What would sport be without vision? On the Italian island ofSicily on Sunday, September 30, Fabrizio Miccoli scored a goal out of hisimagination. He let that ball drop, lowered his right shoulder, arched hisback, and then struck a volley so serene, so sweetly timed that it caught theopposing goalkeeper completely by surprise.
How could the Chievo Verona goalie Stefano Sorrentino knowthat Miccoli, already the scorer of two goals against him in the game, wouldlaunch a shot from such distance, with such skill? There appeared to be such asmall scattering of spectators behind the net at Palermo’s stadium. But you canbet your life that in years to come thousands will claim, “I was there, I sawMiccoli complete his hat trick that finished off Chievo, 4-1, in the RenzoBarbera.” And from the moment it left his foot, everyone surely knew it wouldend up nestling in the net.
There are two types of vision here. There is the innervision, perhaps the sixth sense, and there is the gift of sight that allowsthousands the opportunity to see such an extraordinary example of time andmotion. It is football’s poetry. Very few men in history might have scored it. Ican think of Romario. he was builtsomewhat like Miccoli, who stands 1.68 meters tall, or 5-foot-6. Just likeMiccoli, Romario had an impudence that could confound opponents while makingthe ball obey his will. When he was asked to explain the inexplicable, he smiledand said: “It was instinct. I had not seen the goalie off his line. I just didthe shot.”
Wasn’t it Gerd Muller, that most prolific of Germans whoscored a goal for every game who answered inquisitive news hounds with theexplanation: “Something inside my head said, ‘Gerd, go this way.’ Or, ‘Gerd, gothat way.’ ” He obeyed that voice “ instinct’s voice “ and scored this way andthat. While Miccoli was a child, he was inspired by Diego Maradona, theArgentine playing for Napoli back then. His hat trick was by no means his firstin the pink uniform of Palermo, a team he now captains. The Italian coach atthe time, Marcello Lippi, once described Miccoli as a genius.
