Sportd Desk :
The FIFA World Cup™ has a long history of players, who made few waves in the opening rounds, yet became heroes as the competition reached its crescendo. As this year’s world finals reaches the last four, we look at some of these ‘late heroes’ of past World Cups, and some names that might be added to the list at Russia 2018.
1958 – Pele
The 1958 tournament in Sweden is often remembered as Pele’s World Cup, but few people now remember that he took no part in the opening two games: an injury in a warm-up game had sidelined the 17-year-old, and instead, it was the future Italy forward Jose Altafini, who started up front for A Seleção. Pele was restored to the team for the final group game against the Soviet Union, but made little impact.
It was in the knockout rounds that O Rei exploded into life: a tense quarter-final against surprise package Wales was decided in the 73rd minute when Pele, with his back to goal, beat his man with a deft flick and twisted around to drive the ball past Jack Kelsey in the Welsh goal. That was all the extravagantly talented teenager needed: a second-half hat-trick from Pele helped Brazil to a 5-2 win over France in the semi-finals, and then came the unforgettable Final against the host nation. His two goals in that match, a brilliant chapeu and volley followed by a towering header in the last minute, heralded the arrival of a new football superstar.
1966 – Sir Geoff Hurst
West Ham United striker Geoff Hurst, later knighted, was not the forward who was ‘supposed’ to lead the 1966 England team to World Cup triumph on home turf. It was Jimmy Greaves, the Tottenham Hotspur hero, who was expected to provide the goals for the Three Lions. But Greaves failed to find the net in the opening round, and an injury kept him out of the quarter-final clash against Argentina. That tempestuous match was instead decided by Greaves’s ‘understudy’ Hurst, whose clever angled header provided the only goal.
Hurst remained in the team for the semi-finals, and England coach Sir Alf Ramsey made the difficult decision to pick the same team for the Final, despite Greaves’s return to fitness. It proved an inspired decision, as Hurst bagged a famous hat-trick in the Wembley finale to secure England’s only World Cup crown.
1982 – Paolo Rossi
Perhaps the most stunning and unexpected ‘late hero’ of all was the Italian penalty-box predator Paolo Rossi. Rossi had been one of the stars of Italy’s 1978 World Cup team, but in 1982, he had only just returned to the professional game after a period of suspension, due to his involvement in a betting scandal. As Gli Azzurri laboured unconvincingly through the opening round, Rossi looked sadly out of form, and the newspapers were taking turns writing the sporting epitaph of a once great forward.
When Italy faced a dazzling Brazil in the tournament’s second phase, few gave them a prayer. The Brazilian goalkeeper Valdir Peres stated his only real worry prior to the game: that Rossi might come back to life. So it proved, with a Rossi hat-trick securing a 3-2 win for the Italians in one of the World Cup’s most memorable games. Rossi carried on with a brace against Poland in the semi-finals, and contributed one more in the Final against West Germany to end as the tournament’s leading scorer, and undoubted star.
2006 – Fabio Grosso
24 years later, another Italian team lifted the trophy, and it was full of renowned players: Gianluigi Buffon, Fabio Cannavaro, Andrea Pirlo, Francesco Totti and others. By contrast, Fabio Grosso, a journeyman left-back from the Palermo club, seemed like an interloper. Starting two of Italy’s first-round games without making much of an impression, he was hardly a name on everyone’s lips, as the knockout stage began.
In Gli Azzurri’s Round of 16 match against Australia, they had been reduced to ten men and looked in danger of elimination, when a surging run down the left from Grosso won the Italians a crucial penalty, which Totti duly dispatched. Grosso remained in the side and grew in confidence, and was on hand again to score a fine goal to break the deadlock against the hosts Germany in the semi-finals. The Final against France went to penalties after a 1-1 extra-time draw, and by putting away all five of their spot-kicks in the shoot-out, Italy claimed a fourth World Cup title. And who scored the fifth penalty for the Italians, to spark the celebrations? None other than Fabio Grosso.
The FIFA World Cup™ has a long history of players, who made few waves in the opening rounds, yet became heroes as the competition reached its crescendo. As this year’s world finals reaches the last four, we look at some of these ‘late heroes’ of past World Cups, and some names that might be added to the list at Russia 2018.
1958 – Pele
The 1958 tournament in Sweden is often remembered as Pele’s World Cup, but few people now remember that he took no part in the opening two games: an injury in a warm-up game had sidelined the 17-year-old, and instead, it was the future Italy forward Jose Altafini, who started up front for A Seleção. Pele was restored to the team for the final group game against the Soviet Union, but made little impact.
It was in the knockout rounds that O Rei exploded into life: a tense quarter-final against surprise package Wales was decided in the 73rd minute when Pele, with his back to goal, beat his man with a deft flick and twisted around to drive the ball past Jack Kelsey in the Welsh goal. That was all the extravagantly talented teenager needed: a second-half hat-trick from Pele helped Brazil to a 5-2 win over France in the semi-finals, and then came the unforgettable Final against the host nation. His two goals in that match, a brilliant chapeu and volley followed by a towering header in the last minute, heralded the arrival of a new football superstar.
1966 – Sir Geoff Hurst
West Ham United striker Geoff Hurst, later knighted, was not the forward who was ‘supposed’ to lead the 1966 England team to World Cup triumph on home turf. It was Jimmy Greaves, the Tottenham Hotspur hero, who was expected to provide the goals for the Three Lions. But Greaves failed to find the net in the opening round, and an injury kept him out of the quarter-final clash against Argentina. That tempestuous match was instead decided by Greaves’s ‘understudy’ Hurst, whose clever angled header provided the only goal.
Hurst remained in the team for the semi-finals, and England coach Sir Alf Ramsey made the difficult decision to pick the same team for the Final, despite Greaves’s return to fitness. It proved an inspired decision, as Hurst bagged a famous hat-trick in the Wembley finale to secure England’s only World Cup crown.
1982 – Paolo Rossi
Perhaps the most stunning and unexpected ‘late hero’ of all was the Italian penalty-box predator Paolo Rossi. Rossi had been one of the stars of Italy’s 1978 World Cup team, but in 1982, he had only just returned to the professional game after a period of suspension, due to his involvement in a betting scandal. As Gli Azzurri laboured unconvincingly through the opening round, Rossi looked sadly out of form, and the newspapers were taking turns writing the sporting epitaph of a once great forward.
When Italy faced a dazzling Brazil in the tournament’s second phase, few gave them a prayer. The Brazilian goalkeeper Valdir Peres stated his only real worry prior to the game: that Rossi might come back to life. So it proved, with a Rossi hat-trick securing a 3-2 win for the Italians in one of the World Cup’s most memorable games. Rossi carried on with a brace against Poland in the semi-finals, and contributed one more in the Final against West Germany to end as the tournament’s leading scorer, and undoubted star.
2006 – Fabio Grosso
24 years later, another Italian team lifted the trophy, and it was full of renowned players: Gianluigi Buffon, Fabio Cannavaro, Andrea Pirlo, Francesco Totti and others. By contrast, Fabio Grosso, a journeyman left-back from the Palermo club, seemed like an interloper. Starting two of Italy’s first-round games without making much of an impression, he was hardly a name on everyone’s lips, as the knockout stage began.
In Gli Azzurri’s Round of 16 match against Australia, they had been reduced to ten men and looked in danger of elimination, when a surging run down the left from Grosso won the Italians a crucial penalty, which Totti duly dispatched. Grosso remained in the side and grew in confidence, and was on hand again to score a fine goal to break the deadlock against the hosts Germany in the semi-finals. The Final against France went to penalties after a 1-1 extra-time draw, and by putting away all five of their spot-kicks in the shoot-out, Italy claimed a fourth World Cup title. And who scored the fifth penalty for the Italians, to spark the celebrations? None other than Fabio Grosso.
