Andrea Pirlo plays football in between the lines. His free flowing style of play distinguishes him from nearly any one else in the world. Born on May 19th 1979 in Brescia, Italy, Andrea Pirlo grew up playing for Voluntas and then Brescia’s youth team. Making his debut at just 16 years old, with the Little Swallows already relegated, Pirlo became the youngest player in the club’s history to play in the first division. After winning the Viareggio Cup in 1996 in the youth setup, Pirlo gained manager Edi Reja’s confidence in the first team, scoring two goals in 17 games during the club’s rise back to promotion. The following year Pirlo became a fixed starter, scoring 4 goals in 29 matches as an attacking midfielder, and his immense talent at just 19 meant that he was later purchased by Inter.
Despite his undoubted talent, Pirlo struggled at the Neroazzurri, having little impact in the league and the Champions League. It was for this reason that Pirlo was loaned out twice between 1999 and 2001. It was his second loan spell, at Brescia, that really turned his career around. Carlo Mazzone, the club’s manager at the time, decided to change Pirlo’s position from Trequartista and second striker to a Regista or pure playmaker, and it was a decision that helps define him as a footballer to this day.
In his new role Pirlo briefly played alongside Pep Guardiola and behind Roberto Baggio; a position that he has often cited as a major influence in dictating his playing style. So impressive was his form at this time, particularly from someone so young, that Pirlo earned a transfer to AC Milan in the summer of 2001. His first season was unmemorable, but from 2002, the boy from Brescia quickly became a leader. Finally granted a run of games in the heart of midfield, following injuries to Ambrosini and Gattuso, he was able to find consistent starting form. Under the tutelage of Carlo Ancelotti, Pirlo settled into his role as a relegated playmaker, completing a stellar midfield along side Rui Costa, Gattuso and Seedorf. His influence on, and partnership with, his midfield companions bore fruit in the 2002-03 season, as A.C. Milan won the Champions league. Pirlo’s steep progression also saw him called up to the national team on September 7th 2002, and at the heart of the Azzurri in the 2004 Olympics in Athens, he won a bronze medal.
The Italian’s typically calm, almost bored expression on the pitch has bamboozled opponents across Europe and the world over the past 18 years. Pirlo has made a career of meandering in the centre of the pitch, strolling around effortlessly as if going for a light jog along the Po River, looking for “a space where I can continue to profess my creed: take the ball, give it to a team-mate, the team-mate scores. It’s called an assist, and it’s my way of spreading happiness.”
t was at Milan, in particular under manager Carlo Ancelotti, where Pirlo made big strides in developing into a world class player, and one of the best deep-lying playmaker and set-piece specialists in the world, as he went on to achieve notable domestic and international success during his time with the club. Pirlo later recalled the period he has spent in Milan with Ancelotti: “He changed my career, putting me in front of the defence. We shared some unforgettable moments. We had a magnificent past together.” After Mazzone’s pioneering decision to move Pirlo into a deep-seated playmaking role with Brescia during the previous season, Milan managers Fatih Terim and, in particular, Carlo Ancelotti further developed this role for him at Milan. In Ancelotti’s 4–3–1–2 and 4–3–2–1 formations, Pirlo was deployed as a deep-lying playmaker in front of the defence, which allowed him to play alongside other talented attacking midfielders, such as Rivaldo, Rui Costa and eventually Kaká, replacing the gap left by Milan legend Demetrio Albertini in the deep midfield playmaking role. He would become an integral part of the Rossoneri’s midfield, forming a formidable partnership with Gennaro Gattuso, as well as with Clarence Seedorf and Massimo Ambrosini, who also supported his playmaking role defensively. Pirlo was given the nickname the metronome during his time at the club, for the way in which he set the team’s rhythm.
Under Trapattoni’s replacement, Marcello Lippi, Pirlo became a key member of Italy’s starting line-up during their 2006 World Cup Qualifying campaign, and he was eventually called up as a starting member of the Italian squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. On 26 March 2005, he assured Italy’s participation in the tournament after scoring from two free kicks in a 2–0 win against Scotland in a World Cup Qualifier.
Pirlo was named to Italy’s 23-man squad for the 2006 World Cup, and appeared in all of Italy’s matches at the tournament, playing 668 minutes in total. In Italy’s first match of the tournament on 12 June, Pirlo scored the opening goal against Ghana, and subsequently helped set up a goal for Vincenzo Iaquinta to seal a 2–0 victory, as the midfielder was named Man of the Match. In the second match on 17 June, he set up a diving header for Alberto Gilardino from a set piece which proved to be vital in the 1–1 draw against the United States.
In the semi-final against Germany on 4 July, he assisted Fabio Grosso’s opening goal in the dying minutes of extra-time, and was again named Man of the Match, as Italy triumphed 2–0 over the hosts. In the final against France on 9 July, his corner kick produced Marco Materazzi’s equalizing header ten minutes after France had opened the scoring with a Zinedine Zidane penalty. Following a 1–1 deadlock after extra-time, the match went to a penalty shoot-out, in which he scored the first spot kick, helping Italy to win the title. Pirlo formed a formidable midfield partnership with Milan teammate Gennaro Gattuso, and he completed 475 passes out of 580 attempted throughout the tournament, while also winning 18 challenges. After the final, he was named Man of the Match for a third time, winning more Man of the Match Awards than any other player in the tournament.Pirlo was voted the third-best player of the tournament, winning the Bronze Ball, and he finished the victorious World Cup campaign as the top assist provider along with teammate Francesco Totti, as well as Juan Román Riquelme, Bastian Schweinsteiger, and Luís Figo. He was named as part of the 2006 FIFPro XI and as part of the 2006 World Cup Team of the Tournament for his performances, placing ninth in both the 2006 Ballon d’Or and the 2006 FIFA World Player of the Year Awards.
“I don’t feel pressure … I don’t give a toss about it. I spent the afternoon of Sunday, 9 July 2006 in Berlin sleeping and playing the PlayStation. In the evening, I went out and won the World Cup.” Pirlo said asked on his mental state heading into the World Cup final months later.