Back to the Soccer Newsfeed

Andrea Pirlo leaves behind a legacy built on beauty and vision

One of the most memorable scenes from Christopher Nolan's 2010 film "Inception" is when Don Cobb, the thief, played by Leonardo di Caprio needs an architect "who is as good as I was." Michael Caine's character, Cobb's mentor Professor Stephen Miles, looks up from his desk and tells him not to worry. "I've got somebody better," he says. Miles introduces Cobb to a student, Ariadne who is hired to "create the world of the dream."

She's a prodigious talent. But while watching the movie I personally thought Miles was going to bring out Andrea Pirlo. L'Architetto (The Architect) is one of his nicknames, after all, and as he retires from the game it's worth remembering what distinguished Pirlo was his ability to create and perceive simultaneously on a scale reserved to a select few of the game's greats.