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Pirlo the pass master
Friday, 11 May 2007

by Peter Sanderson
from Milan

As Liverpool FC's scouts are no doubt discovering as they prepare for the 2006/07 UEFA Champions league final, AC Milan's midfield is the complete package. Gennaro Gattuso supplies grit, Clarence Seedorf the guile and Kaká has his familiar tricky feet and explosive strike. The fourth musketeer, Andrea Pirlo, arguably possesses all of the above and as Peter Sanderson discovered after spending a few hours on the training ground with the man they call Trilly Campanellino (Tinkerbell), he is not bad at the crossbar challenge either.

New darling
As my train trundled into Milan, I could not help notice some graffiti. "Se Baggio è il principe del codino, allora Pirlo è il re", it said which, the Italian chap next to me kindly translated as "if Baggio is our pony-tailed prince, then Pirlo is our king". The writing may have been muddled but the message was clear. After helping the Azzurri to FIFA World Cup glory, Pirlo is the new darling of Italian football. His face is blazoned across every billboard, his reputation bolstered by every mesmerising pass. Fans across the globe may find a small place in their heart for the Emersons and Claude Makeleles of this world but they usually reserve their true love for the entertainers such as Kakà and Ronaldinho. With Pirlo, you buy one and get the other free.

Dream job
My task for the day is the kind of fantasy job every fan dreams of. I was to be given a 60-minute lesson in passing from the pass master himself as part of a new uefa.com project called the UEFA Training Ground, which aims to get the stars to show youngsters how to get the most out of the beautiful game. Juan Román Riquelme, Diego Forlán and Pirlo's Milan team-mate Cafu have all imparted their wisdom, while elsewhere on the site Lars Lagerbäck and Roy Hodgson mull over the chalkboard discussing technical matters. Others have provided skills and drills to help improve players' games, but for now Pirlo was my focus. As he sauntered over to me in that typical languid manner of his, my legs started to tremble. What was I doing on the same pitch as this man? He scored a penalty in a FIFA World Cup final and, if the Rossoneri beat Liverpool on 23 May, could win a second UEFA Champions League medal.

'Technique and concentration'
In contrast, I was dropped from my school team at 12 for scoring four own goals in nine games and the last time I hit a lofted pass it deflected off my grandmother's washing line and broke my neighbour's greenhouse. After a flurry of ciaos, 4,000 misdirected passes (by me) and a good old fashioned handshake, my passing had improved from utterly hopeless to merely below average. "It's all about technique and concentration," Pirlo explained. "I spent years working at my game to get to where I am. I hit some terrible passes along the way too but it's amazing what a small piece of advice from someone who has been in the game so long can do for a player. I hope my knowledge can help all the young players out there just as it has helped you."

Crossbar challenge
What followed will live with me for the rest of my life. The hour we'd been promised had long since passed but Pirlo seemed in no rush to go. If you have ever seen the advert where Ronaldinho thumps five consecutive shots against the crossbar and refused to believe it was possible then read on. Pirlo turned to me and asked: "Reckon I can hit the bar from here?" "No," I replied. It seemed a fair guess as he was fully 35 metres out. Before I had chance to change my mind he had sent a thunderous shot crashing against the bar. He turned to me and said: "Reckon I can do it again?" "No," I replied. Boom, crash. Two out of two. The third time he didn't bother asking yet incredibly the ball homed in on the crossbar like an Exocet missile. As the fourth ball pinged against the crossbar and back to his feet everyone grew silent in awe and he made sure he kept things that way by hitting the bar a fifth time. He left the pitch with a wry smile, to a standing ovation from everyone who had witnessed it. Better still, UEFA Training Ground got it all on camera.


uefa

It's sad really, we're used to the constant excellent performances of this one-of-a-kind magician, we rarely do talk about him... we should be more grateful!!

Forza Pirlo!! (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/king.gif)

This post has been edited by dst: May 11 2007, 07:57 PM