Stories of the faithful: there is no greater heartthrob of AS Roma than Francesco Totti

Francesco Totti was AS Roma’s greatest legend and one of the biggest heartthrobs in world football. The Italian striker dedicated his entire career to the Roman team and is deservedly remembered fondly by the club’s fans.

Tales of the Faithful is a series on Ruik that follows players who have dedicated all or the vast majority of their careers to one club. In today’s edition, we take a look at AS Roma striker Francesco Totti.

Since his youth at AS Roma

Francesco Totti’s journey to AS Roma was relatively quick. He started football at the age of seven at a small club called Fortitudo, where he spent just one year. For the next two years he was a player at Trastevere, then he belonged to Lodigiani until the age of thirteen.

The young Totti impressed so much with his performances that he was soon snapped up by AS Roma. At the age of thirteen, he made the biggest transfer of his career, something he could not have known at the time. He retired from the same club 28 years later.

One of the greatest talents of his generation

Francesco Totti stood out among the rest with his unusual footballing mindset and precise kicking technique. Many fans even consider him the best Italian player of all time.

His performances helped AS Roma to win the 2001 league title, as well as two Italian Super Cup victories and two domestic cup trophies. But in addition to team success, Totti also collected individual trophies.

He won eleven individual awards in the Gran Galá del Calcio, the Serie A awards poll. He has also won a number of successes at national team level.

But Totti is most respected by the fans for his dedication to the club. Although he has had countless offers on the table, even to better clubs, he has never left his team. This is why he is the top scorer in the club’s history with 250 goals.

National team leader

The Italian striker has also managed to make his mark in the national team. He has the 2006 World Cup title and the 2000 European Championship runner-up title to his name. In both championships he was even selected in the ideal eleven of each tournament.

Francesco Totti’s popularity is shown by the award for Europe’s most popular player, given to him in 2011 by the International Federation of Football Historians and Statisticians. However, he was still understandably most popular among club fans.

End of career

Everything comes to an end, and the same was also true for Francesco Totti’s career. He played his last game on 28 May 2017 against Genoa at the incredible age of forty.

Totti wanted to dedicate his life after his career to his beloved club as well, so immediately after the end of his active playing career, he joined the management of AS Roma.

He served as a director since 2017, but only lasted in this position until June 2019. After disagreements with the club president, he resigned from his position and left his club.

Source: Livesport