Inter Forever, Ruben Sosa: "The secret to my free kicks..."

MILAN – Ah, what a strike Ruben Sosa had on him. On page 321 of the Manuale del calcio, his photo can be found under the following definition: a thunderous strike from distance. The former Nerazzurri striker, an incredible talent and unique character, sees fit to mention a few things when it comes to Inter, including his love for the club and the fact the team he played in “was the strongest squad I was ever part of. I feel so close to the fans, which is probably why I still feel a great amount of affection towards the club and the wonderful Nerazzurri colours.”

His free kicks, which soared towards goal like rockets? “My secret? The truth is I loved to train. I practised shooting over and over again at Appiano. I also watched how others took them: Enzo Francescoli, for example, was absolutely fantastic and a player who I played with when I turned out for the Uruguayan National Team. My favourite place to take free kicks was about 30-35 metres from goal – a player would lay the ball off for me and I would put my foot through it. Boom.”

As a specialist in this field, we asked Ruben to name his top three free kick takers: “I would say Maradona, Roberto Carlos and Roberto Baggio. What Diego could do was incredible. If he didn’t score he would hit the crossbar. Roberto Carlos had a way of striking the ball which made his free kicks powerful and precise. And as for Baggio, well, he just stroked the ball to make it go wherever he wanted it to go. All three were simply divine.”