Italy star Mattia Zaccagni admitted Juventus icon Alessandro Del Piero was his childhood idol after following his heroics final evening.
The Azzurri had been going through a possible early elimination from Euro 2024 on Monday evening as they discovered themselves trailing towards Croatia who took the lead via Luka Modric.
This outcome would have seen the Italians ending third in Group B, leaving their defensive marketing campaign in tatters.
Nonetheless, Zaccagni entered the pitch within the closing minutes to salvage a useful level for the reigning European champions.
Within the final play of the match, the Lazio star acquired the ball from Riccardo Calafiori on the left flank, and struck a wonderful shot along with his proper foot which curled previous Dominik Livakovic and into the far nook.
This outcome allowed Italy to ebook their place within the knockout levels after ending in second place behind Spain.
Furthermore, Zaccagni’s pearler dropped at reminiscence Del Piero’s iconic last-minute objective towards Germany within the semi-final of the 2006 World Cup, which additionally ensued on German soil.
The 29-year-old definitely loved the comparability, as he revealed himself to be a serious admirer of the legendary Juventus Quantity 10.
“Alex was my idol,” stated Zaccagni in his post-match interview with Sky Sport Italia by way of IlBianconero.
“I had a poster of him in my room and I met him earlier than leaving to Germany. Then we spoke once more in latest days too, it was very thrilling for me.”
The winger was additionally linked with a transfer to Juventus in latest months however ended up renewing his contract with Lazio.
