Javier Zanetti: Mr Loyalty.

Javier Zanetti: Mr Loyalty

Javier Zanetti reached his 757th Seria A appearance, now the all time appearance record holder in Italy. But happiness turned to sadness as the Nerazzurri lost 3-1 at newly promoted Novara on his record breaking night.

The 38 year old has been an Inter player for over 16 years. This type of loyalty is rarely seen in world Football, but this shows that Zanetti loves the club, the fans and the City of Milan. Zanetti has been named 'Captain Fantastic' by the fans for over 12 years since being named Captain in 1999. When the President of Inter, Massimo Morrati took over the club, he made Zanetti his first ever signing. This must be why their relationship has blossomed over the years.

His disciplinary record has been outstanding at Inter, as of 2010, Zanetti had never received a red card in an Inter shirt until a Coppa Italia match at Parma. The man is also extremely versatile on the pitch. He can play in the midfield, full back and centre half...Anywhere the coach wants, Zanetti will go. This is another reason why many in the game admire Zanetti.

When Argentina comes calling, Zanetti stands up. The most capped player in Agentine history, playing in 145 matches and scoring 5 goals in that time. He has played in two World Cups, four Coppa America's and won the silver medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics’ in Atlanta. 

Many managers have nothing but good words to say about Javier. Roy Hodgson, Zanetti's first manager at Internazionale, has been quoted saying, "What immediately struck me about him was his professionalism, his desire to learn and adapt to a new type of football, his total commitment and his focus on the targets he wanted to achieve. So it comes as no surprise to me that he has now made a record number of appearances in a Nerazzurri shirt, and the good news for Inter is that at the current rate he shows no signs of slowing down."

Javier has many achievements in the game, and his has won all of them at the San Siro. With 5 Scudetto's, 4 Coppa Italia's, 4 Italian Super Cup's, 1 European Cup, 1 UEFA Cup and 1 FIFA World Club Cup, he is one of the major successful signing's of Mr Morrati's time as Inter owner.

From working with many world class manager's in his time as a player, I can see Zanetti being a top manager of the Nerazzurri in years to come. But at the age of 38, he can play for many years. I mean Stanley Matthews played until the age of 49. There is no reason why 'El Capitano' can't. Making 902 appearance's for club and country, Javier Zanetti has to be the most experienced footballer in world football at the moment.

Michael Burton.