Needless to say, the Old Lady’s history is full of world-class players idolised by a huge number of supporters around the world. One man, wrongly, often slips through the memories of many.
Michel Platini, Roberto Baggio, Zinedine Zidane, Alessandro Del Piero and Pavel Nedved are some of the names that, more often than not, first come to mind when one thinks about the memorable moments in the history of Juventus.
However, one player that is rarely mentioned in discussions on the greatest players in the Turin-based club’s history is David Trezeguet.
Though the French striker is remembered by all Juventus supporters and followers of the game, his goals and career in the black-and-white shirt are worthy of much more respect than he receives from outside the Juventus bubble.
While naysayers tend to describe him as a one-dimensional striker who benefitted from playing with creative players feeding him the bill like Nedved, Del Piero, Mauro Camoranesi and others, there aren’t many arguments that stand up to his 171 goals for the Bianconeri.
Trezeguet’s huge potential was spotted by Juventus in his first season with the club, 2000-01, when he scored 14 goals, even though he was used predominantly as a substitute striker behind Filippo Inzaghi, who was the starter alongside Del Piero. His knack for goals was among the main reasons behind Juve’s decision to sell the former to Milan in the summer of 2001.
What happened the following season exceeded the everyone’s expectations. Trezeguet was a vital part of a Juve side that won the Scudetto on the final day of that campaign. Not only that, he was that season’s top scorer with 24 goals, sharing the Capocannoniere title with Piacenza’s Dario Hübner.
His spell in Turin, which lasted until 2010, also saw him score 20 goals in one Serie A season and come second in the Capocannoniere race six years late, in Juve’s first season after the Serie B stay.
However, when it comes to the man affectionately christened Trezegol, it must be pointed out that it is not just about the number of goals of he scored, but that he always rose to the occasion in big matches.
Though some would say the fact that most of his goals were not goal-of-the-season contenders, which is admittedly true, this should not harm his reputation as one of the greats that are fondly remembered by all those passionate about football, not just Juve fans, Trezeguet was always there when it mattered most.
Just ask Real Madrid, the team he scored against in both legs of the 2002-03 Champions League semi-final as well as in the second leg of the first knockout round of the 2004-05 edition of the tournament, both occasions saw the Italians progress to the next round.
In 2004-05, he scored the goal against Milan in the Juve’s 1-0 victory towards the end of the season, which proved crucial for the 2005 title – one of the two titles that has since been revoked.
Goals against Inter, Lazio, Roma, Torino as well as important strikes in the Champions League were also a common sight.
Despite not scoring goals of the aesthetic beauty that many Bianconeri players have in the past, David Trezeguet’s reputation as a great with La Vecchia Signora should be remembered more fondly by those who don’t avidly support the club.
