ENRICO ANNONI was 30 years old by the time he arrived at Celtic.
Tommy Burns was looking for some strength in his defence and brought in the man nicknamed Tarzan by the Roma fans.
The Hoops landed the shaven-headed Annoni, who had also played for Como and Torino, for a bargain £250,000 fee from the Serie A outfit in February 1997.
The versatile and experienced operator, who could play right-back or centre-half, made his debut in a 2-0 home league win over Hearts and it wasn’t long before he became a cult figure among the Hoops supporters.
CRUNCH…Enrico Annoni challenges Brian Laudrup for the ball.
Annoni’s uncompromising approach to his role in the team was highlighted by a determined performance in Wim Jansen’s team’s 2-0 win over Rangers at Parkhead in the New Year fixture. Craig Burley and Paul Lambert scored the goals, but the Italian did an immaculate job of shutting down the visitors’ dangerman Brian Laudrup.
He also played his part when the Hoops thumped Dundee United 3-0 a couple of months later to lift the League Cup, then in the guise of the Coca-Cola Cup.
Annoni was happy to shun the limelight and was an unsung hero when Celtic won the title that season to prevent the Ibrox club from claiming 10 in a row.
However, he became a bit-player after the arrival of Jo Venglos who had replaced the popular Dutchman who decided to walk away after just one crusade.
When John Barnes and Kenny Dalglish took over the reins of the club in the summer of 1999/2000, Annoni found himself out in the cold and the last year of his contract was paid in full. He decided to retire at the age of 33.
* TOMORROW: Don’t miss the adventures of another former Celt in CQN’s EXCLUSIVE series.
