THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME

Paolo Favero was a staunch fan of Juventus from the inside out. He had supported the Turin-based club since childhood when players like Zinedine Zidane and Alessandro Del Piero were in their prime. He had also witnessed the fall of Juventus in 2006 due to the Calciopoli Scandal.

During the investigations, the Juventus managing director at the time was found guilty of having an exclusive relationship with referee designations, which allowed the director to exert his influence while handpicking referees for the matches. The Juventus club director also faced accusations of wielding his power over players and other clubs. And that was what specifically sealed the club's relegation to the lower Serie B division in 2006.

At that time, Paolo's mood had been at the lowest it had ever been due to the fall of Juventus. The sorrow had been too much for him, and he had been about to retire from supporting football. But luckily for him, the club had turned over a new leaf and quickly made many crucial reshuffles before he could follow through with the decision.

Those reshuffles worked wonders in a short time, and the club managed to rise from the ashes in a short period. Juventus returned to the top Serie A league after a single season before claiming the 3rd spot and qualifying for the Champions League. Things worked out well starting from then, and Juventus began dominating Italian football again for the next couple of seasons.

But all that couldn't excite Paolo. His belief in his club was not as firm as before, as he feared the scandal would happen again. But in 2010, Juventus put his heart at ease again by appointing the revolutionary Andrea Agnelli as the chairman and his far-sighted right-hand man, Fabio Paratici, as the sporting director.

The two men worked their magic in a short period. They hired the tactical and passionate coach, Antonio Conte, and also brought in a fresh stock of talented players, like Andrea Pirlo and Paul Pogba -- who helped the club to reclaim its position at the top of the Scudetto. But that was not the end of the pleasant surprises they could bring to the passionate Juventus fans.

On that Monday in July 2014, they had again executed their magic and finalized the signing of Zachary Bemba, the phenomenal 19-year-old playmaker who had destroyed Juventus the previous season. They had announced the news on the Juventus website, causing staunch Juventus fanatics like Paolo Favero to experience waves of unforgettable bliss. It was as if they had experienced the most enjoyable wet dream.

"Oh, my God, Jesus on a wooden bicycle!" Paolo Favero exclaimed as he saw the headline about Zachary Bemba. "At long last, the club has finalized this move. What a pleasant surprise!"

As a staunch fan of the Old Lady, Paolo Favero couldn't keep a lead on the excitement bubbling in his heart while reading through the article on his computer. He leaned back in his comfy chair and pinched his arm to confirm that he wasn't dreaming. Then, he focused back on his laptop's screen and re-read the piece again to ascertain that it was indeed the truth.

"What has got you grinning from ear to ear, dear?" His wife, who had settled on a nearby sofa to watch a soap opera, asked suddenly. "Look at yourself. Your smile resembles that of a dead cow! You're even almost jumping up from that chair! Did you win the lottery?"

After hearing the question, Paolo's grin widened even further, and he couldn't help but let out a hearty chuckle the next second. He laughed so hard that his shoulders quivered and trembled. His eyes misted as his mood shot through his apartment's roof and soared into the night skies of Turin.

"Well, dear!" his wife pressed again, her eyes filled with worry. "What's up? Why are you so happy today?"

Paolo exerted all his willpower to calm himself down before turning to face his beautiful wife. He breathed in deeply before saying, "He has finally arrived."

Paolo's wife's eyes blanked out for a moment in confusion. "He has arrived!" She mumbled, glancing at her husband with a strange expression. "Who has arrived? The Messiah? Jesus or his mother?"

"Eh!" It was Paolo's turn to blank out for the moment. Then, his expression also turned strange, and he asked, "Dear! Why is it that you're always thinking about religion and so on? Don't you ever think about anything else?"

"Well, I thought that only the return of the Messiah could make you that excited," the wife remarked. "But it seems I'm wrong. So, tell me what has made you that excited. Stop being mysterious."

Paolo grinned again and locked eyes with his wife. "The man himself has arrived in Turin today. He has already gone through the medical and signed the contract. The club will unveil him tomorrow at the Juventus stadium. Oh, my god! Don't wake me up if I'm dreaming." He spoke at the pace of a machine gun. He could even give the speedy rapper - Busta Rhymes a run for his money with his fast flow in the Italian language.

"Oh, so this is about football!" His wife sighed, clearly losing interest. "Dear! You should focus less on football and concentrate on..."

Paolo's wife stopped mid-sentence as her two teenage twin sons came rushing into the living room. They seemed out of breath as they raced past the sofas toward their dad. "Boys!" She yelled. "What are you two doing here? Aren't you supposed to be in the study working on your holiday assignments?"

"Ah, mom!" One of the twins said, pausing in his step and smiling awkwardly. "We'll finish the assignments later. Let's first confirm something with dad." Without waiting for their mom to respond, they rushed forward and surrounded their sorry example of a father.

"Dad!" One of the twins shouted, his eyes glittering. "Has he really arrived? Has he really signed the contract?"

Their father nodded, still grinning like a Cheshire cat. "He completed the medical today morning and signed the contract in the afternoon. As we speak, he's officially already a Juventus player. He will play for us next season."

"Oh, my God! He's finally here." The twin boys gave a small cheer as their expressions turned into mirror images of that outlining their father's face.

Paolo's wife creased a brow and suddenly chipped in, "Congratulations to you all. You've piqued my curiosity. Who are you guys talking about?"

"Who else?" The twins fired back in unison, sounding impatient. "Of course, it's the one and only Zachary Bemba. He's the ball wizard Juventus has been chasing for the past three months."

"Damn!" Their mother exclaimed. "How are you two so in sync when replying? You guys must have practiced that a couple of times."

The boys shrugged in response and ignored their mother. They once again returned their focus to their dad. "What's his shirt number?" One of the twins hurriedly asked.

"Well," the dad said, "They haven't announced the shirt number yet. The club officials said they would reveal it during the unveiling ceremony at the Juventus stadium tomorrow."

"The unveiling ceremony is tomorrow?" Another twin asked, his eyes flickering with anticipation.

"Yes, it is."

"Can we go?" The twins asked in unison that time around. "Please, can we go?"

"That's a big NO," their mother was the first to reply. "You're not going anywhere before completing your holiday assignments."

"Dad!" The boys ignored their mother and glanced at their father with puppy eyes.

Paolo Favero sighed and glanced at his wife. "Dear!" He said, his tone meek. "Tomorrow is a big occasion for the football team they support. Let's allow them to go and watch Zachary Bemba's unveiling ceremony. It'll be over in only a couple of hours, and they can return and focus on their holiday assignments with renewed intensity. Isn't that right, boys?" He turned toward his sons with a fierce glare.

"Yes, yes," the two boys replied, nodding like hens pecking grain. "We promise to focus only on our holiday assignments when we return from the unveiling ceremony."

"Paolo!" The wife sighed, shaking her head. "You're spoiling them again."

"Dear," Paolo said in a pleading tone. "All young boys in Turin love football and support Juventus. If our two boys miss the unveiling ceremony tomorrow, they will be like outsiders when they return to school. They won't be able to talk to their friends about the biggest event of Juventus' transfer window..."

Paolo continued spewing out meaningless rubbish to convince his wife. And after a couple of minutes, his wife relented and allowed the boys to attend the unveiling ceremony the following day. But that was after making them promise to spend the entire week focusing on their holiday assignments.

"Ole, ole, ole, ole..." The boys began cheering excitedly after hearing their mother's verdict. There was even a swagger in their steps as they rushed back to their bedroom.

-----

Unbeknownst to the Favero family, similar scenes were happening in homesteads all over Turin that evening. Kids begged their mothers to allow them to attend Zachary's unveiling ceremony, while fathers called their bosses and gave excuses of sickness since they didn't want to miss the event. Even wives and working young ladies threw caution to the wind and decided to attend the unveiling ceremony. That was the magnitude of the excitement caused by Juventus' sudden announcement of Zachary's official arrival in Turin.

****  ****