent being highly estimated by all his coaches, it made him the formative element of every team he played in, turning him out to be influential even when he was not at his best (people tend to forget this, but one of the reasons Andrea Pirlo was so effective in 2006 was that the man-marking was drawn away from him – for once – and onto Totti. It is but one example).

Totti was not entirely fortunate, coming to both World Cups in the wake of major injuries. In 2002 he was out of form and ended up being sent off by the infamous Byron Moreno. In 2004, his spitting cameo was as disgraceful as his overall tournament was brilliant in 2000. In 2006 he was nowhere near top form, and he vanished in the final, but he did some good things nonetheless, not only by saving Italy with his penalty against Australia, but by the silent work, the type that makes a team flow. Proof of the latter is the fact that he had last touch on so many of the goals – on the one by Pirlo, by Materazzi, by Zambrotta, by Toni, plus the run by which Grosso earned himself the Australian penalty.

On the whole, Totti’s international career does not reflect his unparalleled set of skills. Still, it was enough to win a World Cup with the Azzurri, something that other great talents like Roberto Baggio or Gianni Rivera could not do, so we won’t be caught complaining. In combination with the final in 2000, it makes him the most successful Italian striker of the decade. The fact that he was far from the most prolific is not enough to diminish his contribution.

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6 responses to “Top 10 Italy Strikers: 1998 – 2012 – Number 1”

  1. Capitano says:

    I had a feeling you’d put him first. As always, love reading your stuff!

    Grande Capitano, forza Roma.

  2. Il Mister says:

    Is the Judge a Roma fan??? I suspect so…..

    ;o)

  3. Massimiliano says:

    Choosing Delvecchio instead Montella?
    Balotelli above Del Piero, Inzaghi n Toni?
    Stefano Fiore, what’s on earth he becomes a striker?
    It’s ridiculous…

  4. Jamie says:

    Fiore at number 3? He’s a midfielder by the way. Balotelli & Cassano above Baggio and Del Piero. Is this a parody?

  5. Aditya says:

    The order seems ridiculous. Vieri hands down number 1. Pippo’s contribution in the 2002 WC qualifying, 2004 euro qualifying (the 11 min hat trick against wales) , 2oo8 euro qualifying have been ignored like anything. he Was injured in the euro 2000 semi final hence didn’t start the final. Ridiculous that Cassano and balotelli have been placed above Pippo’s and del piero just to make it seem a little different. Respect the content on this site a lot but for this list.

  6. The Judge says:

    By number of goals alone, Vieri does stand out as number one. The criteria that went into this list, however, include more than raw goal-count. I did consider the work in qualification, but that’s right, I gave it significantly less weight than the performances in the actual tournaments because, you know, those were the actual tournaments, and a goal against Belgium in a qualifier means less than one against France in a Euro final. As for Del Piero, he is a great player – which makes his constant disappointments with the national side all the more conspicuous.

    As for the objection that “Fiore is a midfielder,” you might guys want to read what was written about him before getting your panties in a twist.