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 At his first season as a starter with the Red-and-blacks he won the
Scudetto: he was 18, and his team-mates called him el piscinin (that
in the Milanese dialect means 'little boy', but also 'shop boy'). From 1978
on, he reached an incredible series of victories. On Oct. 28, 1997, Franco
Baresi played his last celebrative match at the San Siro, and AC Milan
awarded him a Golden ball for his career with the Ros 18418i83s soneri (see photo)
and decided not to use the shirt no. 6 anymore.
MILAN - Number 6 on the
back, the captain band on his arm, the shirt out of the pants. Three little
clues for a very big name: Franco Baresi. As he's set to leave for London, to
take over Fulham's general management, acmilan.com reviewed Baresi's
career with the red-and-black shirt.
He was born in Travagliato (near Brescia), on May 4, 1960, and got for the
first time at the Milanello in 1973, when he is still 13. He made his debut
with AC Milan on Apr. 23, 1978, in Verona (Verona - AC Milan 1-2).
At his first season as a starter (1978-79) he won the 10th long-awaited
Scudetto. But the real turning point was 1986, when Silvio Berlusconi took
over AC Milan. One year later (1987/88) Sacchi arrived on the Rossoneri's
bench, and AC Milan won the 11th Scudetto. 'We were quick and aggressive
for the whole 90 minutes, imposing ourselves even when we played away from
the San Siro. We also took risks, but people (not only the red-and-black
fans) were enthusiastic about it'.
Franco Baresi was AC Milan symbol, defensive pivot of an incredibly famous
group of champions. After the 11th Scudetto, the Rossoneri ended two times in
the second spot of the League standings (1989/90 and 1990/91), but most of
all they won 2 European Cups (1989 in Barcelona against Steaua; 1990 in Wien
against Benfica) and 2 Toyota Cups in Tokyo (in 1989 against National
Medellin and in 1990 against Olimpia Asuncion).
When Sacchi (1991/92) becomes Italy's coach, Fabio Capello arrives on AC
Milan bench. With him the Rossoneri won 3 Championships in a row (1991/92,
1992/93 e 1993/94) and succeded in winning the Double (Championship and
European Cup) in 1993/94 (even though Baresi didn't play in Athens
against Barcelona because he was suspended).
He went close to winning the World Cup with Sacchi's Italy (USA '94), and
cried after missing a crucial penalty in the final shoot-out. However, he's
always had a very strong temper and was a reassuring point of reference for
his team-mates. He retired from football at the end of the 1996/97 season.
The Capitano played a tribute match at the San Siro on Oct. 28, 1997, and
from that day on no-one in AC Milan ever wore the shirt with the number 6 on
the back. And no-one probably will.
Here is the complete list of all the victories Franco Baresi gained with AC
Milan:
6 SCUDETTOS
3 EUROPEAN CUPS
2 INTERCONTINENTAL CUPS (TOYOTA CUP)
3 EUROPEAN SUPERCUPS
4 ITALIAN SUPERCUPS
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