Former Man United transfer flop looks unrecognisable… 24 years on from producing one of the Premier League’s biggest howlers
- A former Man United player has gone viral after recent photos of him surfaced
- The 53-year-old – a sporting director who works in Italy – now looks unrecognizable
- Trent and Bellingham can play together, but not get in each other’s way – IAKO
A photo of a former Manchester United player has gone viral as he looks unrecognizable from his days at Old Trafford.
The player, who joined United for £4.5million in the summer after the Treble success in 1999, most recently worked as sporting director for Italian side Reggina.
He joined to fill the void left by Peter Schmeichel, but returned to Italy the following year having made just four appearances for the team.
His name became synonymous with an infamous howler for Man United against Southampton.
The mystery United man is of course former goalkeeper Massimo Taibi.
The ex-Manchester United goalkeeper looks unrecognizable – 23 years since he left the club
The Italian flopped during his short time under legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson
The mystery man is Massimo Taibi, who played just four games for the Red Devils
Taibi’s floppy brown hair is now shaved short and gray, while his 6-foot-4 frame has grown wider since his playing days.
The Italian started well enough at Old Trafford after his move from Venezia, picking up Man of the Match for his performance in a 3-2 win over Liverpool.
A 1-1 draw against Wimbledon followed, but it was his infamous mistake in a 3-3 draw against Southampton that ultimately led to his quick departure from the club.
A tame effort from Matt Le Tissier from outside the penalty area went straight to the Italian, who dropped to the ground to scoop the ball up with both hands, but it rolled under his body and trickled over the line.
As reported in 2020, Taibi said of the moment: ‘It was just one of those things that happens to goalkeepers. I’ve seen enough in England and Italy, believe me. Going through the legs, it looks ridiculous, but it happens often. It’s not the first, it wasn’t the last.
‘I experienced a similar incident in Torino. It happens. It’s an accident, not a mistake. A mistake is coming for the ball and missing it, but a harmless shot that goes through your legs is just a total accident.
‘Unfortunately we went to Chelsea the following week and lost 5-0. “Because I couldn’t play in the Champions League because I was already registered with Milan, Ferguson decided, rightly, to postpone me for a while, to give me a chance to learn the language.”
An English newspaper cruelly labeled him ‘The Blind Venetian’ and he left for Reggina for £2.5 million during the January transfer window.
Taibi (top row, second from right) was most synonymous with a mistake he made against Southampton
Despite the mistake, he had a 22-year football career, starting in 1987 at Licata, where he played for the likes of AC Milan, Como, Atalanta and Torino before retiring in 2009 after two years at Ascoli.
He recently worked as sporting director at former team Reggina.
In the 2022–2023 season, under manager Filippo Inzaghi, they finished in a play-off position despite a five-point deduction for failing to pay taxes and player salaries on time.
But in July they were excluded from Serie B due to financial irregularities and unpaid debts Football Italy.
The club was registered for Serie D for the 2023-2024 season under the new name Reggio Calabria.
Taibi left his role as sporting director and was replaced by Maurizio Pellegrino.
