Dino Zoff: The enduring legacy of Italy's Mr Dependable

• Zoff owns the record for the longest period of time without conceding a goal in international matches

• The former Italy captain is the oldest player ever to win the FIFA World Cup

• The legendary goalkeeper is also the only Italian to win both the World Cup and the European Championship

Jayanta Oinam

Some legends are greater than we remember. One such legend is Dino Zoff. The former Italy goalkeeper remains the oldest captain to lift the FIFA World Cup trophy, at the ripe age of 40. There are also numerous other enviable feats. But his name, as is often the case with his elk, fails to evoke instant recognition. That's football -- a game won by goals, by default. So thus, the recognition for the goalscorers. The very subjective "greatest players" are the ones with the most goals, not the ones with the most saves. But, the ones who are making this game alive, in every single contest, are goalkeepers -- the antithesis of goalscorers. And, Dino Zoff played his part, by leaving an unparalleled legacy, with his veritable goalkeeping talent.

Known for his calm and composed presence under the bar, Zoff sure set the benchmark for Italian goalkeeping -- a line that boasts such names as Filippo Galli, Stefano Tacconi, Walter Zenga, Francesco Toldo, Gianluca Pagliuca, Angelo Peruzzi, Sebastiano Rossi, Gianluigi Buffon, and Gianluigi Donnarumma. Such was Zoff's influence on Italian football that in 2004, two decades after his retirement, he was named the country's golden player of the past 50 years. The same can be said about his influence on the global stage. After all, he still holds the record for the longest playing time without conceding a goal in international tournaments -- a whopping 1,142 minutes (between 1972 and 1974). By that consistency alone, Zoff deserves a place in the pantheon of football gods. Born in the nondescript Gorizia commune of Mariano del Friuli, in north-eastern Italy in 1942, Dino Zoff started his career Udinese, having reportedly failed to join Inter Milan, then Juventus due to his short stature. But, it was in Turin where the former Italy captain won nine major titles in club football, including six Serie A crowns. All those trophies pale in comparison when compared to his achievement with the national team, the Azzurri; not necessarily on the count though. In 1982, leading from the front with two clean sheets, he captained Italy to their third FIFA World Cup title with a victory against West Germany in the Santiago Bernabeu final. But, what many believed to be the defining moment of Italy's title-winning campaign was Zoff's miraculous goal-line save in the dying minutes of their final second group stage match against Brazil. With one minute left, Zoff, already 40, produced a sensational leap to block Oscar's header from close range and deny Brazil the equaliser. The 3-2 win helped Italy book a semi-final place as the winners of Group C, which also featured defending champions Argentina. In the semis, they beat Poland 2-0 at Camp Nou. Zoff was named the best goalkeeper of the tournament. He was Italy’s ‘Mr Dependable’.

Besides being the oldest player to win the FIFA World Cup, he replicated the feat achieved by compatriot Gianpiero Combi in 1934, that of a goalkeeper leading a World Cup-winning side. But, his first title with the national team came 14 years earlier when the Azurri lifted their first continental title with a replay win against Yugoslavia in the Rome final of the UEFA Euro 1968. Two years later, he watched Italy lose to Brazil in the World Cup final from the bench with Enrico Albertosi donning the No.1 jersey at Estadio Azteca, in Mexico City. Voted the third greatest goalkeeper of the 20th century by the IFFHS (International Federation of Football History & Statistics), behind Lev Yashin of Russia and Gordon Banks of England, Dino Zoff came close to becoming only the second goalkeeper to win the Ballon d'Or in 1973, losing out to Dutch Johan Cruyff. Nonetheless, his trophy hunt with Juventus continued. For the Old Lady, he turned up 330 times, from 1972 to 1983. Before that, he was the chief custodian at Mantova (1963 to 1967) and Napoli (1967 to 1972). Yes, he didn't score a single goal during his career, which also included 112 matches for Italy, from 1968 to 1983. After retirement, he managed Juventus, Lazio, Fiorentina and the Italian national team with moderate success. He guided Juventus to Coppa Italia and UEFA Cup triumphs, and was at the helm when the Azzurri lost to France in the UEFA Euro 2000 final. By the time Dinp Zoff hung his gloves as a player, he had already owned a number of Serie A records, including most appearances (570), longest run without conceding a goal (903 mins) and most consecutive appearances (332). Of course, one of his scions, Gianluigi Buffon has since broken the first two records. For them, consistency is their greatness. And, no matter how imperceptible their names sound, take them out of football, then there will be massive holes.