Semi-final, first leg
24 April 2007
One of the hardest things for any fan is to be separated from their team. That’s how it was for me in the early 2000s, when I had to move from Milan to Paris to avoid military service. That meant leaving behind my club, AC Milan, but a friend convinced me to get a season ticket at the Parc des Princes to watch Paris Saint-Germain. Just thinking about them still sends me to sleep. That Paris team was nowhere near the level they are today.
I missed AC Milan too much. The first thing I did was to renew my season ticket, even though I was 650km away from the San Siro. Then I found the only Rossoneri fan club in the Paris region. They met in a small Calabrian pizzeria in Le Perreux, where dozens of Milanisti gathered to watch games.
For many years, I alternated between the San Siro and that pizzeria, and I was there in April 2007 for the semi-final first leg between Milan and Manchester United. The place was so crowded that I felt lost, somewhere between the stands of Old Trafford and the smell of pizza.
United won, but nobody cared about the result because something bigger happened. In the 37th minute, Dida launched a long ball forward and Kaká outmuscled Darren Fletcher to get to it first. He then lobbed Gabriel Heinze and nodded the ball between the Argentinian and Patrice Evra before stroking it elegantly past Edwin van der Sar.
In the second half, United came back, but I knew Milan would win the return leg. For the first time in my life, a defeat didn’t hurt me. I was happy. I enjoyed every moment, even Wayne Rooney’s last-minute goal. Inside, I knew it was the last Milan game I would watch as a supporter. For me, football peaked there and then.
Eight years later, in 2015, I understood why I had been so moved by Kaká’s goal: it was art, pure art. That is what I had been seeking since the beginning. Football as art. It’s why I founded AS Velasca in Milan that same year, wanting to start a club which could be an artistic project as much as a football team. To this day, they still bring me the same emotions as that Kaká goal.
Semi-final, first leg
24 April 2007
One of the hardest things for any fan is to be separated from their team. That’s how it was for me in the early 2000s, when I had to move from Milan to Paris to avoid military service. That meant leaving behind my club, AC Milan, but a friend convinced me to get a season ticket at the Parc des Princes to watch Paris Saint-Germain. Just thinking about them still sends me to sleep. That Paris team was nowhere near the level they are today.
I missed AC Milan too much. The first thing I did was to renew my season ticket, even though I was 650km away from the San Siro. Then I found the only Rossoneri fan club in the Paris region. They met in a small Calabrian pizzeria in Le Perreux, where dozens of Milanisti gathered to watch games.
For many years, I alternated between the San Siro and that pizzeria, and I was there in April 2007 for the semi-final first leg between Milan and Manchester United. The place was so crowded that I felt lost, somewhere between the stands of Old Trafford and the smell of pizza.
United won, but nobody cared about the result because something bigger happened. In the 37th minute, Dida launched a long ball forward and Kaká outmuscled Darren Fletcher to get to it first. He then lobbed Gabriel Heinze and nodded the ball between the Argentinian and Patrice Evra before stroking it elegantly past Edwin van der Sar.
In the second half, United came back, but I knew Milan would win the return leg. For the first time in my life, a defeat didn’t hurt me. I was happy. I enjoyed every moment, even Wayne Rooney’s last-minute goal. Inside, I knew it was the last Milan game I would watch as a supporter. For me, football peaked there and then.
Eight years later, in 2015, I understood why I had been so moved by Kaká’s goal: it was art, pure art. That is what I had been seeking since the beginning. Football as art. It’s why I founded AS Velasca in Milan that same year, wanting to start a club which could be an artistic project as much as a football team. To this day, they still bring me the same emotions as that Kaká goal.
Semi-final, first leg
24 April 2007
One of the hardest things for any fan is to be separated from their team. That’s how it was for me in the early 2000s, when I had to move from Milan to Paris to avoid military service. That meant leaving behind my club, AC Milan, but a friend convinced me to get a season ticket at the Parc des Princes to watch Paris Saint-Germain. Just thinking about them still sends me to sleep. That Paris team was nowhere near the level they are today.
I missed AC Milan too much. The first thing I did was to renew my season ticket, even though I was 650km away from the San Siro. Then I found the only Rossoneri fan club in the Paris region. They met in a small Calabrian pizzeria in Le Perreux, where dozens of Milanisti gathered to watch games.
For many years, I alternated between the San Siro and that pizzeria, and I was there in April 2007 for the semi-final first leg between Milan and Manchester United. The place was so crowded that I felt lost, somewhere between the stands of Old Trafford and the smell of pizza.
United won, but nobody cared about the result because something bigger happened. In the 37th minute, Dida launched a long ball forward and Kaká outmuscled Darren Fletcher to get to it first. He then lobbed Gabriel Heinze and nodded the ball between the Argentinian and Patrice Evra before stroking it elegantly past Edwin van der Sar.
In the second half, United came back, but I knew Milan would win the return leg. For the first time in my life, a defeat didn’t hurt me. I was happy. I enjoyed every moment, even Wayne Rooney’s last-minute goal. Inside, I knew it was the last Milan game I would watch as a supporter. For me, football peaked there and then.
Eight years later, in 2015, I understood why I had been so moved by Kaká’s goal: it was art, pure art. That is what I had been seeking since the beginning. Football as art. It’s why I founded AS Velasca in Milan that same year, wanting to start a club which could be an artistic project as much as a football team. To this day, they still bring me the same emotions as that Kaká goal.
Semi-final, first leg
24 April 2007
One of the hardest things for any fan is to be separated from their team. That’s how it was for me in the early 2000s, when I had to move from Milan to Paris to avoid military service. That meant leaving behind my club, AC Milan, but a friend convinced me to get a season ticket at the Parc des Princes to watch Paris Saint-Germain. Just thinking about them still sends me to sleep. That Paris team was nowhere near the level they are today.
I missed AC Milan too much. The first thing I did was to renew my season ticket, even though I was 650km away from the San Siro. Then I found the only Rossoneri fan club in the Paris region. They met in a small Calabrian pizzeria in Le Perreux, where dozens of Milanisti gathered to watch games.
For many years, I alternated between the San Siro and that pizzeria, and I was there in April 2007 for the semi-final first leg between Milan and Manchester United. The place was so crowded that I felt lost, somewhere between the stands of Old Trafford and the smell of pizza.
United won, but nobody cared about the result because something bigger happened. In the 37th minute, Dida launched a long ball forward and Kaká outmuscled Darren Fletcher to get to it first. He then lobbed Gabriel Heinze and nodded the ball between the Argentinian and Patrice Evra before stroking it elegantly past Edwin van der Sar.
In the second half, United came back, but I knew Milan would win the return leg. For the first time in my life, a defeat didn’t hurt me. I was happy. I enjoyed every moment, even Wayne Rooney’s last-minute goal. Inside, I knew it was the last Milan game I would watch as a supporter. For me, football peaked there and then.
Eight years later, in 2015, I understood why I had been so moved by Kaká’s goal: it was art, pure art. That is what I had been seeking since the beginning. Football as art. It’s why I founded AS Velasca in Milan that same year, wanting to start a club which could be an artistic project as much as a football team. To this day, they still bring me the same emotions as that Kaká goal.
Semi-final, first leg
24 April 2007
One of the hardest things for any fan is to be separated from their team. That’s how it was for me in the early 2000s, when I had to move from Milan to Paris to avoid military service. That meant leaving behind my club, AC Milan, but a friend convinced me to get a season ticket at the Parc des Princes to watch Paris Saint-Germain. Just thinking about them still sends me to sleep. That Paris team was nowhere near the level they are today.
I missed AC Milan too much. The first thing I did was to renew my season ticket, even though I was 650km away from the San Siro. Then I found the only Rossoneri fan club in the Paris region. They met in a small Calabrian pizzeria in Le Perreux, where dozens of Milanisti gathered to watch games.
For many years, I alternated between the San Siro and that pizzeria, and I was there in April 2007 for the semi-final first leg between Milan and Manchester United. The place was so crowded that I felt lost, somewhere between the stands of Old Trafford and the smell of pizza.
United won, but nobody cared about the result because something bigger happened. In the 37th minute, Dida launched a long ball forward and Kaká outmuscled Darren Fletcher to get to it first. He then lobbed Gabriel Heinze and nodded the ball between the Argentinian and Patrice Evra before stroking it elegantly past Edwin van der Sar.
In the second half, United came back, but I knew Milan would win the return leg. For the first time in my life, a defeat didn’t hurt me. I was happy. I enjoyed every moment, even Wayne Rooney’s last-minute goal. Inside, I knew it was the last Milan game I would watch as a supporter. For me, football peaked there and then.
Eight years later, in 2015, I understood why I had been so moved by Kaká’s goal: it was art, pure art. That is what I had been seeking since the beginning. Football as art. It’s why I founded AS Velasca in Milan that same year, wanting to start a club which could be an artistic project as much as a football team. To this day, they still bring me the same emotions as that Kaká goal.
Semi-final, first leg
24 April 2007
One of the hardest things for any fan is to be separated from their team. That’s how it was for me in the early 2000s, when I had to move from Milan to Paris to avoid military service. That meant leaving behind my club, AC Milan, but a friend convinced me to get a season ticket at the Parc des Princes to watch Paris Saint-Germain. Just thinking about them still sends me to sleep. That Paris team was nowhere near the level they are today.
I missed AC Milan too much. The first thing I did was to renew my season ticket, even though I was 650km away from the San Siro. Then I found the only Rossoneri fan club in the Paris region. They met in a small Calabrian pizzeria in Le Perreux, where dozens of Milanisti gathered to watch games.
For many years, I alternated between the San Siro and that pizzeria, and I was there in April 2007 for the semi-final first leg between Milan and Manchester United. The place was so crowded that I felt lost, somewhere between the stands of Old Trafford and the smell of pizza.
United won, but nobody cared about the result because something bigger happened. In the 37th minute, Dida launched a long ball forward and Kaká outmuscled Darren Fletcher to get to it first. He then lobbed Gabriel Heinze and nodded the ball between the Argentinian and Patrice Evra before stroking it elegantly past Edwin van der Sar.
In the second half, United came back, but I knew Milan would win the return leg. For the first time in my life, a defeat didn’t hurt me. I was happy. I enjoyed every moment, even Wayne Rooney’s last-minute goal. Inside, I knew it was the last Milan game I would watch as a supporter. For me, football peaked there and then.
Eight years later, in 2015, I understood why I had been so moved by Kaká’s goal: it was art, pure art. That is what I had been seeking since the beginning. Football as art. It’s why I founded AS Velasca in Milan that same year, wanting to start a club which could be an artistic project as much as a football team. To this day, they still bring me the same emotions as that Kaká goal.
