Inzaghi choose his favorite goal from 300

The press conference on Inzaghi's 300 goals was a voyage through the emotions of a Champion. Anecdotes, details, principles: Superpippo lived up to the expectancy of the day after his achievement.

Mister 300 arrived at the Milanello Conference Room still charged with adrenaline following yesterday's goals, but ready for Milan's next games: "In the last few years - Filippo Inzaghi started - I have always privileged team objectives, then as I heard yesterday on tv they want me to also go for Roberto Baggio's record of 318 professional goals, I will try, there are 19 goals left, we will see. But now my objectives are two: reach the Champions League again with Milan and continue to play and train without physical problems. I don't think too much about personal objectives, because if these bases are there, a strong Milan and my good condition, everything else comes naturally. The best goal of the 300? The one in Athens, the second in the final against Liverpool, on a great assist by Kaká. An important goal also for me, because until the Athens final I still had problems forgetting about that great save Buffon made on my diving header in the Manchester Final against Juventus. But then my goals in Athens canceled out those memories. Until that night I wondered what it would be like to score in a Champions League Final, there I understood it. It was undescribable. Tonight I did not sleep, but after scoring in Athens I did not sleep for ten whole nights."

More from Superpippo: "I think I can tell kids who dream about goals and football pitches, that the most important thing is to love what you do. If you really love football, then destiny repays you. Perhaps that's why football, my sport, has given me incomparable emotions. The linesmen? I know that for them it isn't easy to deal with strikers with my characteristics. In football it can always happen to make a mistake, it happens to us footballers, and to referees as well. Also yesterday my second goal was onside, but it wasn't easy to see."

SuperPippo's thoughts then go to the team mates and the coach: "I appreciated a lot all the declarations I received from my team mates for having reached this objective, but it's me who has to thank them because it's only thanks to their help that I am here today. All the team mates I've had were fantastic, there isn't one that sticks out. In these years I consolidated my relationship with Kaká, he is an extraordinary player and we understand each other well. Also with the coach my relationship is very good. It goes beyond football, we know each other well. He knows that when I am left out I'm unhappy, so I try to train well to be able to show what I can do. I think the pitch will do the talking. In January, for example, I didn't play much, but then I participated to some friendlies and when I was on the pitch I asked to play for ninety minutes even though it was programmed I would play for just sixty because even though it was just a friendly it was a way to find my best condition."

Then Inzaghi revealed some background information on his working methods: "I think that my characteristics are given to me by nature, like the goalscoring instinct and many other things that have helped me in these years.
Certainly I will never be a master dribbler like some other players, but my hard work and love for this work have helped me in my career. I have always had the right timing inside my head, it's a mechanical thing, but the real thing I've understood in these years is that to interpret my role well I have to feel good. That's why I try to train the right way.
In my career I have fought many duels, but the two strongest opponents I have found back at Milan: Maldini and Nesta. I've always tried to study my opponents and my team mates, some goals are caused by the fact that I knew who was crossing the ball, for example. This helps me a lot. Goalkeepers don't bother me. Certainly it's another thing to have Julio Cesar in front of you... But if I'm doing well the right ball comes sooner or later.

My heir? I don’t like comparisons because I think each player has his own characteristics. They all should do what they feel like based on their abilities. I think Milan will be fine for the next ten years with the Borriello-Pato couple. Also Paloschi is a great player. At Parma he is showing his qualities so I think Milan shouldn’t worry. Pazzini is another great striker: I have seen his qualities and he is showing them well, then there are also Acquafresca, Cacia."

The dedication and the memories: "These three hundred goals are a nice satisfaction. In these days I thought about Antwerp, because sometimes it happens that when you have a great joy you also think back to the past and some sad moments. Yesterday I thought about Abbiati and I dedicate this joy to him. His injury ruined my day, I also sent him a message. The whole team is very sad about it. At that moment I was reminded of my time at Antwerp, when I went alone at 32 years of age and I was there two months, few would have thought I would become a protagonist again, but I managed to do that."

"If I have to think back about an assist I remember that I allowed Baggio to score at the 1998 World Cup." And on the national team Inzaghi continued: "At my age it’s difficult to think about it but, if they would ask me, I couldn’t say no. Another memory I have impressed in my mind is an image of the fans: Milan-Red Star Belgrade on 9 August for the Champions League preliminaries, the day of my birthday with the banner on the stands, I felt they wanted my goal and then it arrived."

"I have never changed my way of playing. I try to move better. I hope to be able to return to Europe next year, to be up there with Raul and Muller, as an Italian it’s a great satisfaction. The Champions League has always brought out the best in me."

And the future? "I will stop when I don’t feel like this anymore. It will be a difficult day, but with my career I have to stop at the right moment. I will decide when to stop, it’s not up to anyone else to decide. I haven’t thought about when I will stop, but I would like to stay in this world. If Milan want to continue with me I would be more than happy. I don’t know if I will be a coach because I have too much tension, still today after many goals and many matches, before each game I feel an incredible tension. If I won’t be a coach I don’t know, perhaps some televisions will allow me to talk about football…"

Pippo then talked about his personal life and his family: "I found an extraordinary girlfriend and I am happy to obtain these satisfactions with her and my family. Destiny had already given me a lot with my work, now it has given me a fantastic woman and I want to enjoy this moment with her. I played with the team of the city I was born in, I was a top scorer at Bergamo with Atalanta. I never thought about going abroad because I always had the luck of playing close to home, I always had my family as a reference point and it always transmitted me the right serenity. All of this was fundamental for me."

From the thoughts about the past, he also talked about future objectives: "I’m happy I scored my first goal in Serie A with Piacenza which is my city, that I am very close to. Yesterday I thought about destiny, my first goal at Siena and then seventeen years later my 300th goal at the same venue. I don’t regret never winning the Golden Ball, I have my own Golden Ball here today, I hope that in the next few years Kaká will win it again or Pato will get it for the first time."

Pippo went on to talk about Milan’s season: "The real problem this year have been the numerous injuries. We had to do without players like Gattuso, Kaká, Borriello, Ronaldinho. I think this team can give problems to many teams and I’m convinced that if everyone is available we can all do very well. The criticisms I hear are certainly disappointing, but we are convinced we will get back to being who we were, and having seen how difficult it is to progress in the Champions League reminds us how much effort we have to put into it. Personally, I had to miss two months at the start of the season due to injury, then I came back and played the Uefa Cup. I came to Dubai with the flu, but now I’m doing well and as I get older the hot weather helps me."