Francesco totti
Autor: Euller | Publicado: 2011-02-06T06:24:00-08:00

Francesco TottiFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia      Jump to: navigation,      search     Francesco Totti 
  
 Personal information 
 Full name Francesco Totti 
 Date of birth 27 September 1976 (1976-09-27) (age&nbsp;34) 
 Place of birth Rome, Italy 
 Height 1.80&nbsp;m (5&nbsp;ft 11&nbsp;in) 
 Playing position Second Striker
Attacking midfielder 
 Club information 
 Current club Roma 
 Number 10 
 Youth career 
 1984 Fortitudo 
 1984–1986 Smit Trastevere 
 1986–1989 Lodigiani 
 1989–1992 Roma 
 Senior career* 
 Years Team Apps† (Gls)† 
 1992– Roma 460 (195) 
 National team‡ 
 1991–1992 Italy U-16-15 19 (5) 
 1993–1995 Italy U-18 14 (7) 
 1995–1997 Italy U-19 8 (4) 
 1997 Italy U-21 4 (2) 
 1998–2006 Italy 58 (9) 
   Honours[show] 
 Competitor for &nbsp;Italy 
 Football 
 FIFA World Cup 
 Gold Germany 2006  
 UEFA European Football Championship 
 Silver Belgium-Netherlands 2000  
 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship 
 Gold Spain 1996  
 UEFA European Under-18 Football Championship 
 Silver Greece 1995  
 Mediterranean Games 
 Gold Italy 1997  
 
 * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 2 February 2011.
† Appearances (Goals).
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 9 July 2006 
Francesco Totti, Cavaliere Ufficiale OMRI,[1][2] (born 27 September 1976 in Rome) is an Italian World Cup-winning footballer who is the current captain of Serie A club Roma. His position is that of a second striker or an attacking midfielder, though he is best known for playing as a second striker. Totti has spent his entire career at Roma, is the number-one goalscorer and the most capped player in the club's history. He is widely regarded as one of the finest players in his generation[3] and also Roma's greatest player ever.[4]
Often referred to as Il Bimbo d'Oro (The Golden Boy), Er Pupone (The Baby) and Il Gladiatore (The Gladiator) by the Italian sports media, Totti has won many individual awards, including a record five Italian Footballer of the Year awards and two Serie A Footballer of the Year awards.[5] He was named by Pelé as one of the top 125 greatest living footballers in March 2004.[6] He is currently the top active Serie A goalscorer and sixth all-time in league history with 195 goals.[7]

   Contents[hide]1 Early career
2 Club career 2.1 Early seasons
2.2 Scudetto 2001
2.3 As a striker with Spalletti
2.4 Ranieri era

3 International career 3.1 Euro 2000
3.2 2002 World Cup
3.3 Euro 2004
3.4 2006 World Cup
3.5 Retirement

4 Goal celebrations
5 Personal life
6 Honours 6.1 Club
6.2 International
6.3 Individual
6.4 Orders

7 Career statistics 7.1 Club career
7.2 Competition statistics
7.3 International career
7.4 International goals

8 See also
9 References
10 External links
 
[edit] Early careerTotti was born and raised in Rome's Porta Metronia neighborhood. He idolized ex-Roma captain Giuseppe Giannini and regularly played football with older boys. His mother refused a lucrative offer from AC Milan to remain in his hometown,[8] and he joined the Roma youth squad in 1989.
[edit] Club career[edit] Early seasonsAfter three years on the youth team, Totti made his first appearance for Roma's senior side at the age of sixteen, when coach Vujadin Boškov let him play in the 2–0 away victory against Brescia  on 28 March 1993. In the following seasons, he began to play more games  and scored his first goal on 24 September 1994 in a 1–1 draw against Foggia.  By 1995, Totti had become a regular in the starting eleven and scored  16 goals in the next three seasons. When he assumed the team captaincy  in 1997, he began to gain recognition as a club symbol. Manager Zdeněk Zeman played with an offensive 4–3–3 formation, in which Totti was the left winger. Totti scored 30 goals during Zeman's two-year managerial stint.
Though Totti was not called up for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, he was named the Serie A Young Footballer of the Year in the 1998–99 season.
[edit] Scudetto 2001By the 2000–01 campaign, Roma, then helmed by Fabio Capello, was building a competitive team around Totti, who had started to play as trequartista to take advantage of his passing skills. He scored thirteen goals in the campaign. On 17 June 2001, he won Scudetto, and scored one goal in a 3–0 Supercoppa Italiana victory against Fiorentina.
Totti was named the Italian Footballer of the Year for 2000 and 2001. He received his first Ballon d'Or nomination in 2000, finishing fourteenth in the voting and fifth the following year.[9]  He had also become a widely recognized idol of the supporters, who were  able to identify with Totti's background as a lifelong Roma supporter  and Rome native and also his prowess on the pitch.
In the following seasons, Totti played as second striker as part of a  3–5–2 formation and scored a career-high twenty goals in the 2003–04 season as Roma finished runners-up to Milan in the Scudetto race. He also won his second consecutive Italian Footballer of the Year award. Despite a disappointing 2004–05 season that saw Capello leave for Juventus  and Roma slip to eighth place while making four coaching changes during  the course of the season, Totti maintained his consistent offensive  output by scoring fifteen goals, among them his 100th Serie A goal  against Internazionale on October 3, 2004. Two months later, on December 19, he became Roma's all-time leading scorer after netting his 107th career goal against Parma, breaking the record previously held by Roberto Pruzzo.
[edit] As a striker with Spalletti   Francesco Totti during the 2006–07 season.Roma's new coach for the 2005–06 season, Luciano Spalletti,  went with a 4–2–3–1 formation. In this formation, Totti would not  remain forward waiting for crosses or passes but instead go back to take  the ball, thus creating space for the attacking midfielders. In this  new position, Totti began to score more frequently than the past and  scored 15 goals in 24 matches. At one point during this streak, the team  won 11 consecutive games.
On 19 February 2006, Totti suffered a fracture of his left fibula and ligament damage during a match against Empoli after being fouled by Richard Vanigli.[10] Totti risked missing the 2006 World Cup, but returned to the side on 11 May as a substitute in Roma's 3–1 Coppa Italia Final  defeat to Internazionale. A metal plate had been attached to his ankle  during surgery, but doctors decided not to operate again and remove it  following Totti's return, after concurring that it would not affect his  gameplay.[11]
   Giorgio Napolitano (right) awards Totti with the 2007–08 Coppa Italia.The 2006–07 season was a personal high for Totti, as he finished as Serie A's top scorer with 26 goals as Roma finished runners-up to Inter but exacted revenge on the Nerazzurri as they took home the 2007 Coppa Italia. Totti also was the recipient of the ESM European Golden Shoe  award as the top European goalscorer. Despite being the highest active  goalscorer in Serie A, he was not among the finalists for the 2007 FIFA World Player of the Year[12] due to his national team absence, though he was nominated for the 2007 Ballon d'Or, finishing tenth in the voting.
Totti scored his 200th goal with Roma in a 4–0 Coppa Italia win over Torino  on 16 January 2008. He was named the Italian Footballer of the Year for  the fifth time in his career on January 28. He suffered a season-ending  injury to his right knee during a 1–1 draw with Livorno on 19 April. Tests revealed a tear of his ACL that required surgery, making him miss four months.[13] Roma won their ninth Coppa Italia  with a 2–1 victory over Internazionale on May 24. Though Totti did not  play, he was still allowed to lift the cup as the team's captain. With  this win, Totti became the most successful captain in team history.  Overall, Totti has won five titles and ten runners-up medals.
[edit] Ranieri era   Francesco Totti during the 2008–09 season.Roma's difficult start to the 2008–09 season and continued struggles at the start of the 2009–10 season saw Spalletti resign after his four year reign and be replaced by Claudio Ranieri. Totti performed well in the inaugural UEFA Europa League. He has since scored three hat-tricks, first in a 7–1 away win against Gent in the third qualifying round and then another with the same score against Košice at the Olimpico in the play-off round. He also scored 3 goals against Bari in Serie A upon his return from a month-long injury.
On 30 November 2009, Totti confirmed he had signed a new five-year  playing contract which will see him with the club until 2014, after  which he will become a club director for a further five years.[14] The deal was made official by the Board of Directors on 16 December 2009.[15] Roma offered a gross annual salary of €8.9M for 2009–10 and €8.6M in the next 4 seasons.[16]
With a 24-match unbeaten run in Serie A, Roma became the only  challengers to Inter in the last three rounds for the league title,  ultimately finishing runners-up after the final fixture. Despite Totti's  several injury problems, he surpassed legends such as Gabriel Batistuta, Giuseppe Signori, and Kurt Hamrin in the all-time league scoring records. Totti also played in the Coppa Italia Final against Inter on 5 May 2010 but received a red card in the closing minutes of the second half for kicking Mario Balotelli. Roma lost 0–1, failing to bring home their 10th Coppa Italia.
[edit] International career   Totti in the Euro 2000 final against France.Totti first came into international prominence while playing in UEFA  youth tournaments and won the UEFA under-21 championships in 1996. After starring with the Azzurrini in Italy's Under-19 and Under-21 sides, he earned his first cap for Italy during a Euro 2000 qualifying victory against Switzerland on 10 October 1998.
[edit] Euro 2000Italy went to Euro 2000 with Totti in excellent form. He scored 2  goals during the tournament. The first goal came against co-host nation Belgium in the first round, the second against Romania in the quarter-finals. Though Italy lost to France in the final, Totti was named the man of the match[17] and was selected for the 22-man Team of the Tournament.
[edit] 2002 World CupDisappointment followed at the 2002 World Cup, with Totti failing to make a significant impact and then being sent off during Italy's second-round loss to South Korea after being handed a controversial second yellow card by Byron Moreno for an alleged dive in the penalty area.
[edit] Euro 2004Totti acquired a measure of infamy at Euro 2004 after he spat at Danish midfielder Christian Poulsen  in a goalless draw on 14 June 2004. He was subsequently banned until  the semifinals, but never made it back to action and finished the  competition scoreless due to Italy's elimination in the first round.
[edit] 2006 World CupTotti recovered in time to join the national team for their victorious 2006 World Cup  campaign despite not having had much match practice during his three  months on the sidelines recovering from injury. Totti had, in fact,  played with metal plates in his ankle that had yet to be removed  following surgery. He nonetheless was a fixture in Marcello Lippi's side, starting in all of Italy's seven games. During the tournament he played along with Andrea Pirlo behind lone striker Luca Toni,  forming a dangerous attacking-midfield pairing. Totti finished the  tournament with the most assists of any player, as well as scoring a  single goal via a penalty in Italy's 1-0 round-of-16 win over Australia on 26 June. In recognition of a successful tournament, Totti was selected for the 23-man All-Star Team.[18]
[edit] RetirementTotti intended to retire from the Azzurri after the end of the  World Cup, but reneged on his decision and remained undecided on his  future for over a year, not being called up in the meantime. He made his  retirement official on 20 July 2007, at the beginning of the 2007–08 Serie A season, in order to focus solely on club play with Roma. Then-Italy coach, Roberto Donadoni attempted to get Totti to change his mind for the remaining Euro 2008 qualifiers but was not successful.[19]
After the national team reunited with Marcello Lippi, Totti announced that he would play in the 2010 World Cup Finals in South Africa if he got called up.[20]  However, there was no official statement release from Totti or Lippi  about a possible comeback. In the event, Totti was not named in the  final squad, and Italy was subsequently eliminated, finishing last in  their group, their worst ever group stage result in World Cup history. Diego Maradona and former national teammates Fabio Cannavaro and Gianluigi Buffon said one of the reasons for Italy's early exit is that the Azzurri lack creative players like Totti.[21][22][23]
[edit] Goal celebrationsTotti is known for celebrating his goals in exuberant manner. His  most famous celebration took place on 11 April 1999 in the second Derby della Capitale of the 1998–99  season, in which he scored during the final minutes of the game and  celebrated by flashing a T-shirt under his jersey, which read "Vi ho purgato ancora" ("I've purged you guys again"), in reference to events at the previous derby against Lazio on 29 November 1998 when Totti helped Roma come back from 3-1 down with an assist to Marco Delvecchio  for 3-2 and finally a goal of his own for 3-3. Another derby goal  against Lazio saw him take over a sideline camera and aim it at the Roma  fans.
As a tribute to his then-pregnant wife, Ilary Blasi,  Totti imitated a childbirth scene by stuffing the ball under his shirt  and laying on his back while his teammates extracted the ball. His  current ritual of sucking his thumb after a goal began after his son was  born and subsequently after the birth of his daughter. Blasi has  revealed that Totti actually sucks his thumb solely dedicating his  celebration to her.[24]
[edit] Personal life   Totti in 2007.Totti's wife Ilary Blasi is a former showgirl who currently works as commentator and host on several Mediaset  TV programs. The couple had their first baby, named Cristian, on 6  November 2005. Their second child, a daughter named Chanel, was born on  13 May 2007.
Totti's brother Riccardo serves as his agent. Totti also runs a football school called "Number Ten" and owns a motorcycle racing team called "Totti Top Sport."
Totti became a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF in 2003,[25][26]  and the FIFA/SOS Children's Villages in January 2006. As a fundraiser  for a children's charity, he published two bestselling, self-effacing  joke books containing jokes the locals often told about him and his  teammates. Some of the jokes were filmed in short sketches featuring  himself with good friends and national teammates Alessandro Del Piero, Gianluigi Buffon, Christian Vieri, Antonio Cassano, Marco Delvecchio and Alessandro Nesta and former national team coach Giovanni Trapattoni in a short show called La sai l'ultima di Totti.
Totti is famous for his cucchiaio goalscoring technique, which inspired the title of his 2006 autobiography, Tutto Totti: Mo je faccio er cucchiaio (Romanesco for "I'm going to Chip Him").
Totti also collects jerseys from teams around the world. In 2003, after a Six Nations rugby match between Italy and Ireland, Irish players Brian O'Driscoll and Denis Hickie each received a Totti jersey in exchange for their own shirts.
Totti is featured on the cover of Pro Evolution Soccer 4 along with Thierry Henry and Italian referee Pierluigi Collina.[27]
On February 2010, Totti signed a lucrative sponsorship deal with  online gambling company Party Poker. Totti admitted that he is truly  passionate about poker, playing online and with his teammates.[28]