Andrea Pirlo reveals that after the Champions League Final lost to Liverpool in 2005 he 'felt like quitting', whilst he talks of Juventus in Europe today.
The Metronomo Bresciano holds two Champions League titles to his name, but famously lost the 2005 edition in Istanbul, when the Reds managed to wipe out a 3-0 lead by the Rossoneri and take the game into penalties.
“That night I learnt that destiny in football can be very whimsical,” he said, in a long interview with ABC.
Andrea Pirlo reveals that after the Champions League Final lost to Liverpool in 2005 he 'felt like quitting', whilst he talks of Juventus in Europe today.
The Metronomo Bresciano holds two Champions League titles to his name, but famously lost the 2005 edition in Istanbul, when the Reds managed to wipe out a 3-0 lead by the Rossoneri and take the game into penalties.
“That night I learnt that destiny in football can be very whimsical,” he said, in a long interview with ABC.
“Not only did they draw level from a 3-0 deficit in seven minutes, but [goalkeeper Jerzy] Dudek blocked a killer shot by [Andriy] Shevchenko in the box with his eyes closed.
“There are things you just can't fight against. After that game I felt like quitting football.
“Fortunately, two years later this blessed sport returned to us in Athens what was taken from us in Istanbul. Winning my second Champions League was special.
“That being said, Kaká's Ballon d'Or in 2007 was not mine to pass. He achieved it by his own merits.
“That prize will always go to a player who scores, one who makes the difference. Kaká did that in his day, the way that Cristiano [Ronaldo] and [Lionel] Messi are doing it now.
“If Xavi or [Andres] Iniesta never won it, I don't think I deserve it either.
“But Paul Pogba could be the future of Juventus. He has it all: physique, technique and an eye for the goal. He is perfect. He can mark an era.”
In spite of having the Frenchman and himself in the midfield, however, Pirlo's Bianconeri have struggled in the Champions League. The Italian international was not sure how to explain this.
“It isn't a simple question. In the Champions League there are many factors that come into play: chance, the right physical condition at the right time, the match-ups…
“That's why winning a Champions League is so hard. The knock-out round against Borussia [Dortmund on February 24] will tell us what we're truly made of.
“But if we make it to the next game, I'd rather not cross paths with [Real] Madrid. I only want to encounter them in the final.”
The 35-year-old also looked back on his much-discussed transfer from Milan to Juventus in 2011.
“After a decade with Milan I needed a change of scenes. My career called for new incentives. Something inside me wasn't working. I had bad feelings.
“Milan were going through a very rough patch and my body was asking me to return to victory, to be in a team that had aspirations in every field.
“That's when Juventus came along. It was the best thing that could have happened. We won the Scudetto three times in a row and we're on the path to winning the fourth.”
But Pirlo denied all rumours that his current Coach Max Allegri had anything to do with his departure from il Diavolo.
“That's a lie. Neither Allegri nor anyone else in Milan was responsible for my decision to leave.
“It was my own choice. I needed to get out of there to prove to myself, as well as to my fans, that I was still capable of playing football.”