Can one missed penalty kick erase a legacy ? His world cup records includes playing in 3 tournaments in which he scored 9 goals over 5 matches He single handedly inspired his team to victory on more than one of those occasions.
3 million views ( and counting) for all the goals he scored in the World Cup.
Then that fateful moment in time,when all of Italy was hushed and waiting.
And Baggio died standing up..
This is what he looks like now.
And this is what he remembers ……“If I had a knife then, I would have stabbed myself. If there had been a gun, I would have shot myself. At that moment, I just wanted to die.It was the toughest moment of my career. Before I left for the finals, my Buddhist spiritual master told me that I would be confronted with a lot of problems and that everything would be decided at the very last minute. At the time, I didn’t realise his prediction would be so accurate.”
Does that moment of failure when the ball flew over the bar, and the trophy went to the Brazil national football team erase all the things Baggio got right ?
You can decide for yourself .It is a poignant reminder that even football’s most gifted artists are human. Baggio’s bowed head beneath the Californian sky remains one of the game’s most haunting images-proof that greatness is remembered not only for triumphs, but also for the courage to stand alone when things go sideways.