Comment: Just Face It, Pippo Inzaghi Is A Legend

THE 300 CLUB Modern striking greats of European football

Alan Shearer (1988-2006) Appearances: 807 Goals: 422 Goals per game: 0.52

Henrik Larsson (1988-) Appearances: 801 Goals: 415 Goals per game: 0.52

Ronaldo (1993-) Appearances: 548* Goals: 381* Goals per game: 0.70

Raul (1994-) Appearances: 798* Goals: 358* Goals per game: 0.44

Ruud van Nistelrooy (1993-) Appearances: 565* Goals: 348* Goals per game: 0.62

Gabriel Batistuta (1988-2005) Appearances: 495 Goals: 302 Goals per game: 0.61

Filippo Inzaghi (1991-) Appearances: 632* Goals: 300* Goals per game: 0.47

Alessandro Del Piero, David Trezeguet, Thierry Henry (currently on 296), Michael Owen and more haven't made it and most are unlikely to do so. There are even those with years ahead of them, such as David Villa, Fernando Torres, Samuel Eto'o, Wayne Rooney and Zlatan Ibrahimovic who may be hard-pressed to hit the 300 mark before they hang up their boots. Such a milestone at the highest level is the hallmark of a world class striker.

What makes Pippo special is that he has broken into the club without the skill of Ronaldo, the appearances and consistency of Raul, the power of Batistuta or playing at a slightly lower level like Shearer or Larsson (who to his credit, had brilliant spells with Barcelona and Manchester United). Pippo is comparable to Ruud for his reliance on his instincts rather than physical prowess or even any kind of exceptional technical ability.

He doesn't score quite at the same incredible rate as the Dutchman, but that should not detract from the incredible threat he poses up front. Jamie Carragher, one of the best blocking, marking, all-action defenders around today has said that he has never come across a player harder to mark than Inzaghi. This is a man who has played against Del Piero, Raul and Eto'o - not to mention that he played against Henry and Ruud several times when the two of them were in the Premier League. The unflappable Alessandro Nesta also singled out Inzaghi, now his team-mate, as the most difficult striker he had ever played against.

Goal.com's very own Carlo Garganese has hailed the record-breaking hit-man, declaring, "There is not a player in the history of the game with better movement, anticipation and penalty box intelligence than Inzaghi." To be the best of your time is one thing, to be considered the best of all time, in any facet, is phenomenal. He has for so long been critcised for the amount of times he is caught offside, but this does not always equate to any kind of laziness, but a willingness - an insistence - to play right on the edge. It is what makes the difference.

Inzaghi is a crafty character, whose sole purpose in life is to score goals, much like van Nistelrooy, but what puts him in his very own class is his passion. None of the 300 club are, or were, quite as obsessed as the Italian about finding the back of the net. He apparently even carries around a notebook filled with self-drawn diagrams of many of his goals. What he has lacked in ability, he has compensated for with his hunger to succeed. He is the closest thing to an 'honourable cheat' as you will ever find; having spent his entire career as a forward in Serie A, he has only known one way of playing and it has always been a selfish, by any means necessary kind of way, but to take as much pride in every goal at 35 as he did during his humble beginnings at 18 shows, in part, what has made him a champion throughout his career.

He never has, nor ever will draw the crowds, but he is equally unique and integral to those that do. He is a specialist, a spoiler, who can't offer you much variety or spectacle, but has the outstanding and unwavering ability to do what he does better than anybody. No coach in their right mind would turn down having a player of his mould and of his calibre in their squad list every week. Having that option is indispensable - it's world class - and it wins matches in this increasingly results-driven era of the beautiful game.

Pippo wasn't a player that arrived on the world football scene with a bang. He was, as most of his ilk have been, a late bloomer. He spent successive years being loaned out by his hometown club Piacenza, but after one good season with them, made his move to the big time with Parma - at the time one of Serie A's strongest sides - but was unable to make an impact. Atalanta snapped him up and he spent another single season there, where he announced himself as a force to be reckoned with, finishing the season as Capocannoniere with 24 goals, earning a call-up to the Azzurri and being signed by Marcello Lippi for Juventus that summer.

He won the league in his first season, but when Lippi's hiatus began, with Carlo Ancelotti his replacement, Juve's potency as a team was in decline, despite Pippo continuing to smash in the goals. Lippi soon made his infamous return to the Old Lady, all the better for Carletto to find his way to Milan. This merry-go-round saw Pippo follow the portly coach to San Siro, where he has since spent part of his prime and also carved out a serene swansong, scoring goal after goal and racking up another Scudetto, as well as two Champions League titles, the second of which was won with him starring as the Avenger, scoring both goals in a redemptive win over Liverpool, who infamously snatched victory from Milan's grasp in the 2005 final.

The fact that 95 per cent of Inzaghi's game is in his head has played to his advantage. His capabilities have barely dwindled despite his age, while the likes of Ronaldo, Henry and even Raul have markedly declined in recent years. Inzaghi will always be a footballer.

After hitting the milestone, he said, "I will continue [my career] until my fitness will no longer be the same." He poignantly added, "I don’t see too many great strikers around," and it's true: he is one of the last of a dying breed, and his re-introduction into the Rossoneri fold has only proven that point, improving the team leaps and bounds in the process. For all Pato's exuberance and talent, he is still at least five years from having anything resembling Pippo's goal-scoring ability. Milan have scored eight in their last two games and SuperPippo has scored five of them. He had a similar run at the back-end of last season and was inexplicably overlooked for Roberto Donadoni's EURO 2008 squad, and an impotent Italy paid the price where they otherwise may not have done.

Much like David Beckham, who is now his team-mate at San Siro, as long as Pippo is playing, he should always be an option, because he has that X-factor. Providing he stays fit, in all seriousness, there is no reason he couldn't even travel to South Africa in 2010 as a 37-year-old super-sub; particularly if he's still capable of producing bursts of form such as this one. And who would bet against that?

Throughout his career, Inzaghi has been written off as overrated - in truth, it seems he has been quite the opposite. There comes a time when good or bad luck ceases to enter the equation, as does any lack of ability. The more you play, win and prove key in doing so, you're nothing short of a quality player. When you do it for so long, at such a high level and with such unmistakable intensity and charisma, you are nothing short of a legend.

Sulmaan Ahmad, Goal.com