Fabrizio Ravanelli may not have been the most eye-catching player in the Juventus side that was so successful in Italy and Europe during the 1990s but his passion established him as one of the most popular figures in the game around the globe.

The towering striker, affectionately known as White Feather for his white hair, was in Malta recently as special guest of Juventus Club DOC Malta Cuore Bianconero.

Ravanelli started his career with hometown club Perugia back in 1986, scoring 41 goals in 90 appearances, before spells with Avellino, Casertana and Reggiana.

The turning point came in 1992 when he agreed to sign for Juventus.

“Juventus will always have a special place in my heart,” Ravanelli told The Sunday Times of Malta.

“Since I was a little boy, I was a huge fan of Juventus and I used to go to the stadium with my father to watch them play.

“My first memory dates back to 1976 when Juventus missed out on the scudetto on the final day of the season after a 1-0 defeat to my former team Perugia, with a goal from the great Renato Curi.

“I feel very lucky and privileged to have played for the club I loved and to be able to win so many titles makes this legacy even more special… something that will remain indelible in my mind.”

Ravanelli is fondly remembered for his emblematic goal celebration, covering his head with his shirt and running wildly with open arms.

“It all started in a league match against Napoli in 1994-95,” Ravanelli reminisced.

“Our first half was well below standards that day but coach Marcello Lippi insisted we had to stay focused. He was sure that one of us would produce a moment of magic to win us the match.

“Then, five minutes from time, I latched on to an Alessandro Del Piero pass and hit it first-time with the ball going in via the bar.

“The first reaction was to lift my shirt over my head and run blindly towards Lippi… from that day I continued to celebrate like that every time I scored a goal.”

That 1994-95 campaign was indeed remarkable as Juventus won the league and cup double with Ravanelli contributing with 15 goals. However, his biggest achievement came the following year when he helped Juventus become European champions following a penalty shoot-out win over Ajax.

“Winning the Champions Cup is the dream of every player,” Ravanelli, who scored against Ajax in that final at Rome’s Stadio Olimpico, said.

In 1996, Ravanelli left Italy to join Middlesbrough in the Premier League. He could not have hoped for a better start to life in England after scoring a hat-trick in an opening day 3-3 draw against Liverpool at the Riverside Stadium.

“My debut for Middlesbrough was incredible,” he said. “They told me that, a few months ago, I was voted as the foreign player with the best debut ever in the English league and that fills me with great pride.

The first reaction was to lift my shirt over my head and run blindly towards Lippi…

“I think I did very well at Middlesbrough as it’s not easy to join a very modest team and score 34 goals in one season. To this day, the Middlesbrough fans still remember me with great fondness.”

After just one season with Boro, Ravanelli moved to Marseille, Lazio and back to England to play for Derby County. He also had a short stint in Scotland with Dundee and played for first-love Perugia in his final year, 2004-05.

Ravanelli played with a host of champion players but singles out Gianluca Vialli as the one who inspired him most.

“I always loved centre-forwards who put themselves at their team-mates’ disposal and Vialli was a clear example. He had a great work-rate and I learned a lot from him during our days together at Juventus,” Ravanelli, 47, said.

The Bianconeri have just claimed their fifth successive Serie A title but Ravanelli believes that the current team, coached by Massimiliano Allegri, are not as strong as the Juve side he played for in the early 1990s.

“Five league titles in a row is an incredible feat,” Ravanelli said.

“However, we all know that Juventus didn’t have much opposition this season. Roma only came to life in the last few weeks, Inter struggled after the new year and Milan were never in the reckoning.

“Napoli had a great season with coach Maurizio Sarri but failed to keep the pace with Juventus.

“On the other hand, during my time competition in Serie A was a lot higher. All major contenders were much stronger than those of today but the quality in our team at Juve was surely higher than the rest.”

Ravanelli, however, believes that Juventus are not that far away from ending their wait for a Champions League title.

Since beating Ajax in 1996, they lost four finals against Borussia Dortmund (1997), Real Madrid (1998), Milan (2003) and Barcelona (2015).

“To challenge regularly in Europe you need to invest heavily in the squad like Barcelona, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich do every year,” he said.

“Some critics had the impression that Juventus do not have enough quality.

“But, reaching the final in 2015 and this year’s performance, where they were so close to eliminating Bayern, indicates that Juve are moving in the right direction.

“I think the fans need to be patient with coach Allegri who is doing an excellent job.

“The club officials are also very meticulous in the way they operate and that makes me believe Juventus will lift the European Cup in the near future.”

Coaching ambition

On a personal note, Ravanelli still harbours hopes of embarking on a successful career as coach. “My goal is to become a very good coach,” he said, having done his debut on the bench with Ligue 1 club Ajaccio in 2013.

“I think my spell in France was positive. Before I left, the team was still in a safe position and that year we had also managed a couple of good results against top teams like PSG and Lyon.

“I am still receiving offers. A few weeks ago, I received an offer to manage a team for the last few matches of the season but I didn’t accept as I want to be part of a long-term project.

“I have always worked hard to reach my objectives. So, hopefully it will not be long before I’m in management on a steady basis.”