Mazzone under the Atalanta curve, 23 years after an impossible gesture

The race is there Carlo Mazzone under the curve of Atalanta fans80 meters of pure instinct and passion in their most authentic version, is one of the images engraved forever in the history of football. 23 years have passed since September 30, 2001, when the then Brescia coach he broke any mold, breaking all the written and unwritten rules of the good coach’s manual.

The draw of Roberto Baggio in the 90th minute, 3 to 3 in comeback, it came as a liberation in a derby punctuated by insults from the rival corner. The cameras on the sidelines had already caught his promise at the 2-3 goal: “if I draw I’ll come under the curve”. And when the equalizer actually arrives, no one can stop it. He runs shouting ‘damn you’, which for a true Roman means much more than an insult, staring at the curve until he reaches the end line, towards the protective net. When he returns to midfield, referee Collina is waiting for him and points Mazzone to the changing rooms: “Throw me holes, I deserve it”, the composed reaction of a man who knows he has gone further.

They are very long seconds, those of Mazzone’s run, which tell of a football that no longer exists. No one, perhaps except the best Mourinho, could even imagine accomplishing it a gesture at the same time so true and so outrageous. Today football has become another sport. There is the VAR to dissect every frame, there are social networks to exalt or condemn every gesture, there is more generally a more widespread and frenetic, omnipresent communication.

That’s right the communication plan the one most stressed since Mazzone’s race 23 years ago. Before even thinking about how a disruptive gesture like that would be read today, one has to wonder whether a character like Carlo Mazzone could still find space today. He did that race because he couldn’t help it, there was nothing prepared or calculated, just the extreme freedom to lose all control. As only he could have done. Would something like this make sense today? Is there anyone who could bear the burden and consequences of such an act? Difficult to answer, though the habits, measured language and calculated postures of many coaches todaywith some exceptions, make Mazzone’s football seem even further away and unrepeatable. (By Fabio Insenga)