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Chelsea`s greatest player returns home to join Cagliari
Cagliari, July 04: Chelsea favourite Gianfranco Zola has returned home to Italy after seven years in London and will play for Sardinia`s Cagliari in Serie B next season.
Cagliari, July 04: Chelsea favourite Gianfranco Zola has returned home to Italy after seven years in London and will play for Sardinia's Cagliari in Serie B next season.
Zola, voted the greatest player in Chelsea's history in an internet poll last season, had been offered another year with the English premier league club after his contract ran out but decided to go back to Italy for family reasons.
The Sardinian-born forward, who will be 37 on Friday (July 5), played for Napoli and Parma in Italy before moving to Chelsea in 1996 for 4.5 million pounds ($7.48 million US dollars).
At a news conference on Wednesday (July 2) in Cagliari, Zola explained why he decided to bring his English career to an end."
"My desire to go back to my Italian origins, to allow my children to experience this (Italian culture) after so many years in England. But mostly the dream of combining this with the possibility of helping Cagliari -- as a true respresentative of Sardinia -- all of that makes me really happy. It wasn't an easy decision but it was the right thing to do and I am enthusiastic about it," the Italian said.
Zola won the FA Cup twice with Chelsea and the European Cup Winners Cup in 1998. The west London club was taken over by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich on Tuesday (July 1).
Ken Bates, who sold his majority stake to Abramovich, but will remain as Chelsea chairman, said Zola's decision had not been based on financial concerns.
"Obviously, like any other fan, I am sorry but he has had a problem he is worrying for a number of years. Gianfranco is an Italian, indeed he is a Sardinian. What he has been worrying for a couple of years now is that they growing up as Englishmen and Gianfranco knew one day he was always going to go back to Sardinia -- and his worry was that he was going to take two Englishmen back with him and will then have problems assimilating into, being outsiders in their own community. And I think that swang him more than anything else. It wasn't a question of money, forget the crap you read in the newspapers, we agreed to pay him what he wanted but in Cagliari he is going to be an icon, he is going to be player coach, he is going to be a big fish in a small pond," Bates said.
Speaking to Italian reporters, Zola said his priority now was to help Cagliari in double role of player and coach to be promoted to Serie A.
"I took this decision after a long thought. And also in respect of Cagilari, I wanted to be not just one hundred but two hundred per cent sure about being the right person Cagliari are looking for," he said.
Factbox on Italian Gianfranco Zola, who joined Cagliari from Chelsea: 1966: Born July 5, Oliena, Sardinia 1984: Signs for Sardinian team Nuorese, his first professional contract and played in the Italian Championship for two years. 1986: Signs for another Sardinian side, Torres, to play in the third division. Scores eight goals in 30 matches. 1989: Signs for Napoli in Serie A. 1990: Zola scores two goals as understudy to Maradona as Napoli win the Italian title. Scores 32 goals in 105 matches for the southern Italian side. 1991: Napoli win the Italian Super Cup and Zola makes his debut in the Italian national side for Arrigo Sacchi. 1993: Leaves Napoli to join fellow Serie A side Parma. 1994: Runner-up in the European Cup Winners' Cup. 1995: Won the UEFA Cup with Parma and were runners-up in Serie A and the Italian Cup. 1996: Joins Chelsea for 4.5 million pounds ($6.44 million). 1997: Wins the FA Cup with Chelsea and is voted the English Football Writers' Player of the Year. 1998: Won English League Cup, European Cup Winners' Cup and Super Cup. 2000: Chelsea win FA Cup 2001: Signs new two-year deal to stay at Chelsea. 2003: Joins Italian Serie B club Cagliari.
Honours With Napoli: Italian Serie A title 1990. With Parma: European Cup Winners' Cup runner-up 1994, UEFA Cup winners 1995, Serie A runner-up 1995, Itailan Cup runner-up 1995. With Chelsea: 1997 FA Cup, 1998 League Cup, European Cup Winners' Cup and Super Cup, 2000 FA Cup.
International record 35 caps, eight goals. Debut in Nov 1991, last played in World Cup qualifier against England in Rome in October 1997. ($1=.6989 Pound)
Bureau Report
Zola won the FA Cup twice with Chelsea and the European Cup Winners Cup in 1998. The west London club was taken over by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich on Tuesday (July 1).
Ken Bates, who sold his majority stake to Abramovich, but will remain as Chelsea chairman, said Zola's decision had not been based on financial concerns.
"Obviously, like any other fan, I am sorry but he has had a problem he is worrying for a number of years. Gianfranco is an Italian, indeed he is a Sardinian. What he has been worrying for a couple of years now is that they growing up as Englishmen and Gianfranco knew one day he was always going to go back to Sardinia -- and his worry was that he was going to take two Englishmen back with him and will then have problems assimilating into, being outsiders in their own community. And I think that swang him more than anything else. It wasn't a question of money, forget the crap you read in the newspapers, we agreed to pay him what he wanted but in Cagliari he is going to be an icon, he is going to be player coach, he is going to be a big fish in a small pond," Bates said.
Speaking to Italian reporters, Zola said his priority now was to help Cagliari in double role of player and coach to be promoted to Serie A.
"I took this decision after a long thought. And also in respect of Cagilari, I wanted to be not just one hundred but two hundred per cent sure about being the right person Cagliari are looking for," he said.
Factbox on Italian Gianfranco Zola, who joined Cagliari from Chelsea: 1966: Born July 5, Oliena, Sardinia 1984: Signs for Sardinian team Nuorese, his first professional contract and played in the Italian Championship for two years. 1986: Signs for another Sardinian side, Torres, to play in the third division. Scores eight goals in 30 matches. 1989: Signs for Napoli in Serie A. 1990: Zola scores two goals as understudy to Maradona as Napoli win the Italian title. Scores 32 goals in 105 matches for the southern Italian side. 1991: Napoli win the Italian Super Cup and Zola makes his debut in the Italian national side for Arrigo Sacchi. 1993: Leaves Napoli to join fellow Serie A side Parma. 1994: Runner-up in the European Cup Winners' Cup. 1995: Won the UEFA Cup with Parma and were runners-up in Serie A and the Italian Cup. 1996: Joins Chelsea for 4.5 million pounds ($6.44 million). 1997: Wins the FA Cup with Chelsea and is voted the English Football Writers' Player of the Year. 1998: Won English League Cup, European Cup Winners' Cup and Super Cup. 2000: Chelsea win FA Cup 2001: Signs new two-year deal to stay at Chelsea. 2003: Joins Italian Serie B club Cagliari.
Honours With Napoli: Italian Serie A title 1990. With Parma: European Cup Winners' Cup runner-up 1994, UEFA Cup winners 1995, Serie A runner-up 1995, Itailan Cup runner-up 1995. With Chelsea: 1997 FA Cup, 1998 League Cup, European Cup Winners' Cup and Super Cup, 2000 FA Cup.
International record 35 caps, eight goals. Debut in Nov 1991, last played in World Cup qualifier against England in Rome in October 1997. ($1=.6989 Pound)
Bureau Report