Michel Francois Platini was born on June 21, 1955 and by 11 years old he was playing for the AS Jeouf youth team. At 17 he joined AS Nancy, the club that his father was director of.

Early blooming for Platini

There he developed as well rounded player with impressive passing and free kick skills and managed to win the League 2 Championship in 1975.

He had an impressive run at the Olympics the following year and was named France Footballer of the Year in 1976 and 1977. Platini joined Saint-Etienne in 1979 winning the League 1 championship the same year.

Michel Platini, football legend dribbling

Juventus FC, Balon d’Or and other performances of Platini

His performance at the 1982 World Cup would make him a fan favorite and land him a transfer to the Italian powerhouse Juventus FC. Platini won the Serie A Championship in his first season and in the same year won the first of his three consecutive Balon d’Or Awards. At the 1984 European Championship he delivered two perfect hat tricks and became an integral part in France’s national team.

He netted the winning goal in the 1985 European Cup final against Liverpool, a victory that was marked by the death of 39 fans in a stampede before the game. He and everyone on his team was criticized for celebrating Platini’s goal in such a somber environment, later on stating that the players didn’t understand the magnitude on the day’s event.

Life in football even after retirement

After winning another title with Juventus and helping his national team reach the semifinals in 1986, Platini retired in 1987 at the age of 32. In 2007 he was appointed as the president of the Union of European Football Associaion (UEFA)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *