A Tale Of Two Italians

Enter one Gianluigi Lentini. Lentini was a former Italian international who received 13 caps for his country. Affectionately known as Gigi, Lentini made his name at a reasonably top club, Torino. Using his coltish pace, Gigi would found meandering through the right wing, unhinging defences from a variety of angles. Blessed with penetrative panache, Gigi could make a monkey out of any defender in his prime. With all the hype about him, it was only a matter of time before Gigi caught the eye of Italy’s elite teams. Juventus (The Old Lady of Turin) and AC Milan (Rossoneri) both sought his services.

Ultimately, the money purse of Silvio Berlusconi prevailed and Gigi donned the famous red and black strip of Milan. The world record transfer fee was to be a staggering 13 million pounds. While considered normal today, that figure was exceptionally high for a footballer in 1992 and the Vatican called it “an offence against the dignity of work.” Making his Milan debut at the age of 23, Gigi played 30 times in the title-winning season of 1992-1993. However, he only managed 33 games for the four seasons after. Needless to say, his involvement with the national team also met an abrupt end.

What happened? A car crash in 1993 landed Gigi in a coma with severe head injuries and he never returned to his prime – although Milan were already disappointed in having signed what some would call a show pony. His career never recovered and The Observer ranks him as the seventh biggest transfer flop of all time. Gigi started well and had the world at his feet but being the victim of circumstance and escalating expectations proved too much for the young man to handle. A victim of his own success perhaps, Gigi tasted too much, too soon.


Marco Tardelli on the other hand, had an unenviable beginning. For starters, he didn’t even have a fixed position. After experimenting for a few years, Tardelli was used as a utility defender or midfielder in a central position. Only a brave man would predict stardom for Tardelli. For unlike Lentini, Tardelli didn’t begin his career with a Serie A club but for Pisa, a team stuck in Serie C for whom he played for two seasons from 1972 to 1974. His life chances were already handicapped from the start.

But God lifts the lowly and Tardelli was soon promoted to Serie B where he played with Como. Slowly but steadily growing in stature and spurred on by his competitive streak, Tardelli’s club career culminated when he signed for Italy’s most decorated club, Juventus in October, 1975. Tenacious and intelligent, Tardelli soon won the cynics over with a series of determined and consistent performances. With both club and country, Tardelli succeeded the more physical Romeo Benetti in the central midfield birth. However, his past returned to haunt him when he was played out of position (at right back) during his Azzuri (Italian national team) debut. Nevertheless, Tardelli dug deep and made the central midfield spot his own in time.

Tardelli will be best remembered for the undisputed best goal celebration at the World Cup. Scoring in the final against West Germany in 1982, the normally calm and reserved Tardelli went berserk. With tears in his eyes, he sprinted to the Italian bench, fist clenched in front of his chest, and then pounding his chest, tears pouring freely down his face like rain, screaming as he shook his head wildly. It took a good four teammates to bring him back down to earth and drag him back to the centre circle.

Tardelli is one of the very few players to have won every major prize in the modern domestic and European game. He was declared by FIFA to be “The most complete Italian Midfielder in history.” Above all, Tardelli is the living embodiment that a bad start or predicament does not determine that life, as a whole, sucks.

Which footballer best depicts your life? If you're a Tardelli, praise God. If your story sounds very much like Lentini minus the football, do not despair. I too, tasted too much too soon. But God wants to give you a new name and all we have to do is to let Him work His stuff. And like Mr. Tardelli above, I want to run to Him again. If He can do it for him, He can do it for me, for you. Cheesy, but it's true, it's true!

P.S. Tardelli is also famous for a notorious love affair with pornstar Moana Pozzi but that's another story for another time. And hey, even Solomon had his women. *wink*

P.S.S Thou shall not stone the messenger! :P (Pun intended)