joe cole... awesome fighting spirit.... especially on the match chelsea lose to mu 1-0, he did extremely aggressive

Paolo Maldini.

Watching his glimpse on the pitch is truly breathtaking.
Charismatic leader. Wonderfully professional, both on and off the pitch.

Grazie il Capitano! Forza Paolo per sempre!

i am liverpool fan ..but for me is david beckham who inspire me to watch more bout football....with a handsome face and a great free kick taker..he damn cool already plus he playing on the right wing

Oh yeah... So, I guess, Nedved teaches me how to shoot from distance (I'm a right back, so, I can only shoot from distance lolz) he also teaches me how to dribble brilliantly, nedved also teaches me to play football even when I've reached 34 yrs old )

Dennis Bergkamp

Peter Schmeichel! Top class GK not even Vdsar can challenge him.

Marco van Basten.......

the one that inspire me the most is eric cantona simply because he sees football as an art and how he loves football as part of his life which i can't see any other footballers to have the same attitude as him.

Paul Scholes.....doesn't really take the limelight of football
Do his talking on the pitch
Plays with passion and loyalty to his club

RVN

i just admire his positioning and clinical finishing!

Definitely no other than King Eric Cantona... a French genius.

roberto carlos & eric cantona

r.carlos - made me wanna play as a defender
e.cantona - made me as a true MU fan.

i would say Steven Gerrard... remember when Liverpool in CL final against AC MIlan... Liverpool were 3 goals down but Gerrard was the one who scored first and inspired his teammates to score more goals... what a great player he was and still is...

Mention about Roy Keano but don't forget his rival Patrick Vieira ...

for me is Eric Cantona,Eric the King

I think everyone MISCONTRUED what the ThreadStarter actually wants

He asked about which player which INSPIRE us to do something in our LIFE not what the player does on the PITCH

For me there's only ONE IDOL which represents the PROFESSIONALISME side of FOOTBALL..no one else like ALAN SHEARER!

Why he is a TRUE PROFESSIONAL?? It's because not only his Shooting Technique and Goals does the TALKING but also he has the CHARISMA to become a GREAT leader..His proffessed LOYALTY to his beloved club is UNBELIEVABLE even though the club doesn't win any trophies and medals..He never asked the manager to let him go to other BIGGER clubs such Man Utd when Sir Alex Ferguson APPROACHED him twice...His wage in the club is not the highest...Before Michael Owen came in, Kieron Dyer earned much more than him but does he 'MERUNGUT' about it?? No..He just keep his football do the talking...

No one will ever be like him in the current football world where all the GREATEST player will try to move away to other CLUB which offerred them BIGGER MONEY INCENTIVES such as ??? (Guess yourself)..*dont want to be flamed by others

sheringham and zola, show eveyone footballer still can compete in high level even after age 35.
shearer and carragher for their loyalty towards his own club. i almost forget fowler, his heart still at liverpool even after he left them few years ago.
footballer that career were once threatened with very serious injury, i only remember cisse at the moment...

Gianfranco Zola,Gus Poyet and Eusobio.....true footballers

Legends live in People's hearts - Paolo Maldini

Why is Paolo Maldini a Role Model to many young footballers in the world?

A defender is a part of the team. He plays a massive role to defend the team from goals touching his team's net. Most of the effort goes to the defender because the defender is the one whom is capable of stopping the opposing strikers from deadly strikes. The defender stands in front of the goalkeeper. There are many types of defenders; sweepers, side backs and center backs.

This research is about the best defender in the world, a living legend who is still addicted to the game. A player that dedicated his life to his club and country. He has been unlucky in the national side, not winning any trophies; then again, he broke many records.

Paolo Maldini has grown up as the son of A.C. Milan's and Italy's Cesare Maldini. The player who coached Italy and played for A.C. Milan and won the club's most prestigious trophy for clubs, the mother of all European trophies; UEFA Champions League. He led the team to win their first European glory in 1963.

We might not exaggerate if we say Paolo Maldini is considered as the best defender in the world. Why not if he is one of the students of the popular Italian school which is known as Catenaccio . He is also a graduate of the blue brigade, which is the most popular for a spectacular powerful defense, the Italian National team that is known as Azzuri . After the end of the 2002 Football Mundial, FIFA World Cup 2002 hosted in both Korea and Japan, this living legend announced retirement from the Italian National side and has decided to focus his career only in his first and last club, which he is committed to, A.C. Milan.

It is almost rare to see a player dedicating his life to one club only, wearing the same colors fore more than twenty years. Most footballers in the world care only about playing football for money; "In our days, we used to play for the love of the game. This generation plays for money, cars and women. Thinking that money is everything" This was said by Zico . Many players betrayed their fans by leaving a club to its city rivals, country rivals or continental rivals. Paolo Maldini never changed his club. He wore the same red and black jersey each season for more than twenty seasons for his one and only club, A.C. Milan. He played 800 matches for his club. He has been captain for ten years, being a successor of Franco Baresi in captaincy.

Many players show no respect to their clubs and fans, and go for money and fame, an example is Luis Figo who betrayed his former Club Barcelona to Real Madrid after all club officials, players and fans begging him to stay but unfortunately left to Real Madrid, continuing the all-star team with no addition to their trophy cabinet until now since 2002. However, Maldini never changed his club. Even sometimes, the coach takes his opinion on tactics for each game.

At first, Paolo Maldini was nicknamed the next Cesare, then the next Facchetti and then he built it all up to be himself. For people to keep him as their role model or idol. For others to be called: The Next Maldini. Let us hope the giants breed more of other to be Maldini's. As now, Paolo Maldini's son Christian plays for the youth team for A.C. Milan. Best wishes to him and may we all see him lift the prestigious European trophy as his father and grandfather did.

Paolo Maldini is loved by all of his fans and by many football fans. He is considered an Idol in Milano. The fans call him Cuore di Drago and Cuore di Milano. Which mean: Heart of the Dragon and Heart of Milan.

Paolo Maldini is a role model to many footballers and people in the world, that is because of his gratitude, sacrifice, passion towards the game and people. Paolo is the eternal minister of defence in this wonderful game. He has showed many various reasons to be a legend. Paolo Maldini is one of a kind, that is why he is a role model.

Here are some quotes said by legends about Paolo Maldini:

"Paolo Maldini is unique; he is one who deserves to break my record of matches at the Italian League and the Italian National team. He is a great player and is the best defender in the world. Has his own unique touches and control"
-Dino Zoff said this as Maldini was getting closer to his record

"He is the type of player that deserves to win all awards"-Ronaldinho , when he was asked to vote for best defender in Europe for the 2004/2005 season

"I still get goose bumps when I see Paolo Maldini playing, as I also got goose bumps when I saw him training today, Italy should be proud of him"-Diego Armando Maradona at the champions league final 2004/2005. Milan vs. Liverpool.

"Maldini is not a symbol of Milan. Maldini is Milan itself"-Adriano Galliani . Galliani said this when Maldini continued 20 years at his club A.C. Milan.

"What more can one say about Paolo Maldini? To play for 20 years with the same side is remarkable and I'm not sure it'll ever happen again in this sport. He has a contract until 2007, but I'd like to negotiate for another year. We'll retire his Number 3 jersey when he retires, but keep it in storage for when his son grows up."-Adriano Galliani

This is what Roberto Baggio said when an Italian newspaper, La Gazzeta dello Sport asked him about the European footballer of the year award: 'I have been asked this question for the last three and I have always said one name: Paolo Maldini. He has expressed everything in his career: seriousness, intelligence, victories and everything that he does that sets an example, Paolo should get it for these things.'

FORZA PAOLO, Son of Cesare, Father of Christian... FORZA MALDINI!!!

To read more about Paolo Maldini, Click Here!

This post has been edited by penew: Dec 2 2006, 05:30 PM

ya...i must agree with you...I'm a big fan of Paolo Maldini too
His playing was impressive & i just love to see him play