Christian Vieri revealed how missing the 2006 World Cup still affects him. He represented Italy at two World Cup tournaments, and 2006 would have marked his third. Despite having a legendary playing career, the Italian striker is still hurt by missing the tournament.
Vieri, 53, was a generational striker for the Azzurri. He was a prolific goal scorer during his prime and was a fixture on the Italian national team. However, injuries began to take a toll on him and affected his effectiveness on the field.
Vieri struggled during the 2005-06 season, when he split time between AC Milan and Monaco. Despite the struggles, ‘Bobo’ was believed to still be in Marcello Lippi’s plans for Italy’s World Cup roster. However, that all changed after he suffered a knee injury a month before the tournament.
As a result of the knee injury, Vieri was ultimately ruled out for a call-up. That would be costly, as Italy went on to win the trophy for the fourth time in its history. Vieri, who had been a key player for the Azzurri, saw many of his close friends and teammates lift the trophy without him.
Christian Vieri Reveals Why Missing the 2006 World Cup Affected Him
Christian Vieri revealed that missing the 2006 World Cup still affects him because he was unable to achieve his goal.
Vieri was motivated to play in his third World Cup tournament after representing Italy in 1998 and 2002. The Azzurri were out for redemption after a shocking exit to co-hosts South Korea in 2002.
Vieri admitted that missing the tournament was more difficult for him personally than failing to score goals.
“Where it hit me hard was that the month before we won the 2006 World Cup, I was going to play in my third World Cup [and I] got injured, and we won the World Cup,” Vieri told The Late Run. “This was the only difficult moment because you can score a goal, you can miss it, you can do good or bad, but you are playing the game which you love and everything is fine.”
He continued:
“Criticism comes along with the game, I don’t care but I felt very bad when I couldn’t play the third World Cup. I had to play [in my] third World Cup and I had to win, and that was a very hard moment.”
Vieri Says 2006 Tournament Was Significant
Vieri also explained why playing in the 2006 World Cup would have been so significant for him. He not only missed the tournament, but he could have lifted the trophy for the first time in his career.
Many players on the roster came through the Italian youth national teams together, so the tournament held a greater meaning for them.
“I was on the national team since I was 17 years old with the U-21 team, won two European championships with the U-21. Paolo Maldini‘s father, Cesare, was the U-21 coach. Then, he went to the first team, and he brought us all. The youngsters – five, six of us – me, [Fabio] Cannavaro, [Alessandro] Nesta, [Filippo] Inzaghi, [Alessandro] Del Piero, he brought us from the U-21 team tere. So, we’ve been there for 15, 16 years, and it was all our group,” Vieri told The Late Run.
He added: “The only thing I had a hard time with was not going to the World Cup in 2006.”
Christian Vieri Reveals How Missing the 2006 World Cup Still Affects Him