Thirty years after their Champions League triumph at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, members of Marcello Lippi’s Juventus squad reunited on October 4 at the Festival dello Sport in Trento to recount their 1996 campaign, gazzetta.it reported. Players including Moreno Torricelli, Ciro Ferrara, and Angelo Di Livio reflected on the tournament’s key moments, sharing anecdotes about Lippi’s management and honoring the late Gianluca Vialli.
Reuniting in Trento for the 1996 Champions League Anniversary
The Trento stage welcomed a large portion of the historic squad, featuring Carrera, Di Livio, Ferrara, Padovano, Peruzzi, Pessotto, Rampulla, and Torricelli, alongside video messages from Antonio Conte, Paulo Sousa, and Fabrizio Ravanelli, according to gazzetta.it. Organizers and attendees received the former players as if they were entering a stadium. The group spent an hour exchanging jokes and recalling their time together. “We were brothers,” Angelo Di Livio stated during the panel. Ciro Ferrara responded with a quip, telling the audience that Lippi’s best idea was putting Di Livio on the bench.
Players remember Gianluca Vialli on stage
The players shared memories of Gianluca Vialli, holding up a jersey belonging to their former teammate on stage. Ferrara recalled that before the quarterfinal match against Real Madrid, Vialli asked Lippi for permission to carry a camera and film the entire squad’s routine right up until kickoff. gazzetta.it reported that Juventus began their tournament run with a victory in Dortmund, followed by matches against Steaua Bucharest and a two-leg win over the Rangers, during which Moreno Torricelli scored.
“One of my few goals,” Torricelli recounted, adding that Lippi had previously considered cutting him after catching him smoking in the locker room. Michele Padovano then contributed key goals against Real Madrid and Nantes, leading the club to the final against Ajax.
Van Gaal’s Prediction and the Penalty Shootout in Rome
Recalling the buildup to the final, Ferrara noted that Ajax manager Louis van Gaal stated publicly that the trophy would return to Amsterdam. “That spark gave us the push for the final,” Ferrara said. The match eventually went to a penalty shootout. Goalkeeper Angelo Peruzzi saved two spot-kicks, though Di Livio joked that Edgar Davids shot the ball straight at him. Ferrara, Pessotto, and Padovano converted their penalties before Vladimir Jugovic stepped up with a smile. “What is he laughing at, we wondered, we are playing for the Champions League,” the players recalled of the decisive kick that secured the trophy.
Details of the Trento reunion and Champions League run
Which players attended the Trento reunion?
The panel at the Festival dello Sport in Trento featured Carrera, Di Livio, Ferrara, Padovano, Peruzzi, Pessotto, Rampulla, and Torricelli, alongside messages from Conte, Sousa, and Ravanelli, as reported by gazzetta.it.
How did Juventus reach the Champions League final?
Juventus advanced through a campaign that started with a win in Dortmund, victories against Steaua Bucharest, a two-legged success against the Rangers, and later wins over Real Madrid and Nantes before facing Ajax in the final.
Who scored the decisive penalty in the 1996 final?
Vladimir Jugovic scored the winning penalty in the shootout after Peruzzi saved two attempts and Ferrara, Pessotto, and Padovano converted their shots.