5 footballers that have lost the most in finals

Reaching a final is never easy, no matter what sport or tournament it is. However, this effort seems in vain when you lose. In this case, these 5 footballers left their name in the history of the sport, whether for their talent, performance or titles won. However, that is not the only reason they are remembered, since during their career they had to suffer the unfortunate experience of losing finals in important tournaments such as the Champions League, Copa América and even world championships. These are their names and their losses.

Paolo Maldini

A symbol of Italian football and a benchmark for any defender, Paolo Maldini has a recognized career in which he only played for AC Milan in its golden age. Maldini retired in 2009 with almost 1,000 official matches played with his club and national team, according to Transfermarkt. During his career, he won a bunch of titles like 5 of the 7 Champions League that AC Milan has, 7 scudettos and many more trophies.

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Maldini is also one of those who has lost the most. According to the newspaper As, the Italian lost three Champions League finals as well as a World Cup final and a Euro Cup. In an Instagram Live made between Maldini and his former partner Christian Vieri, Maldini told him that “the World Cup that Italy won, I decided not to go. I have never overcome those defeats”.

Michael Ballack

Another "crack", this time from the midfield of German football, Ballack stood out as a midfielder in European football, he almost always played within the Bundesliga in clubs like Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen, except for 5 seasons playing for Chelsea. In 2012 he would retire with just over 700 matches played in clubs and national teams, in fact, the coach of Germany, Joachim Low, called him "one of the best", according to Sipse.

However, the German midfielder was quite bitter on several occasions, because despite never winning a Champions League, he played two finals of this tournament, where he would be recognized as "witness" of the legendary goal of Zidane in 2002. Ballack also lost a Euro Cup final and the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup. In the end, he was never able to win an international tournament, according to Transfermarkt.

Gonzalo Higuain

A benchmark in the front of Argentine football, the nine Gonzalo Higuaín has gone through important clubs such as Real Madrid and Juventus, playing more than 700 games. Although he is still playing with Juventus, the "pipe" has titles such as 3 Spanish leagues and 2 Italian leagues, but in terms of trophies with his team it has been much more complicated, and that is because the Argentine has suffered losses in the final of two Copa América and a soccer World Cup, as well as a Champions League final in 2017, according to Marca.

Zinedine Zidane

Zidane is the star of the French midfield, who dedicated almost his entire career to Juventus and Real Madrid until his retirement in 2006, playing more than 700 games in his career and achieving titles such as a World Cup, a Euro Cup, a Champions League and other tournaments, according to Transfermarkt. However, although as a coach he has not lost one of the 9 finals he has led, as a player it was another story, the Frenchman lost a Europa League, two Champions League and the legendary 2006 World Cup final in which he was expelled after headbutting Materazzi on the chest.

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Del Piero

The Italian striker and symbol of Juventus, Alessandro del Piero has been perhaps the biggest “loser” at club level, with Juventus being the team with which he spent the best parts of his career for 19 years. In 2015, he would retire from football with nearly 800 games played and great titles such as a World Cup, a Champions League, 6 scudettos and much more, but Del Piero also had to lose the Champions League, in which he failed in 4 attempts, he would also lose a Eurocup.