Juventus fans used to call him ‘The Warrior of the World’.
Pavel Nedved was beloved at every club he represented in his 19-year footballing career. Starting off at Dukla Prague, he then moved to city rivals Sparta before Lazio brought him to Italy’s Serie A.
He spent five seasons in Rome and helped Lazio to a league title, two Italian Cups and Uefa Super Cup and Cup Winners’ Cup trophies. The ‘Old Lady’ of Juventus came calling in 2001 and, with Nedved getting better with age, he spent eight seasons there.
Juve were relegated in 2006, due to the Calciopoli bribery scandal, but Nedved was one of a few senior stars that committed to staying on at the club to help them gain immediate promotion. The club recognised his loyalty and service by making him a vice chairman after he retired.
At the peak of his powers, there were few better midfielders in the world than Nedved. He began his career as a left winger but ended up as an indefatigable central midfielder and one that chipped in with his fair share of goals and assists.
In 2003, Nedved claimed the Ballon d’Or as the world’s best player – as voted for by his peers – and was well clear of Thierry Henry and Paolo Maldini in second and third place.
In an interview with Eurosport, Nedved expressed his one lingering regret from a glittering football career. He said:
“A regret? That I never played for Manchester United, I’d have liked that. The transfer was never on the table though, there was only Chelsea.
“I liked the generation of Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs, who I admired. I was a little bit jealous of Karel Poborsky who played in Manchester and experienced great matches. I know he still feels that love.”
Nedved would have been in his early 30s when Roy Keane parted ways with United and you don’t even need hindsight to see what a fantastic capture his would have been. Instead, Alex Ferguson and United tried to replace Keane on the cheap with the likes of Liam Miller, Eric Djemba-Djemba and Alan Smith. That trio did not make the cut, nor have many others that followed.
United’s best move, though, would have surely been bringing Nedved in during the summer Juventus were in pursuit. Had they made the jump, it could have led to United going Giggs, Scholes, Keane, Beckham with Nedved just off newly-acquired striker Ruud van Nistelrooy. Yikes.
