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A goal (and ‘scudetto’) for l’Avvocato

2001/2002 season: In Juventus everything was changing, around me and not only.
Inzaghi left the team, and Trezeguet took his place by my side.  Ancelotti went away, but Lippi came back.  Zidane changed the team, but Buffon, Thuram and Nedved joined Juventus.
Right from the first day of Championship I had a feeling that this year was a good one to become winners again: right from the beginning I scored two goals in Venice, for me those were goals number 100 and 101, scored in the Juventus shirt. Two goals were also scored by David, together we formed the best forward tandem of the championship and a bit later we became also the best teamed up players in the club’s history, leaving behind even the legendary Charles and Sivori as for the number of the goals scored together.
The season had a good start also in the National team: on the 6th of October, 2001 in Parma I scored the penalty goal in the match against Hungary, the goal that was worth the Qualifications for the World Championship in Japan and Korea. For me that was the 16th out of 45 presences in National team..
With great enthusiasm I concentrated on the Championship. But the way back to victory wasn’t always the rainbow and butterflies. In Champions League we didn’t go further than the second round and in Championship we wrapped up the first half of the season on the fourth place, behind Roma, Inter and Chievo.
 The event that left a trace not only on our season, but also in the private life of a lot of us, including me, was the death of Avvocato Agnelli, on Friday, the 24th of January, 2003. Just some days before it happened, he had called  to congratulate me for my goal in the match against Celtic. It was the very last call I got from him, probably that’s why I remember it better than all the others. It came as usual at dawn, as it was in his habit. He said: “Del Piero, are you awake?” And me, rubbing my eyes and with the typical voice of someone who was just awoken by the sound of ringing phone, answered: “Sure Avvocato, good morning”. Just once I found the courage to answer:” No, Avvocato, actually, I was sleeping” And he, without any trace of being upset, continued:” Ok, so it’s time to get up and go training”. Of course, having met Giovanni Agnelli was the event that had influenced greatly all my life, I think that I was really blessed to have that special relationship with him. I miss him a lot and so does the Juventus.
Two days after the funerals, I scored the goal that can be considered one of the most beautiful in my whole career. It happened in Piacenza on the 26th of January, 2002 in the match against Piacenza. Zambrotta crossed from the flank and I managed to score right footed volley. I didn’t have any doubts whom dedicate it to. To Avvocato Agnelli, he would have loved it.
From that moment onwards we started our great recovery, crowned with overtaking Inter on the last day of Championship..
On the 5th of May, 2002 we played in Udine, having one point less than Inter. It was just enough for them to win against Lazio to get the Italian Champions title. Instead they lost 4-2. We won 2-0 with the goal scored by Treseguet and the other one scored by me. To seal our victory was the great season we lived as a teamed up partners: nobody in Europe scored as many goals as we did, 40 goals between the two of us.
“Fifthofmay “ has become one word, the almost historical date to be remembered by all Juventus supporters and by me as well. One of the biggest emotions of my career. To be dedicated to Avvocato.
I waited for this moment for four years, too long, without rising  any trophy.  There were all the good signs to compete in the World Championship, but in Japan and Korea, Italy was eliminated in the last 16, in the match against South Korea and I don’t want even to think of that day. Trapattoni left me on the bench for the three games in the qualifications round, but  I managed to score the Qualification goal in Oita against Mexico. I was very disappointed, because I was real fit and I still think that we had an enormous potential that we didn’t exploit fully. I prefer to keep as a memory the last match against Korea with  Maldini by my side. Paolo Maldini, the champion and the extraordinary man, I think it was a  real fortune that our paths crossed. As for the rest…. I had to put off the meeting with the World Cup for the second time, but, only to put off for a while.
With Juventus ,instead, the second consecutive scudetto arrived right on time: it was the 27th scudetto for the society and the fifth one for me. I scored 16 goals in the Championship and five in Champions League, the exciting progress from the great night at the Delle Alpi Stadium against Zizou’s Real up to the Manchester Final, unfortunately without Nedved, who was disqualified in semi-final. All this is sport, glorious moments and then, slaps in the face, that hurt, like those  failed penalties against Milan.  Another Final lost. The rematch came, three months later, still on penalties, at the Giant Stadium in New York. Unfortunately, it wasn’t Champions League, but Italian Super Cup, the only trophy won in 2003-2004 season. My season in National team didn’t end in the best way as well: we were eliminated in Portugal in the first round, Trapattoni was replaced by Lippi, whose place in Juventus was taken by Fabio Capello.