His decision to sign for the team as a free agent in September of 2000 was the most important moment in the history of Brescia Calcio.

It’s a footballing crime that Roberto Baggio is most often remembered by many as the player who skied a decisive penalty in the 1994 World Cup final against Brazil. 

It’s rare, these days, to hear many talking about the Italian forward’s silky dribbling - the ball seemingly glued to his boot; or his incisive finishing inside or out the box; or even how he almost single-handedly carried that Italian team to the final in the first place. As a former winner of the Ballon d’Or in 1993 and runner up the following year, eyebrows were certainly raised when, in 2000, he rejected offers from various clubs across Europe - including Barcelona and Premier League clubs - to join newly promoted Brescia, a club who holds the record for most seasons and consecutive seasons in the Italian second division. 

The obvious question: why did the great Roberto Baggio decide to spend the twilight of his career with Brescia, a club whose perennial goal was to avoid relegation from Serie A… and what happened during his four years there?

Founded in 1911, Brescia are considered a ‘provincial’ club in Italy and are not particularly classed as Serie A regulars. The team have enjoyed 23 seasons in the top-flight and 63 in the second division and, aside from a handful of Serie B division titles, their greatest achievement was an Anglo-Italian Cup in 1993/94. In the season prior to Baggio’s arrival, Brescia were promoted to Serie A after finishing third, but weren’t expected to remain for very long, with many pipping them to go straight back down 12 months later.

So it’s not a reach to say that Baggio’s decision to sign for the team as a free agent in September of 2000 was the most important moment in the history of Brescia Calcio. Not only had the club added one of the most important players of his generation, but they also managed to make the city of Brescia, nestled in the North-Eastern region of Lombardy significantly more well-known abroad than it ever had been before.

Baggio immediately was given the captain’s armband upon joining and he made his personal goal very clear: a call up for the 2002 World Cup. He made his debut in a rather anonymous 0-0 Coppa Italia match against his former side Juventus and began working hard, wanting to prove himself after a fairly lacklustre spell with Inter.

He didn’t score his first goal for the club until February 2001, when he netted a brace against his beloved playground Fiorentina, the club he famously left for Juventus early on his career.

His next goal, in a 1-1 draw with Juventus less than two months later, would prove to become one of his most iconic. On a sunny spring Sunday afternoon in Turin, a 21-year-old Andrea Pirlo pinged one of his trademark long balls from the halfway line up to the raging maestro Baggio, who deftly controlled the ball on the laces of his boot before rounding a panicked looking Edwin van der Sar to find the back of the net, a moment of brilliance that only lasted three seconds.

Baggio would go on to score 10 goals and provide 10 assists in 25 league appearances that season, helping his side finish eighth in Serie A, their highest ever top-flight finish. Their efforts meant that Brescia qualified for the following season’s Intertoto Cup, their first ever appearance in a UEFA European competition.

Brescia finished as runners up in that tournament, losing to Paris Saint-Germain 1-1 on aggregate after a two-legged final, with Baggio predictably being the Lombard side’s goalscorer. 

The following season was an incredibly difficult one for the 34-year-old Baggio. After scoring eight goals in the first nine Serie A matches, his flying start was halted by an ACL tear in a 3-2 win over Venezia, forcing him to the sidelines for four months. After his return, Baggio tore the meniscus in his left knee, which forced him to miss another two-and-a-half months. The Italian forward’s dream of representing the Azzurri one last time on the world stage looked to be tragically slipping away from him.

Baggio was back in time for the final three league games of the season and scored a brace against Fiorentina on his return, before scoring in a 3-0 win over Bologna in the final game of the season, helping a team that also contained a certain Pep Guardiola avoid relegation. The Italian forward had done everything he could to try and regain his fitness in time for that summer’s World Cup but, despite public backing, coach Giovanni Trapattoni decided not to call him up for the Azzurri squad. Baggio was heartbroken.

The legendary forward briefly threatened the idea of retirement, before deciding to continue for a little longer, aiming to score more than 200 goals in Serie A.

Baggio’s final years with Brescia saw him continue his strong performances and he remained the jewel of both the team and the city, scoring 12 goals in the 2003/04 season, again helping the club finish eighth in Serie A.

His final season, the swan-song of his career, was an emotional one for the player, the club and their fans. Baggio consistently found the back of the net throughout the campaign, eventually surpassing the 200 goal objective he’d set himself. He would retire with 205 Serie A goals in total.

His last game for Brescia came on 16th May 2004 in one of the most suitable locations for such a moment, in the San Siro against AC Milan. A 37-year-old Baggio provided an assist in the match, before coming off in the 88th minute, prompting the 80,000 fans present to deliver to him a well-deserved standing ovation.

In his four years with the Lombard club, Baggio scored 46 goals in 101 appearances. Following his departure, the team instantly dropped back into Serie B. But his time at Brescia was so much more than just his goals or the team’s position in the league. 

It was about a former icon of the game proving himself with an understated and relatively forgettable provincial side; being their guiding talisman as they achieved their greatest successes in over a century. It was redemption. Redemption for a player who suffered endless difficulties, setbacks and injuries. Redemption for a penalty kick that broke the hearts of all in his nation. 

Baggio played for the three biggest Italian clubs: Juventus, AC Milan and Inter; he scored the most league goals for Brescia. At every other club Baggio found opposition, frustration and isolation, but with Brescia he was treated as a divine figure, a guardian angel sent from footballing heaven to bless the team with his presence. And bless them he did.

Apollo Heyes is a journalist and the Head Writer for The Laziali, the English home of S.S. Lazio.