Toldo: "Football is a metaphor of life"

MILAN - FrancescoToldo recently took part in a debate on Monday evening, entitled “Philosophy of the Ball, between Technique and Aesthetics”, held at the Triennale di Milano as part of the Milano CalcioCity initiative. After greetings with Triennale President, architect Stefano Boeri, Toldo was then also joined on stage by Demetrio Albertini, coach Davide Nicola and philosophers Giulio Giorello and Massimo Cacciari.

Here’s a brief summary of Francesco Toldo’s interview: “I first started playing on the streets and then at my local parish. As parents, we now have fears about our children and we limit their activities. Unfortunately, that’s how it is in big cities, however, in local provinces children can still play out. The unpredictability of football is part of its beauty. A player’s actions out on the pitch are down to their psychology, form and technical skills. However, we can’t forget that a player is still just a child that enjoys playing. The difference is that they do so out in front of 70,000 fans when instinctive reactions are different for each player.

“Football is the product of a country’s mentality. We are super critical, whereas, in Sweden, they are very sportsmanlike. In Brazil, the love of the game is pure, while in Spain it’s all about technique. I think that the footballing movement has improved a lot over the past few years in Italy. You can see clear progression. Personally, I enjoy football with the same passion and admiration whatever match I am watching – whether that be a game involving kids or the top players of today.

“I don’t like the political aspect of football. Football is a real metaphor of life. You train every day to overcome daily obstacles. I still play with Inter Campus and Inter Forever, looking to retain the great experiences I enjoyed over many years and to preserve and learn more about our history. I like to discuss football with people who are not involved in that environment, those who are not ‘coaches’. This is because they sometimes have a different view. Who’ll win the derby? Inter are further ahead in terms of the make-up of their squad and club planning, however, as we said before, we must also always take into account the unpredictability of football.”