MILAN – Gianluca Pagliuca is third only to Javier Zanetti and Paolo Maldini in terms of appearances made in the top tier of Italian football. He spent five years wearing the hallowed Nerazzurri jersey, amassing a total of 234 appearances for the club, with 165 coming in the league, 37 in European competition and 32 in domestic cups. Pagliuca’s crowning glory at Inter was the 1997/98 UEFA Cup win.
After cutting his footballing teeth in the youth setup at Bologna, Pagliuca made his professional debut for Sampdoria. His glorious Blucerchiati adventure saw him win a Scudetto in 1990/91, three Coppa Italias (1987/88, 1988/89, 1993/94), one Italian Supercup (1991) and one UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup (1989/90).
In the summer of 1994, Pagliuca got his big break as Inter came calling. Fresh from collecting a runners’ up medal at the 1994 World Cup, the goalkeeper did not disappoint in Milan, proving to everyone that he was more than up to the challenge. On 6 May 1998, Pagliuca tasted European glory for the second time, as the Nerazzurri beat Lazio 0-3 at the Parc des Princes in the UEFA Cup Final.
A year later, Pagliuca returned to his hometown club, Bologna, where he made 248 appearances before curtailing an impressive career with a season at Ascoli in 2006/07.
On behalf of everyone at the club, happy birthday Gianluca!
