The ultimate number 9
Gabriel Batistuta A common sight for any Serie A viewers in the 1990s: Gabriel Batistuta celebrating
Few strikers had such an impact on one club as Gabriel Batistuta. This is the story of the Fiorentina legend, once described by Maradona as the greatest centre forward of all time
Wembley Stadium. 27th October, 1999. It’s the 75th minute of the Champions League group stage match between Arsenal and Fiorentina. The indelible purple shirts sweep forward. Gabriel Batistuta peels right to receive a pass from Jorg Heinrich. “Batigol” takes a touch with the right, and before Nigel Winterburn can finish deciding what he’s going to do next, the striker is gone. He sweeps the ball across his body with his left foot. The ball runs towards the by-line and just as it appears the angle is too narrow… CRASH! BANG! WALLOP! If it was a cartoon those are the words which would appear in bubbles around Seaman’s goal.
Gabriel Omar Batistuta was the ultimate number 9. Strong as an ox. Clever as a fox. Nimble as a ninja.
Goals were his currency, and his rate rarely fluctuated.
Born and raised in the Santa Fe region of Argentina, he came through at Newell’s Old Boys. He even did menial jobs around the club to earn enough money to make a living, before a move to Buenos Aires.
First up was River Plate in the salubrious Nunez district, but his time there did not last long, after his first encounter with Daniel Passarella, captain of the Argentina team which won the 1978 World Cup. Manager didn’t fancy player, which led to a move which would see Batigol, like one of his thunderbolts, not so much emerge but explode into the football stratosphere.
He travelled south to La Bombonera. To River’s hated rivals Boca Juniors. The 1991 Argentina ‘Clausura’ (the round-robin tournament that closed the season) would see Batigol transition from Bruce Banner to the Hulk. The powerful, athletic figure developed, the thighs grew more defined. More importantly the hair lengthened. Until retirement he would never return to his alter-ego. His goals propelled Boca to the league title and Batistuta into Argentina’s squad for that year’s Copa America. Decisive goals against Chile, Brazil and Colombia led Argentina to their first Copa success since 1959, and he finished top scorer in the process.
Batistuta netted 10 goals in 12 World Cup games.
The following year he was part of the team which won the Confederations Cup before adding a second Copa America in 1993, netting a brace in the 2-1 final defeat of Mexico.
By then, Batistuta’s life had changed significantly. Fiorentina were mesmerised by his performances at the 1991 Copa America.
“He is a warrior who will not surrender, who is hard in the fight but is fair in the soul.”
He would soon mesmerise Florence natives with blistering displays. The colour purple was made for him. Batigol hit double figures in his first season. A laudable return. However, it wasn’t his on-field actions which endeared him to the support at the Stadio Artemio Franchi. His second season saw another double figure goal haul, but the club were relegated to Serie B. He did not agitate for a move. He stayed put. He scored goals. And under the management of Claudio Ranieri he got them promoted as champions. This was no one-night stand. This was no fling. This was a love affair.
Two years after promotion La Viola tifosi made their devotion tangible, erecting a life-size bronze statue. It read: “He is a warrior who will not surrender, who is hard in the fight but is fair in the soul.” The oversized purple shirt acted as armour as he took his return to Serie A by storm, leaving a path of destruction in his path.
Flummoxed goalkeepers, overawed defenders, broken minds, ruined careers were mere debris. He scored in his first eleven matches of the season, breaking a record that had stood for three decades. He finished the season on 26.
26, 19, 12, 21 and 21 again.
His goals took Fiorentina into Europe. They also won their first piece of silverware since 1975, the Coppa Italia. The final figure should have been higher. By matchday 20 his goal return stood at 18. The 1998/1999 Scudetto (Serie A title) should have been Fiorentina’s first since 1969. On the 14th of February 1999 they sat level at the top of the league. Then Batistuta’s hamstring was torn. He missed six games, scored only three goals in the eight games he did play as Fiorentina finished third, 14 points behind AC Milan.
There was some consolation in qualifying for the Champions League. That goal – Seaman’s nightmare – sealed La Viola’s qualification to the second group stage of the Champions League, as it was formatted back then. It brought about another visit to England. To Old Trafford. Donning a purple headband to accompany the evocative Toyota-sponsored Fila top, Batigol found space behind the Manchester United midfield. “I’ve always considered Florence as my girlfriend. I don’t have to explain my love for this city.” Similar to his assault of Winterburn, he controlled with his right foot before spinning away from the not inconsiderable frame of Jaap Stam with a touch of his left boot. Batigol pulled back the lever. And released.
Mark Bosnich looked like a drunk trying to catch a frisbee in the dark. (
)The ball took on a life of its own. Behind the goals hands went onto heads. Others cowered. It would be one of Batistuta’s last defining moments in purple. His journey with Fiorentina was nearing an end.
Gincarlo Rinaldo, Italian football author and Fiorentina fan, writes:
In the Fiorentina all-time hall of fame there are only a handful of players who stand comparison with Gabriel Omar Batistuta. He stayed at the club when they fell into Serie B and resisted many overtures to move to bigger sides until the Viola’s financial collapse made his departure inevitable. Over a glorious decade or so he delivered goals galore, but his significance in Florence is about more than simply those strikes. His commitment, endeavour, dedication and ferocious competitive streak made him a darling of fans even on days when he did not find the net. He is still much beloved to this day and, if you close your eyes, I swear you can still hear the echoes of the chant of “Bati-Bati-Bati-Batigol!” around the Stadio Artemio Franchi.”
The striker always said he was going to retire at 30. But aged 31 Roma signed the forward for £27.5 million.
He became the most expensive over-30-year-old. A record he still holds. It was the move that would finally deliver the trophy he sought. The Scudetto. With 20 goals Batigol became a legend in Rome as he fired I Giallorossi to their third, and last, Serie A title. But even while he was with the Romans, his love for Fiorentina remained. A goal against Fiorentina brought emotion. But not raw energy. Tears instead. The Serie A title was the high point. An ineffectual loan spell at Inter Milan followed, before he wound his career down in Qatar.
His swansong in the Gulf did see the return of his goal currency, the rate peaking one more time before retirement. For a generation of British football fans Batigol is a symbol of Serie A. In Florence he is the symbol. He is Fiorentina. Inducted into the club’s hall of fame in 2014, drying his tears with a club shirt, he said: “I’ve always considered Florence as my girlfriend. I don’t have to explain my love for this city.” In retirement, the effects of 17 years of football took their toll, and at one point he even pleaded with doctors to amputate his legs. He would wake up in the early hours of the morning and wet the bed because the thought of crawling to the bathroom in pain was too much for him.
Batistuta had kept his distance from the sport until recently, pursuing his passion for horses and polo instead. He admitted disappointment at seeing Lionel Messi break his record of 56 goals (in 78 games) for the Argentine national side. The Barca maestro, however, will unlikely top Batigol’s ten goals in 12 World Cup games. His legacy will live on.
As Greg Balkowski wrote in an article about Alan Shearer,
there was a breed of striker who hit the ball as if they wanted to kill it. Batigol was that. And more.
He was an agile, evasive and inventive forward. He’d drop deep, link play, run in behind. Bully, harass, out-smart. There is a reason Diego Maradona once said he was the best centre forward of all time. He passed it into the net, powered headers, dinked, chipped and clipped it past hapless custodians. And of course, from time to time, he simply smashed it.
A great piece on Batigol. Well worth the read. Tagging
@Pat_Mustard as I know he's a fan
