FOOTBALLERS DON'T WHINE ABOUT THEIR
AGE Romario, Alan Shearer and Alessandro del Piero have all proved that age is no deterrent when it comes to
scoring goals. Though the buzz surrounding the likes of Rooney, Robben, Robinho and Messi is unmistakable, the senior citizens of
FOOTBALL cannot fade away quietly.
Romario's pivotal role in Brazil's 1994 World Cup truimph looks a distant memeory in the context of his present physical shape. But the 40-year-old striker has lost none of his predatory skills inside the penalty box. He topped Brazilian league scorers' chart playing for hsi beloved Vasco da Gama, the
club where he started his football journey.
Romario can act like a petulant
child with his hatred for training and love for special status. But he can make scoring look a child's play. He is hardly noticeable in a match until one sees the net bulge. The Brazilian is a proof of the adage that forwards are born and not manufactured. Romario is right when he says that he is not done yet-he can score 22 goals in one season.
Though 35-year-old Shearer is not at his best, he has recently notched up a landmark when he equalled Jackie Milburn's all-time club tally. He can announce his retirement for he is being constantly requested to continue for one more year.
Del Piero having become Juventus' leading scorer cannot stop scoring ever since. Aware that his place in the national team is in peril with the emergence of young players, the 32-year-old Italian is fired up for one last hurrah in the 2006 World Cup.
Though Robbie Fowler has a mountain to climb to recapture his
old magic, the Reds manager Rafael Benitez is convinced that he is not taking a pensioner on board-the Englishman had scored 330 matches during his first stint with Liverpool. Fowler's love and passion for Liverpool, Benitez believes, can do the trick. Hope 'God', affectionately called adoring Liverpool fans, is ready to make a statement on the football pitch
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