Don’t you just love great come-backs?

And by that of course, I mean Alessandro Del Piero’s return to scoring after nearly two months of drought. Our hero had not scored since Juve’s 3-0 victory over Catania on January 14th, and while we desperately awaited his crucially-needed goals in the UEFA Champions League (ok, no need to rub salt on the wound right?), it was a welcome sight to see ADP’s brace vs. Bologna this week-end. Boy did we need that!

You can read my full match report here, and enjoy a few match-photos below.

Il Capitano’s fighting…

…and the goals are coming.

Group hug!

ADP & his heir… Pinturicchio & Super-Seba… la relève est assurée

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Of course, there’s also the much-less publicized (but equally important?) return of yours truly to the ADP blog.

You probably want excuses as to why I was gone so long. Okay, that’s fair. It’s convenient that one of the reasons as to the why is something we’ll be saving a lot of by keeping this short: time.

Yup. Time (or lack thereof) is what has been keeping me away from here, and it has manifested in a variety of ways in the last 3 months. In December, my PC hard drive melted down (not litterally, but it’s awful close to the truth) which you can guess, made my surfing-the-net (and by extension, writing-the-blog) activities considerably harder. That coincided with the fact I spent my Xmas holiday back in Southern Italy, in the company of my folks, family, and a late 90’s steam-powered-sorry-excuse-for-a-latpop computer. Not cool (the laptop part).

Long story short, it took a while to get everything fixed, I resumed my mCalcio writing activities in January, but sadly… that is when ADP stopped scoring!!!! Indeed, you could add another reason to why list and that is goals (or once again: lack thereof). You see, in a convoluted mix of practicality, pseudo-perfectionism, procrastination and laziness logic, I was waiting for Del Piero to finally score AGAIN to announce my come-back on The Offside! Little did I know that ADP & Amauri, the most prolific pair of forwards in Serie A’s first half of the season, were going to have an abstinence so long it would make the Pope proud.

Anyways, sorry it took this long… but I am back. ADP’s back. The blog’s back. And this time it’s permanent hopefully. So stay tuned for a resumption of ADP-news in the coming days. ;]

And remember:

♫ ALESSANDRO DEL PIEROOOOOOO
IL FENOMENO VEROOOOOO
ALESSANDRO DEL PIERO ALEEEEEEEEEEE ♫

Il Re è tornato!!

2008-09, Stadio Olimpico di Torino
November 29, 2008
Juventus 4-0 Reggina

Here we are. 250 goals.

I’ll never get used to these numbers. Every record is a new emotion. Always. Just like every single goal that you score. Achieving that target isn’t what excites me the most (because even though it’s important, I consider it to just be a step along the way) but above all the most exciting thing is what’s behind the victory, the path leading you towards certain results.

250 goals (or are they 251?!)… now that’s a lot. For a forward they are very important, even if they don’t mean everything (nor should they) because the team and the final result come first. It’s not just a ready-made phrase, but the only way leading you to victory.

My goals… I remember them all and I’m affectionately tied to all of them. So much so that when I’m asked to choose my favorites, I feel that it wouldn’t be fair toward the rest of them! I remember all the hugs and celebrations and so, having reached the number of 250 goals now it’s me who would like to hug all of you, who rejoiced at my victories both on and off the pitch, next to me and thousands of kilometers away.

Above all thanks to those who would have been close to me, even if I didn’t arrive at 250 but stopped after the first one. I’m really happy that you and I shared our joy together, and I’d like to assure you all of your voices were heard!

But now we must not stop here. Because I’m absolutely convinced the best goal, the most beautiful victory, are something for which I still have to sweat for. Something which will be waiting for me tomorrow.

Alessandro

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GRAZIE CAPITANO. SEI IL E RIMARRAI IL NOSTRO MITO.
250 VOLTE E ANCOR DI PIU’.

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EDIT: Our friend Alessio over at the Juve Offside managed to find a video with… all 250 goals! Give him a big hug and enjoy! ;]

Warning: click once on the red “Play” button, close the PartyPoker pop-up window, click again on the green “Play” button. .
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I just love this man. When he’s not scoring them, he’s dishing out passes for them.

ADP might have been a bit unlucky on Thursday, when Juventus played Genoa in an early match for Serie A’s Matchday 12: he had some good shots on target, but they were either saved or off the mark. His free-kick accuracy was a bit off the mark too, but at least his passing abilities remained in full force. Grygera and Iaquinta are saying thank you.

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In the words of Goal.com (Player Ratings):

Del Piero – 8.0: Inspired once again was Del Piero. Created two of Juve’s four goals – the first for Grygera and the third for Iaquinta. Also put Molinaro clean through on goal, while he should have scored late on himself.

Full match report of Juventus 4-1 Genoa here.

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ADP & Criscito, old teammates at work

Can anyone stop him? Ferrari and Sculli are sure trying…

…and so is Marco Rossi. By any means necessary apparently.

I guess the ref didn’t like the “any means” part. Free-kick time. And you know what that means…

Oh well… not today I guess.

On the upside, Grygera just received an ADP pass…

…and so did Iaquinta. Both are saying “Thank you Alex”.

A well-deserved prize for the effort.

There are three primary techniques used with direct free kicks. First, the player taking the direct free kick may blast the ball as hard as he can, usually with the laces of the boot. This method is used by Roberto Carlos and Robin Van Persie. Alternatively, some players try to curl the ball around the keeper, with the inside of the boot. Free kick specialists such as Juninho Pernambucano, Ronaldinho and David Beckham employ this method. Curling the ball is a hard skill to learn but when executed, can be the most effective way of scoring in a match. Additionally, certain free kick specialists will choose to kick the ball with minimal spin, making the ball behave unpredictably in the air. Juninho Pernambucano and Cristiano Ronaldo utilize this method regularly. Free kick takers may also attempt to cross the ball to their centre backs or strikers in order to get a header on goal, especially if the position of the free kick is close to the wings.

Source: Wikipedia

They don’t mention ADP in there, but they bloody well should. Since the season started, our beloved captain has scored five goals on set-pieces, and one more beautiful than the next. Such deadly free-kick scoring efficiency has been the trademark of very few players in football history, a rare breed in the lines of Zico, Sinisa Mihaijlovic and Juninho Pernambucano.

So just because I’m such a nice guy, here a 5 x 5 gallery of all those goals: 5 goals, 5 beautiful pictures for each, and nice little video to summarize everything.

Enjoy! :]

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JUVENTUS VS. ZENIT

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JUVENTUS VS. PALERMO

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JUVENTUS VS. ROMA

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REAL MADRID VS. JUVENTUS

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CHIEVO VS. JUVENTUS

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ALL 5 GOALS COMPILED:

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34 years ago, on the 9^th of November 1974, in a little town called Conegliano in the province of Treviso, one of the beautiful game’s greatest legends saw the light. Born of Gino and Bruna Del Piero, three decades later this wonderful footballing genius is still running on the fields of Serie A and of Europe, surprising us with his astonishing fitness level and never-empty gas tank, and delighting us many fans with his touches of magic. The delicate ball controls, the pinpoint passes, the inswinging goals (alla Del Piero), and free-kicks… these are but only a fraction of the immense repertoire of tricks this man is capable of, the true embodiment of where skills become genius, and where genius becomes legend.

And oh yes… those free-kicks. What better way to celebrate your 34^th birthday than with a victory and with a goal, the set-pieces home special. Yet another masterpiece in a year that only keeps getting better.

BUON COMPLEANNO ALE!!

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(From Channel4, Goal.com, Gazzetta):

Alex Del Piero is “very happy to be 34 years old” and on the form of his life, though there is one thing that would convince him to go back in time. “Would I like to be 20 again? Of course, then I could play for another 20 years and not the 7 or 8 ahead of me right now,” grinned the Juventus captain. “Having said that, time does help you to mature and I am very happy to be 34 years old right now.”

ADP’s sensational free kick sparked the 2-0 victory away to Chievo on his birthday, which also marked his 158^th Serie A goal in 377 appearances for the club. “I am overjoyed for the goal” said Del Piero, “and to have reached a great legend like Gaetano Scirea (note: Del Piero is currently tied second, alongside Scirea, in the ranking for players with most club appearances at Juve) but above all for the win that gives our fine form a sense of momentum and consistency. We really wanted this victory and it was very important to keep climbing after beating Real Madrid.”

And speaking of free-kicks, what’s ADP’s closely guarded secret for taking them so well? “Sorrentino had set up his wall very well, but I always play my football based on sensations I’m feeling,” he explained. “Perhaps that is why this season my strikes have been different. It’s true that in the last couple of years the height of the defensive walls has increased, and I find myself taking free-kicks at a greater distance from goal. I’ve had to train to shoot higher ball trajectories that could put the keepers in trouble. In reality there are many ways to strike a free-kick, but the important thing is that it goes in.”

“I don’t know if I have reached the level of my childhood idols Zico, Michel Platini and Diego Maradona, but I do know that as a youngster I dreamed of them and watched them closely, so perhaps that helped.”

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“He was born in Conegliano, he is our Capitano, Bianconero legend, happy birthday Del Piero”

“Happy birthday Capitano”

“34 years, 248 pearls, there’s only one Captain”

“34 years, 34% on free-kicks, 100% Juve”

“11 Nov 1974, a champion is born”

“34 years of history, Happy Birthday Alex”

Through decades of football history, very few people have managed to get the chance to play at a mythical stadium like Santiago Bernabéu. Fewer people have even managed to score at Santiago Bernabéu. And fewer people still, managed to play, score, and receive a standing ovation at Santiago Bernabéu, the stadium where legends are born and home of Real Madrid, the team still holding the record for the most Champions League trophies in history.

After Wednesday night, Alessandro Del Piero is one of those people.

At 34 years of age (his birthday is coming up on Sunday), Pinturicchio travelled to Spain to Madrid, hoping to lead his team to victory and turn the tide of a match which for over 46 years had not seen Juventus come victorious on Royal soil. Hoping that for the first time ever his name would appear next to the goalscoring legends like Puskas, Di Stefano, and Raúl Gonzalez Blanco, those who over the course of history so many times had found the way of the net at Avenida de Concha Espina 1. For Del Piero, reaching those legends would be an impossible feat, but even one goal would have probably been satisfactory for him. Instead, he got two, and Juventus went on to beat the Spanish giants.

Could you ask for a more perfect day?

Full Match Report here.

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Arm your left foot… Goal nº1

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Arm your right foot… Goal nº2

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IL FENOMENO VERO… E’ ALESSANDRO DEL PIERO…
ALESSANDRO DEL PIERO ALEEEEEEEE

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Edit: More ADP videos added:

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Still surfing the wave of their success vs. Los Merengues, Juventus & Alessandro Del Piero can enjoy a few days of happiness before diving into the hard-footy action again. This week-end’s Turin derby promises to be electrifying, but in the meantime I’ve dug up all the things ADP had to say about Wednesday night’s wondergoal.

alessandrodelpiero.com:

UEFA Champions League 2008-09, Stadio Olimpico di Torino
October, 21st 2008
Juventus 2-1 Real Madrid

We are happy and proud about yesterday’s victory, which arrived in a difficult period for us and allows us to take a big step forward in our Champions League group

Our success gives us courage and enthusiasm to take onto our next important and difficuly matches, starting with Juventus vs. Torino on Saturday October 25 at 20:30.

See you soon.

Alessandro

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Gazzetta:

21 ottobre 2008 – A very tight match to the last minute, hard-fought and painstaking. Del Piero, the man whose first goal levelled the way for the Bianconeri, comments his team’s success against Real Madrid as “a great victory“.

“We hope it’s the first step,” he says to Sky Sports “to make many many more. I am really happy [about my goal], because it allowed us to play a certain type of game in a difficult moment for the team. We were great.”

And now Del Piero will kickstart the celebrations for his son Tobias’s first birthday: “I’m going to celebrate. If he’s sleeping I’ll wake him up” he jokes.

Yeah, I’m sure he won’t mind…

Hello everyone! After an absence of over two months, the Alessandro Del Piero blog on The Offside

returns!

My posting frequency has been terrible at best lately, and that’s inexcusable. I have just been so busy with mCalcio and coordinating my university Intramurals that I’ve never found the time to write a proper

post here.

All that will change in the next few weeks though. While I am still quite occupied with other stuff (unfortunately), I will return to keep you regularly updated on all things ADP. The post lengths will be slightly shorter, but the posting will be more frequent. That way everyone should be satisfied, and hopefully the perfectionist in me will decide kick things up a notch over the long run.

Anyways with that said, let’s turn to the most important topic. Alex. Pinturicchio. Our Capitano. Who scored a gem of a goal against Real Madrid Tuesday night, leading Juventus back to victory after a streak of five consecutive winless matches!! Also, did I mention we were playing REAL MADRID???!!! What better opportunity to jump start this blog once again with a video and a summary of the events, right?
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By the way, doesn’t this goal remind you of that fantastic goal ADP scored against Artmedia Bratislava in August? Very very similar… except this time, ADP’s opponents were none other than those with the most UEFA Champions League trophies in the history of the competition. Ever. That alone, should make Tuesday night’s goal 10 times as good.

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For a FULL REVIEW of the match, check out the following posts:

• Juventus 2-1 Real Madrid: Del Piero & Amauri Return Juve’s Pride. Wins Too. (mCalcio)
• Juventus 2-1 Real Madrid: A Review in Pictures (Juve Offside)

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Here’s a photo-sequence of the goal (courtesy of Daylife Photos).

Moving through…

…and unleashing the ADP magic.

Sorry Fabio, damage is done.

The “Michael Jordan” tongue is out…

…followed by..

…the POWER SLIDE!!!

Legrottaglie likey.

Giving props to the fans after the goal…

…and after the game. I feel the love lads, I feel it.

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Hey lads!

Just dropping by to say hello! I’m still on European vacation technically, and expect to be back to full active duty by the end of the month. However, yesterday something happened that was so grandiose that I just had to post something about it.

THIS happened.

Enjoy, and long live ADP. :]
(Thanks to alessio from the Juve blog for posting the HIGH REZ version)
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Here’s what Il Capitano had to say after the match (from alessandrodelpiero.com):

August, 13th 2008
Qualifying round UEFA Champions League
Juventus 4-0 Artmedia Bratislava

The victory we otbained, playing the Champions League qualifiers’ first leg against Artmedia Bratislava, was spectacular.

We were really determined to win, and our determination and attention to details allowed us to perform fabulously on the pitch, creating a lot of scoring opportunities and not leaving a lot of space to our opponents.

I’m really happy with the victory and my nice goal.

Now we need another excellent performance on August 26, so that we may finally come back to the Champions League.

See you soon!

Alessandro

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You can read my full match report of Juventus vs. Artmedia in the following post:
Juventus 4-0 Artmedia: A Walk in the Turin Park… (UEFA Champions League Preliminary Round)

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	JUVENTUS-ARTMEDIA 4-0 [Match Highlights]
GOALSCORERS: 7’ Camoranesi (J), 26’ Del Piero (J), 38’ Chiellini (J), 90’ Legrottaglie (J).
JUVENTUS (4-4-2): Buffon – Grygera (15′ Iaquinta), Legrottaglie, Chiellini, Molinaro – Camoranesi, Poulsen, Sissoko, Salihamidzic – Del Piero (72’ Amauri), Trezeguet. (bench: Chimenti, Mellberg, Zebina, Ekdal, Pasquato). Coach: Ranieri.
ARTMEDIA BRATISLAVA (4-4-2): Kamenar – Fodrek, Cisovsky, Salata, Urbanek – Anderson, Kozak, Velicky, Piroska (46’ Obzera) – Pospech (83’ Oravec), Halenar (69’ Glever). (bench: Hyll, Szabo, Hasek, Mraz). Coach: Weiss.

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So ADP won the Capocannoniere title, and he’s real happy about it (and so are we). But aren’t you wondering just how he achieved it? In numbers I mean…

Well I was, so I did some research and thanks to Gazzetta dello Sport was able to produce this. Enjoy. :]

Oh, and if someone can point me to a website with even more thorough statistics (like season total shots on goal, offsides, etc. etc.) that we would absolutely awesome.

Edit: Here’s some additional statistics, courtesy of Sports.it. Special thanks to HU from soccerstatistics.blogspot.com for the tip. :] I should point out the data’s been updated only until matchday 37 it seems (as the “Goal Total: 19″ row testifies). Still some useful numbers to look at…