In football, it is difficult for a pure defender to earn the highest personal honors, and the centre-back is no exception, even if he is recognized as the greatest centre-back in the history of football, Baresi, his playing career has not been touched. Cannavaro broke this law, he is a milestone in world football, he is the only defender in world football to date to win the two supreme individual honors of "World Footballer of the Year" and "European Ball of the Year". However, such a player who has gone down in history, his playing career is not as beautiful as we think, he was once depressed, but also experienced a big obstacle in life. Of course, he will not lack the joy of success. It was these ups and downs that shaped Cannavaro's legendary playing career.
<h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" >1, The genius teenager of Naples</h1>
"Towards Naples, death is enough", the beauty of Naples is amazing. Unlike Naples, which is full of beautiful scenery and charm, Football in Naples is much less colorful and far less attractive than the scenery there. Napoli clubs are only a second-rate team even in Italy, and they are far from Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan, who are recognized as the world's top powers, and even worse than Roma and Lazio. But Napoli also has its own football pride, namely Maradona and Cannavaro, which are the two football flags of Napoli.
Maradona led Napoli to a miracle, bringing to Napoli two Serie A titles and a UEFA Cup that are considered out of reach by Napolians, which is also the only important honor for the Club of Naples to this day, so Napoli still regards Maradona as a god-like figure. Cannavaro is a football genius bred by the beautiful land of Naples and a football legend of Naples.
Cannavaro was born on September 13, 1973, to a family in the Frigrotta district of Naples, where his father was an avid Neapolitan fan, and under the influence of his father, Cannavaro fell in love with football from an early age and gradually revealed a higher talent than the children of his age. At the age of 10, Cannavaro joined the Napoli club. At the time, however, Cannavaro was not a centre-back, but a midfielder. Until one day when he was 13 years old, the then napoli youth team director said to Cannavaro: "Fabio, I want you to play at centre-back. At the time, his Napoli youth team manager did not give Cannavaro more explanations, which puzzled Cannavaro because he thought he was not tall enough to play at centre-back, he was the thinnest in the team. But because it was the supervisor's request, Cannavaro had no choice but to stand in the position of center-back.
However, Cannavaro did not expect that he would quickly adapt to the position of central defender and show talent, and since then, he has completely fallen in love with defense. This incident also became an important turning point for Cannavaro to become a generation of defensive masters.
At the age of 16, Cannavaro was promoted to the first team and got the opportunity to train with Maradona and Ferrara. This experience is very important for Cannavaro's growth, and it has benefited Cannavaro a lot by getting the personal guidance of Ferrara, the core of the team's defense, but what impressed Cannavaro even more is the experience of "bringing down Maradona".
During a training session with Maradona, Cannavaro shoveled Maradona down, and in an instant, everyone on the pitch was watching him with strange eyes. At this point, Cannavaro remembered that Ferrara had reminded him that he could not collide with Maradona while training, let alone bring down Maradona. However, while Cannavaro was worried about how harshly he would be reprimanded, Maradona, as a party, not only did not blame Cannavaro, but also admired his skill and courage, and gestured to him to approve.
Maradona later recalled the incident: "In Napoli, we sometimes play against the youth team in training. When they see that their opponents are professional players, there is fear in their eyes. You can imagine the way they had to face us, what kind of expression they had when they faced me. But cannavaro was the only one who looked at me. That little guy is awesome. When I saw him, I felt that this child would become a great figure in the future. ”
Maradona's approval also gave Cannavaro a lot of encouragement, and Cannavaro later recalled the incident: "At that time, through this incident, I learned a truth: if you want to be a great defender, you have to compete with the best players in the world. It also gave me the confidence and courage to compete with the best players in the world. ”
At the age of 20, Cannavaro finally stood out, he became the main centre-back of the Napoli team, and began to show his talent in Serie A. And this is thanks to Lippi's trust, when Lippi was the head coach of the Napoli team, it was Lippi who promoted Cannavaro, and Cannavaro's mentor-apprentice relationship with Lippi also began at this time. Unfortunately, after only two seasons for Napoli, cannavaro had no choice but to leave Napoli and join Parma due to the team's financial difficulties.
Although they have not been able to write legends in Naples, have not brought honor to Naples, and have not even fully developed their talents in Naples, the people of Naples have always regarded Cannavaro as their son and as their pride. After Cannavaro led Italy to win the World Cup in 2006, Naples held "Cannavaro Day" in order to welcome the hero Cannavaro home.
Cannavaro is also very affectionate with Napoli, and when he bid farewell to the Stadio San Paolo in 1995, Cannavaro emotionally said: "I will definitely come back!" Whether it's 10 years, or 20 years, I'm still that Neapolitan kid and I'll definitely come back to Naples! On 11 April 1998, Cannavaro's Parma were relegated to the second division after a 3–1 home win over Napoli, which was already in the red. After the game, Cannavaro, who personally broke the last shred of fragility in his former parent team's relegation, wept bitterly.
< h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" >2, dedicate the best years to Parma</h1>
Today's Parma has long gone, and in 2015, due to the bankruptcy of the club, it was relegated to the fourth division of Italy, but the former Parma has also shook the European continent and is one of the famous "seven sisters" of the "Small World Cup era" in Serie A. It was at that time that Cannavaro came to Parma, and the season before Cannavaro joined the team, Parma had just beaten Juventus in the final of the UEFA Cup to win the title, and Cannavaro's joining continued Parma's glory.
In the backline, although Parma already had three Italian internationals at Benarivo, Apolloni and Minotti, Parma was still very welcome and full of expectations for The arrival of Cannavaro. At the time, it was said that Parma had a complete Italian national team line of defense, although the 22-year-old Cannavaro had no experience of being selected for the national team at that time.
In Parma's first season, Cannavaro became the main force of the team, but due to the multi-line battle, Parma's results this season were not ideal, and they only finished sixth in the league. But Cannavaro also had a bonus this season, scoring the first league goal of his individual playerial career in the league with AC Milan.
In the second season, Parma brought in the French national Thuram and promoted the talented goalkeeper Buffon to the post, and Cannavaro became Parma's new defensive combination, which is still a classic defensive triangle in the history of Italian and even world football. This new generation of defence has played flawlessly this season, helping Parma to become the team with the fewest home goals conceded in Serie A, the second-lowest in the league, and they are also the team that has won the most this season. With such a performance, Cannavaro, as the core of the defense, is naturally the greatest, and it is also with the wonderful performance of this season that Cannavaro knocked on the door of the Italian national team. Unfortunately, in the end, they still lost to Juventus by two points, ranking second in the league.
The following season, Cannavaro gradually became the captain of Parma. Under Cannavaro's leadership, Parma has been strong, maintaining the top six in Serie A, a result that was already good in the "Seven Sisters of Serie A" era at that time. At the same time, Cannavaro also locked in the main position of the Italian national team with his stable and excellent performance in Parma.
In his fourth season at Parma, Cannavaro ushered in the most glorious moment of his club's career, leading Parma to win the UEFA Cup, the Italian Cup and the Italian Super Cup, achieving the "Treble", which is still the most glorious season in Parma's history. And Cannavaro was also elected the best defender in Serie A for the first time this season, an honor that was tantamount to the honor of the best defender in the world at that time, because the Italian defense at that time was the best defense in the world, and there were the best defenders in the world. But after the scenery, Cannavaro is still not satisfied, he is eager to win the Serie A title for Parma, as well as the European Champions Cup.
In the days that followed, Cannavaro continued to lead Parma to the north, and although the team remained competitive in Serie A, it was never able to achieve his dream, and Cannavaro only won one Italian Cup. In the summer of 2001, Parma sold Buffon and Thuram to Juventus for a high price, and Cannavaro's defensive golden triangle with Buffon and Thuram was the cornerstone of the team, which was tantamount to telling him that the team had given up the competition for honor. Cannavaro has always been ambitious and eager for honor, because the club's planning is contrary to his own vision, Cannavaro is also concerned, in the summer of 2002, Cannavaro joined Inter Milan, starting his own road to the giants.
From the age of 22 to 29, Cannavaro dedicated his best years to Parma, but he was still in his prime on the road to the giants.
<h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" >3, a bumpy trip to the giants</h1>
1. Inter Tour
Cannavaro, one of the world's top defenders at the time, was a "savior" for Inter Milan, as defence was the worst problem they had on their way to the Serie A title. In the second season before Cannavaro joined, Inter Milan conceded the most goals in the top eight of Serie A, conceding 20 more goals than the best defensive Juventus; the season before joining, although slightly better, still had 12 more goals than the best defensive team.
However, Cannavaro did not become inter's "savior", but experienced a nightmare there. For two seasons at Inter, Cannavaro was always on a stop-and-go basis, and his performance on the pitch was not satisfactory, and he was eventually swept out by Inter Milan. Cannavaro's way of saying goodbye to Inter was also embarrassing. Cannavaro was unknowingly, and before he was ready to leave for a friendly match, Inter's head of marketing called to tell him he had been sold to Juventus. And Cannavaro's transfer value is only to exchange a Juve reserve goalkeeper.
One of Cannavaro's few takeaways from this nightmarish experience was the groundbreaking 40-metre shot he scored in Inter's home match against Regina. It was one of the best goals of his career for Cannavaro, who was not good at shooting. And today, this way of scoring also seems to represent a mentality of his time, using the most energetic way to vent the depression of the past two years.
The failure of his first big game was a very big blow for Cannavaro, because he was 31 years old at the time, and both Cannavaro himself and others would wonder if his playing career had begun to decline.
2. Juventus tour
Although the farewell is very bad, but leaving Inter to join Juve is actually not a bad thing for Cannavaro, but a good change, after all, Juve is the big brother of Serie A, they are better than Inter in Serie A, and more importantly, Juve makes him feel close and belonging, because there are good brothers Buffon and Thuram who have fought with him. The once Parma defensive golden iron triangle group once again gathered to remind Cannavaro of the glorious past of that year, and the beautiful years of the past also found their peak self.
Cannavaro's joining Juventus is a seamless connection, and after only a dozen days of joining the team, Cannavaro started for Juventus and perfectly opened his Juve career with a clean sheet. Over the course of a season, Cannavaro became an indispensable defensive core for Juventus. Cannavaro's role at Juventus was immediate, with the team conceding 15 fewer goals than the previous season, and Juve were back to being the best defensive team in Serie A. Juventus regained the Serie A title after a year, and Cannavaro fulfilled his dream of winning the league for many years. In the second season, Cannavaro continued to perform well, and with his help, Juventus maintained its position as the best defensive team in Serie A, conceding three fewer goals than the previous season, and finally defending the league title. And this season Juventus was able to defend the league title, and the defense played a crucial role, because in terms of attack, second-place AC Milan scored 14 more goals than Juventus.
At Juventus, Cannavaro not only regained his peak defensive form, but also improved in attack. In his first season, Cannavaro scored two league goals, tying the highest record of his career; in the second season, Cannavaro went one step further, scoring four goals and setting his own new season goal record.
Just when Cannavaro was having a good time at Juventus, a "phone-gate incident" broke all his beauty, and Juventus was not only relegated to the second division, but also deprived of the league title in the last two seasons. This means that all of Cannavaro's efforts at Juventus in these two seasons have been in vain, and his career league title honor is still 0. As a result of the "phone gate incident", Cannavaro also said goodbye to Juventus.
3. Santiago Bernabeu tour
In the summer of 2006, in the halo of a World Cup winner, Cannavaro parachuted into the Bernabeu. Cannavaro has high hopes, he is seen as the new leader of Real Madrid's defence, and it is hoped that he will bring him to the Bernabeu in perfect condition at the 2006 World Cup. However, many people overlook the fact that Cannavaro was 33 years old at that time, which was already the age of entering the twilight of his playing career.
At the Bernabeu, Cannavaro did not shine as much as fans expected, and in the first two seasons, Cannavaro played decently, and in the third season, Cannavaro was full of old age, and he was obviously unable to face speed players such as Leo Messi and Fernando Torres. Real Madrid's fiasco in important games at home against Barcelona and away to Liverpool has led the backline led by Fabio Cannavaro. So at the end of the season, Cannavaro was abandoned by Real Madrid and returned to Juventus as a free agent. Cannavaro's only takeaway at the Bernabeu was to realize his long-awaited dream of winning the league title for many years, helping the team win two consecutive seasons in 06/07 and 07/08.
Back at Juventus, Cannavaro was no longer brave enough, and after a season, he left Juventus and left West Asia. In Al Ahli, perhaps Cannavaro was already weak. He only made 16 appearances for the team and made many low-level mistakes, so much so that he was hailed by the West Asian media for a long time as an "incompetent money collector". A year later, Cannavaro ended his playing career.
<h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" >4, thirteen years of blue clothes fluttering, through the bitterness and sweetness of the world</h1>
I don't think the national team experience of a few players can be more colorful than Cannavaro'.
In the 1998 World Cup, Cannavaro fought bloodily, but unfortunately was not favored by God in the end, the Italian team lost to the host France team in the quarter-final, regrettably farewell; in the 2000 European Championship, Cannavaro performed almost perfectly, he and the Italian team were once within reach of the championship, but Virtod's injury time draw and Trezeguet's golden ball victory, so that Cannavaro and Italy and the final champion crossed shoulders, he failed to pick up the glittering Delaunay Cup, leaving only a frustrated look In the 2002 World Cup, Cannavaro and Italy were tragically black sentinel in South Korea, eliminated and finally left the game in anger; in the 2004 European Championship, Italy was in no state, and finally the group stage was eclipsed.
After a bitter experience, Cannavaro finally worked hard at the 2006 World Cup and reached the peak of his life.
In this World Cup, Cannavaro's performance is absolutely perfect, his staring, his scrambling, his blocking, his substitution, and his shoveling, everything is impeccable. Under his perfect play, the Italian team sang all the way, and finally defeated France through penalties in the final and won the World Cup. In seven matches, the Italian team conceded only two goals, and Cannavaro was the biggest contributor to the Italian team's championship and was regarded as the biggest hero of the Italian team to win the championship. With a perfect performance in the World Cup, Cannavaro also won this year's "World Footballer of the Year" and "European Ballon d'Or" and became the first person in history.
However, to his surprise, four years later in South Africa, he went from hero to sinner, from peak to bottom.
In this World Cup, Cannavaro turned into a black hole for the Italian team. In the first two matches of the Italian team, they only gave the opponent two opportunities to shoot the goal on target, and the opponent scored two goals. Two goals, both from Cannavaro's mistakes. So much so that, before the third war, Italian journalists shouted at Lippi at a press conference: "If you are a man, replace Cannavaro!" ”
In the final battle, although Cannavaro tried his best, he was still blamed, conceding the ball in the backcourt 8 times in the whole game, and every time it could be a fatal mistake! And the team's second goal conceded was directly related to him, which eventually led to Italy's 2-3 loss to Slovenia and eclipse.
Cannavaro originally wanted to use the World Cup to build another miracle for Italy, a perfect retirement, but he did not expect to end up with a thousand fingers and all kinds of scorn, and finally he could only leave alone.
Cannavaro's late world cup failure has even caused the world to reflect, and the smart people in the world should know how to retreat!