LONDON: It does not necessarily follow that a man who is smart on the pitch is bright in the brain. However, Gianfranco Zola, the most endearing and enduring of the 500 foreign players who have flooded into England's Premiership club football this past decade, is gifted in all departments.
As a player, he darts between defenders with zest and fine technique, a dancer among footballers. He is a 37-year-old who has not outgrown the joy of a seven-year-old. This season, fearing it might be his last, he was determined to go out with a flourish, chasing every ball, scoring every goal he could.
