The legendary player is not recognized by any, for he missed the penalty and Italy suffered the FIFA World Cup trophy

At 18, Roberto Baggio suffered a knee injury and physicians informed him that his career is over. Little did they know Baggio would grow into one of the most celebrated names in the Serie A history. The man with the Divine Ponytail enjoyed an eminent career playing for several Italian clubs such as Fiorentina, Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan. From dribbling past defenders to scoring long-range goals and free kicks, Roberto Baggio could produce practically everything. In his entire career, the player converted 86 per cent of penalty kicks into goals but strangely missed World Cup final one, which cost Italy the trophy. Sadly, the athlete today is recalled solely for the missed penalty or is not recognized at all.

Joining Fiorentina

A little Baggio joined the Serie A club of Fiorentina in 1985 for 1.5 million euros but did not appear because of his knee injury and lost the entire year on the sidelines. In 1986, he made his debut against Sampdoria and reached his first league goal in 1987 against Napoli, saving Fiorentina from getting relegated. His turning point occurred in 88/89 season when he secured the top Serie A scorer title.

Moving to Juventus

After putting his best to uplift Fiorentina, Baggio joined rival Juventus in 1990 at 8 million euros, which developed into the world record transfer fee at that stage. Roberto inherited the number 10 jersey and went onto score 78 goals for the club in five years. During his stay, Juve won the league title and the Coppa Italia trophy. However, the club preferred to remove Baggio when he lost the World Cup final penalty and passed his baton to new athletes like Alessandro Del Piero.

1994 World Cup

In the 1994 World Cup, Roberto Baggio was Italy’s star man as he led the team to final by scoring five goals. In the final match against Brazil, both the teams failed to find the back of the net and the match progressed to a penalty shootout. A missed penalty from Baggio saw Brazil picking up the trophy and thus, the illustrious career of Baggio was forgotten forever.

The Divine Ponytail won the World Cup Silver Ball but lost the loyalty of his fans. In the later few years, Baggio tried his best to gain redemption, but the legendary player slowly disappeared from the universe of football.