Tommaso Rocchi turned 34 yesterday, but still has so much to offer Lazio, on a personal note he is looking to join the exclusive list of players to score 100 goals for the club.
To date, he is sat on 99 and desperate to become the fifth person in the club’s history to do so. The next time he finds the back of the net, his name will join Bruno Giordano, Giorgio Chinaglia, Giuseppe Signori and Silvio Piola in the 100 club.
After the 2008-09 season, Rocchi was sat on 83 goals for the club, when he announced that it was his dream to reach the century mark, something that is now within sight - And when it happens, you can expect the Venetian born striker to enjoy his moment of glory.
His love affair with Lazio started in the 2004-05 season, when he joined from Empoli, his initial move was overshadowed as it coincided with the return of Paolo di Canio, but his goals soon impressed the Lazio faithful - especially his goal in the 85th minute against fierce rivals Roma in the famous 3-1 win on the 6th January 2005.
Rocchi, is not just about the goals, he plays for the team and during the 2007-08 season he often captained the side when then-skipper Luciano Zauri was often injured. During the following summer, Zauri moved to Fiorentina and Rocchi duly became the new captain.
During that season as skipper, Rocchi led the team to victory in the Coppa Italia against Sampdoria, despite being the only Lazio player to miss a penalty, but that did not matter as he got to lift the trophy.
Hopefully Tommaso will get to reach his dream shortly, who knows, with the ‘Derby della Capitale’ just around corner, what better game for him to get his 100th goal.
(Scott Balaam)
Twitter: @scottbalaam