Soccer Legend Who Shares Similarities With Messi Still Holds Unique Record In Juventus

A legendary left-footed player who played like Lionel Messi still holds a unique record in Juventus.

In the present day, Serie A giants Juventus is ruled by five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo. It didn’t take long for Ronaldo to take over Serie A as he managed to quickly set multiple records for the Old Lady. However, several decades ago, Juventus was led by a certain Omar Sivori, a goal scorer who was said to have a lot of similarities with Messi.

In a recent report from Sports-Nova, before Messi, Carlos Tevez and even before Diego Maradona dominated the beautiful sport, Sivori was the name everybody was talking about. Aside from being an Argentine like Messi, Sivori was also left-footed, great dribbler and was a bit small.

Born and raised in Buenos Aires, Sivori became heavily interested in soccer at a young age. The threats of World War 2 all over the world did not stop the young Sivori to pursue his dreams. He soon was scouted by River Plate, one of the biggest clubs in Argentina at the time. And because of his remarkable skills on the pitch and incredible work rate, he got a chance to play for the first team.

Sivori instantly became a fan favorite. He helped River Plate win the Argentine Primera Division in 1955. The prolific goal scorer continued to improve his game and in the following year, Sivori got more minutes and became the best player in the club. In the next season, the then 21-years-old was signed by Juventus, via a world-record transfer fee.

It was in Juve where Sivori played alongside Welshman John Charles. The pair played magnificently and made Juventus unbeatable under their leadership and won the 1957-58 Serie A title. Sivori’s hard work eventually paid off and was hailed “European Footballer of The Year” of the prestigious Ballon d’Or in 1961.

Sivori was then appointed to captain the Old Lady in 1963 but did not win anymore Championships or trophies. Conflicts started to ruin his relationship with the club’s management and in the 1964-65 season, Sivori left the club after a disagreement with new coach Heriberto Herrera.

Nevertheless, Sivori left an incredible record at Juventus. He scored 167 goals in 253 appearances in all competitions, making him the club’s fifth highest goalscorer of all time. What’s even more interesting is that Sivori still holds the unique record for most Juventus goals (6 goals) in a single league game, during the 9-1 victory against the formidable Inter Milan.