Seven unlikely derby heroes

These are seven heroes who changed the course of the Rome Derby – and their own lives – in a moment. Not Rudi Voeller, Vincenzo Montella, Marco Delvecchio or Francesco Totti. Nor even Giancarlo De Sisti, Pierino Prati or Julio Baptista.

These are seven men who never even dreamed of grabbing the derby headlines, yet did just that.

Seven heroes who came from nowhere and engraved their names in Derby della Capitale history forever...

Roberto Antonelli

Sometimes you don't need to score the winner to earn your place in the hearts of Giallorossi fans for eternity. Take Roberto Antonelli, for example. Born in 1953 in Morbegno, he started out at Monza before making his name at AC Milan and Genoa - which is much the same career path his son Luca – the Rossoneri and Italy defender – took many years later. Roberto was a midfielder who joined Roma in the twilight of his career after plying his trade in the north for over a decade. Sadly an Achilles injury restricted him to just five appearances for the Giallorossi but one of those was the derby on 24 March 1985, when he came on for Maurizio Iorio at half time. 26 minutes later Antonelli found the net – his only goal for the club – to earn Roma a 1-1 draw and his own place in derby history.

Giovanni Piacentini

Another draw and another hero. Giovanni Piacentini also scored his only goal for Roma in the match that matters most. But he turned out many more times in a Giallorossi jersey – 189 in total – which makes that solitary goal seem all the more significant. And what a goal it was. A rocket from all of 30 yards, fired with a precision and technique unlike anything he'd even hinted at before. The right man at the right time. A corner, a punched clearance and there he was – the last man back, positioned there to prevent any counter-attacks. But that ball fell too perfectly and too sweetly for him not to have a swing at it. In it flew and out poured the joy. Infinite.

Paolo Giovannelli

This was a Roma side before it became Nils Liedholm's great Roma. A Roma side playing in the “ice-lolly” strip. Roberto Pruzzo put the Giallorossi in front on the hour mark and 15 minutes later Vincenzo D'Amico made it 1-1. But hardly anyone remembers those goals. Because with five minutes left on the clock, Lazio failed to clear their lines and the ball ran to Paolo Giovannelli on the edge of the box. The No.8 put it where no Lazio shirt could reach before racing over to the Curva Sud to soak up the love of the fans that were his for six years until 1983. After hanging up his boots, Paolo went back to his birth town Cecina on the Tuscan coast and set up a bathing establishment. But no one ever forgot that game. It is and will forever remain Paolo Giovannelli's derby.

Antonio Di Carlo

In 1984 the Coppa Italia format saw teams divided into groups of six to face off in five one-off matches. The last of these for Roma was the derby. Various scorelines would have seen both sides go through, including a 1-0 win for Roma, and indeed that was the score after Maurizio Iorio converted from the penalty spot midway through the second half. But Antonio Di Carlo, a midfielder who had just turned 22, had other ideas. When he received the ball 35 yards out and saw there were no passes on he decided to have a go himself. Boom. An absolute screamer into the top corner. 2-0. Roma and Genoa went through, and Lazio were out.

Marco Cassetti

25 years later, we find another unlikely hero. 6 December 2009. It's 0-0 in the 79th minute when Marco Cassetti wins a ball in defence, lays it off and starts running up the pitch. He doesn't stop. Why does he keep going all the way to the box? Why does he decide to volley it first time? How does he manage to place it in the bottom corner? Who knows and who cares! It's in and that's all that matters. He lifts his hands to an incredulous face as if to say, 'What have I just done?' He's scored the goal that will change his football life.

Federico Balzaretti

In September 2013 Roma beat Lazio 2-0 but few people remember the second, scored by Adem Ljajic. Because this was Federico Balzaretti's derby. Pain and joy, in a matter of seconds. Because moments before the goal it had seemed that the post would deny him the ultimate joy. The look of sheer despair on his face said it all. But Roma remained in attack and Balzaretti remained in that same spot, halfway between the six-yard box and glory. And when fate offered him another bite of the cherry, he made no mistake. Goal. Curva. And tears. Pure joy.

Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa

And so we come to today. Well, yesterday. 25 May 2015. There's a Frenchman who's in his first year at Roma. He's never scored – that's not his job. His is to stop them going in the other end. But destiny has decided that all that is about to change. Because this derby isn't supposed to end in a draw. A free kick comes in, Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa gets his head to it and the ball bounces into the bottom corner. Second place and Champions League qualification are Roma's and the derby is his. Forever.