PLAYER PROFILE- ANDREA PIRLO
JAS Team Dedicated: U7 Pirlo
Born: May 19th, 1979
Nationality: Italian
Player Position: Midfielder, deep-lying playmaker
Shirt Number: #21
Years Active at Juve: 2011 - 2015 (player); 2020/21 season (manager)
Fun Fact: Not only has Pirlo won the World Cup with Italy in 2006, he has a huge list of personal honours such as Serie A Footballer of the Year (x3), Serie A Team of the Year (x4), UEFA Team of the Year, and so on.
WHAT MAKES THEM A LEGEND?
Andrea Pirlo is a true Juventus Legend. He joined the Bianconeri in the 2011/12 season and at the time his arrival, the club had not won an official Serie A title since 2003. Juve was still very much recovering from Calciopoli and its aftermaths. Yet, with Pirlo's addition and the general strengthening of the midfield, Juve returned to their status of Italian Champions and upheld that honour for the next nine seasons to come.
Pirlo's reputation as one of the best-ever midfielders has earned him the nicknames of the Architect, the Professor, the Maestro, and so on. As a deep-lying playmaker, Pirlo's composure on the pitch along with his intelligence, vision and creativity truly made him special. He was able to anticipate play in ways no one else could. In the four seasons that Pirlo stayed with Juventus, he was an absolutely crucial figure in the midfield. Despite his total of 164 appearances, 19 goals (15 free-kicks!), 35 assists, and 7 trophies, Pirlo's influence as a player can not be summarized into mere statistics. When we think of Pirlo, what comes into mind is his silent charisma, his unexpected yet perfect long passes, his magical techniques that leaves the opponents confused. His free-kicks, his late goal against Turin, and his rare but completely genuine expression of raw passion.
Pirlo returned to continue his story with Juventus as a manager in the 2020/21 season. Though it was not an ideal season as Juve were unable to snatch their tenth consecutive Scudetto, it was not all failures for Pirlo. Even without any prior experience in the field, Pirlo led Juve to two trophies, and fans were able to see great glimpses of his attacking-minded football on the pitch. Under the Maestro, we experienced ups and downs. From the 3-0 win against Barcelona, that 0-3 loss against Fiorentina, the Coppa Italia win, the UCL elimination by Porto, and the barely-made-it fourth place finish in the league... It was all part of a journey and he was there with us all along. A true Bianconero, Pirlo will always be one of Juve's all-time greatest legends.
