Vincenzo Iaquinta has been fighting for ten years. He cannot find peace — trapped in a vice that tightens a little more each day. “They will end up killing him there in prison.” The father of the former Juventus and Italy striker is accused of being a strategic figure within the Emilian clan networks linked to the Ndrangheta and has been held under the 416-bis article since 2015. “Once they called me ‘world champion.’ Today they consider me a mafioso. It is incredible victimisation. We are paying for our surname — for nothing else.”
“My Name Is Associated with the Ndrangheta for an Infamous Accusation”
Iaquinta does not hide from the question that defines his public life: “It is genuinely sad. I played for fifteen years at the highest level, scored a hat-trick in the Champions League and won a World Cup. And yet my name is associated with the Ndrangheta for an infamous accusation. We have entered a whirlpool larger than ourselves — one that sucks us in with every setback.”
On his own conviction — a suspended sentence for failing to maintain custody of two legally registered firearms transferred to his father: “It was a naivety — but it does not make me a criminal. The guns were legally registered. My father took them without informing the relevant authorities of the transfer. I was cited under Article 7: I allegedly facilitated the clans with legally held weapons. A madness. These are things that ruin your life. I have lived for ten years with a nightmare that seems to have no end.”
“Germany 2006 — Cannavaro Lifting the Cup. I Still Get Goosebumps”
The World Cup that defines his career received its tribute with unaffected emotion. “The sensation when Cannavaro lifted the trophy is indescribable. I still get goosebumps. In thirty seconds, twenty years of sacrifice passed before my eyes.” On the opening match goal: “Kuffour makes an error with a back pass and I pounce — scoring the 2-0. I, who started in amateur football, had scored in a World Cup. I remember my father’s tears after the match. That goal belongs to him and my mother too.”
On the secret of that Italy squad: “Simple — we were happy together. We were a dressing room of madmen, aware that we could reach a dream. And the jokes: Pirlo and Gattuso were like cat and dog — but also Materazzi, De Rossi, and Totti, constantly winding each other up. And we were humble. Many of us came from provincial clubs.”
“Spalletti at Udinese Was Ten Years Ahead of Everyone — the Day He Nearly Broke My Arm”
The Spalletti connection is the passage that will circulate widest across Italian football in the coming days. “What years at Udine! We had a spectacular style of play — Luciano was ten years ahead of everyone. Let me tell you something: in the dressing room I was the arm-wrestling champion, I beat everyone. One day he turned up, challenged me — and nearly broke my arm. Three seconds and done. ‘That’ll stop you acting the fool,’ he told me. That is Spalletti. On the pitch he is a hammer, but off it he knows how to build a group.”
“Conte Called Me Every Day — Not Playing for Him Remains a Regret”
The Antonio Conte chapter of Iaquinta’s career was one of those cruel Italian football stories of proximity without fulfilment. “When Antonio arrived he wanted to keep me. He took me into pre-season and said: ‘Let’s see how it goes.’ I was playing, I was well. Then another injury. Conte called me every day to ask how I was — hoping I would come back. After the final setback he had to give in too. Not having played for him is a regret I carry with me.”
“Buffon Was Impressive — When He Decided Nobody Would Score, You Could Go Take a Shower”
The question of the greatest player he encountered in fifteen years was answered with immediate and total conviction. “I played with many great champions — but if I have to name one it is Buffon. He was extraordinary. When in training he decided that nobody would score that day, you could go take a shower. There was no way — you simply never scored. He is the strongest goalkeeper in history.”
