A Family Affair

Perhaps it is fitting that, as we prepare to write the Serie A obituary of sure-to-be-relegated Juventus, we would have a World Cup final with the Old Lady's fingerprints all over it. Match-fixing and nefarious activity notwithstanding, it is a fact that Juve has provided us with some of the greatest players the game has seen in recent years, and this World Cup final is pure evidence. Out of 46 total players in the Final, 13 are either current or former bianconeri.

Here's the breakdown:

France
Current: Patrick Vieira, Lilian Thuram, David Trezeguet.

Former: Zinedine Zidane, Thierry Henry (Two players they probably should have reconsidered getting rid of!).

Italy
Current: Gianluigi Buffon, Fabio Cannavaro, Alessandro Del Piero, Mauro Camoranesi, Gianluca Zambrotta.

Former: Filippo Inzaghi, Angelo Peruzzi, Simone Perrotta.

So when you watch the final, keep in mind the level of familiarity these two teams have with each other; it's not necessarily hostile!