It was Luca Toni who most memorably conveyed the extraordinary lengths to which Louis van Gaal is prepared to go in order to make a point. "The coach wanted to make it clear to us that he can drop any player; that it was all the same to him because, as he said, he had the balls," the striker explained in 2011. "He demonstrated this literally [by dropping his trousers]. I have never experienced anything like it; it was totally crazy."
Toni and Van Gaal didn't enjoy the best working relationship during their time together at Bayern Munich. As the Italian subsequently admitted, they very nearly came to blows on more than one occasion. Perhaps the problem was that they were too similar because if there's something that the Italian doesn't lack, it's testicular fortitude.
He proved as much again on Sunday night.
Toni announced at an emotional press conference last Wednesday that Verona's meeting with Juventus at the Bentegodi would be his last game as a professional. Few foresaw a fairytale ending. Toni admitted himself that the final season of his 22-year career had been his worst. He had managed just five goals and Verona's relegation to Serie B had already been confirmed.
He conceded that it would perhaps have been better if he had retired after becoming the oldest man to win the capocannoniere, with Toni having claimed a share of the award last season after finishing level with Mauro Icardi at the top of the scorers' charts with 22 goals. However, as he pointed out, "When everything goes well it’s difficult to think about retiring. But this has been the worst season of my career, also on a mental level. The only way of stopping was to have a great disappointment and this year the disappointment for me was enormous."
Toni hoped, though, for one last hurrah. "I’ll try to score on my last game," he stated. "It would be the ultimate to end with a goal and victory in front of our fans." Both scenarios seemed unlikely, with Juve arriving in Verona on the back of a 25-match unbeaten run and having conceded just 18 times all season long.
However, just two minutes before the break at the Bentegodi, Juventus full-back Alex Sandro felled Eros Pisano in the area. Toni stepped up to take the spot-kick. This was his opportunity - and he knew it. However, rather than opt for the security of power or precise placement, Toni attempted a Panenka penalty - and pulled it off brilliantly, deftly chipping the ball down the centre of the goal and over a committed Neto.
“It was a risky penalty, but to do good things you need to take risks," Toni explained after Verona's shock 2-1 win. "Fortunately, it went well.
"Every goal in my career feels beautiful to me. Perhaps this evening’s is the best, as it closes my career with so many emotions wrapped up in it."
It has certainly been one hell of a ride. In 1994, he made his first-team debut at Modena - the first of his 16 clubs as a professional - but it was only at Palermo, at the age of 26, that his career really took off, with Toni firing the Rosanero back into Serie A with 30 goals in 45 games. He netted another 20 in his first season back in the big time, earning himself a move to Fiorentina, where the goals continued to flow.
Indeed, Toni claimed the Golden Shoe by striking 31 times in 38 Serie A appearances during the 2005-06 season before helping Italy win the World Cup that summer. He returned to Germany the following year, joining Bayern Munich, with whom he won a Bundesliga title in his first season in Bavaria, after hitting 39 goals in all competitions.
He moved back to Italy after falling out with Van Gaal but failed to impress in spells at Roma, Genoa and Juventus. When he moved to UAE in 2011 to join Al Nasr, it appeared that his top-flight career was over. "I should’ve retired four or five years ago," he explained last week, "but I just kept scoring."
Certainly, after a solid season back at Fiorentina, Toni enjoyed a remarkable renaissance after linking up with Verona in 2013. Indeed, only Napoli's Gonzalo Higuain has scored more Serie A goals than the 38-year-old over the past three seasons.
It was for that reason that Toni wasn't just applauded from the field on Sunday night by the Verona fans, but also the visiting Juventus supporters.
“It’s hard to say what I am feeling right now,” he told Mediaset Premium immediately after the full-time whistle. “I can only say thank you to everyone who allowed me to have this magical night. It was wonderful to be applauded by the opposition fans, too. It’s an evening I will remember forever."
There was obvious interest in what Toni intends to do next. He has no intention of going into coaching but is open to the idea of taking up a directorial role with the club, something to keep him busy. "I doubt my wife wants me hanging around the house too much," he joked.
The question on everyone's lips, though, was whether he had planned to do a Panenka all along. “No, I’m just not right in the head," he said, laughing. Perhaps not. But one cannot question his courage. Indeed, even Van Gaal must have been impressed....
- Goal