Cristian Volpato is Italian football’s make-good to Australia, a peace offering set to soothe 20 years of pain. The winger flipped allegiances so he could represent the Socceroos on the eve of the World Cup, but his career was shaped by those responsible for perhaps the greatest heartache of Australian football.
In the closest the Socceroos have come to a World Cup knockout victory, the team remembered as the “golden generation” and led by Mark Viduka were headed for extra time in 2006 against Italy when Fabio Grosso won a penalty, converted by Francesco Totti, for the eventual champions.
