2 – Christian Vieri
Christian Vieri had a negative reputation in his last years a footballer, as a result of an indifferent Euro 2004 showing, some poor performances in the 2006 qualifiers, and an erratic club career. None of this, however, erases the fact that Vieri was a beast in his prime, a brutally powerful hit-man and the only consistent prima punta Italy had in this decade.
The Italian-born, Austalian-raised Vieri broke the tradition of diminutive Italian forwards like Paolo Rossi and Totó Schillaci and paved the way for such players as Luca Toni and Mario Balotelli.
He was the star striker in the World Cups of 1998 (five goals in five games) and of 2002 (four goals in four games). If an injury hadn’t forced him to skip the 2006 edition, he could have become the highest-scoring Italian in the history of that tournament – presently he holds the first place in conjunction with Paolo Rossi and Roberto Baggio, also at nine goals each.
While he was not always the game-changer one may have wished for, missing an easy header that could have closed the game against South Korea in 2002, he was on the whole a superb poacher, and exactly the type of player his coaches were looking for.
Vieri was NOT born in Australia you idiot. He was born in Italy. Do some research before writing an article you imposter.
What part of “Italian-born, Austalian-raised” is confusing?