Icons Revisited: The dynamic Thomas Haessler

We don’t know if Thomas Haessler was studying physics on the side during his time at Roma.

Neither can we be sure if he was an avid player of Tetris, the game whose tune the Curva Sud borrowed to create a chant for the German.

All we know is that 'Tommasino', as he was affectionately renamed by the Giallorossi faithful, seemed to have mastered the laws of aerodynamics, gravity and trajectories, such was the brilliance of his intuition and the precision of his free-kicks.

To this day, over 25 years on from his final appearances in the colours of Roma, fans in the capital still have fond memories of Haessler, who spent three seasons with the club between 1991-92 and 1993-94, a tricky period for the Giallorossi.

At just 5.5ft tall, Haessler was a central midfielder whose quick feet were matched only by his speed of thought. The German made 118 appearances for Roma in total, scoring 14 goals and providing 15 assists along the way, on top of countless spectacular moments which saw him go down as one of the best players to don the Giallorossi jersey during the 1990s.

Free-kicks were his speciality, but it’s also worth remembering that he was a player of impressive skill…

Free-kicks

Free-kicks were one of Haessler’s trademarks, and came in all shapes and sizes. He’d take them from the edge of the area, or a few yards further out, curling them over the wall or exploiting disorganisation in enemy ranks to go straight through the middle.

Haessler’s preferred position was left of centre of the goal – the ideal set-up for a right-footed player like himself – with many of his 14 goals for the Giallorossi coming in this fashion.

Hässler scored important goals too, not just spectacular ones – such as the one that earned Roma a 1-1 draw in a derby against Lazio on 1 March 1992.

Trailing 1-0 after 70 minutes, Roma won a free-kick just inside the 'D'. Haessler stepped up and – moments before shooting – saw that the Lazio wall was poorly positioned and that the goalkeeper, Valerio Fiori, seemed preoccupied with the prospect of Haessler aiming for his left post.

Instead, the German opted to aim for the goalkeeper’s side, hoping that the ball would pass through the mass of Lazio defenders unscathed. Hässler was almost right: in fact, the ball took a slight deflection as a Lazio defender broke from the wall too soon.

The shot caught Fiori by surprise, the goalkeeper having taken a step in the opposite direction. He could only watch the ball sail into the net.

Haessler’s free-kick against Wacker Innsbruck in the Round of 32 of the UEFA Cup on 30 September 1992 was more spectacular. It was just over 25 yards out, slightly to the left of the goal – perfect for the German’s right boot.

From that position, the only option was to look to curl the ball round the wall and hope that the goalkeeper didn’t react quick enough to get over. The German midfielder didn’t disappoint.

Hässler cut across the ball with the inside of his right foot, forcing the ball up over the five-man Austrian wall and then down again, quite suddenly.

In physics circles, such a movement is called the vertical negative Magnus Effect. We just call it a wonderful free-kick.

Then there was this great goal against Atalanta on 26 September 1993, when Roma won 2-1 at the Olimpico. An exercise in power and precision.

Goals

Haessler didn’t just limit his goals to dead-ball situations. Some of his best strikes were long-range efforts or goals scored from unlikely positions – and he was equally clinical whether he took aim with his left or right boot.

This goal, scored in a 4-1 win over Inter at the Olimpico on 18 October 1992, was probably his finest for the Giallorossi.

Starting on the right side of the pitch, just outside the Inter box, Haessler shaped to centre before cutting back onto his preferred foot, taking a Nerazzurri defender out of the game in the process.

Faced with two more in Inter colours, Haessler advanced into the box, but instead of crossing, he unleashed a fierce effort with the outside of his right boot, leaving Walter Zenga in the Inter goal – and the fans in the stadium – rubbing their eyes in disbelief.

It was a powerful, sudden shot which caught the Inter goalkeeper off-guard: Zenga stayed rooted to the spot as the ball flew past him at the far post.

Now, check out this goal against Juventus in Roma’s 2-1 win over the Bianconeri at the Olimpico on 28 February 1993.

Haessler picks the ball up in the middle of the Juventus half, then shapes to head out to the left before cutting back inside, finding a yard of space and striking the ball with all his might.

Look at the positioning of Angelo Peruzzi, the Juventus goalkeeper. Peruzzi had been a few yards off his line and could only watch as Haessler’s shot flew over him, then suddenly dipped and curled away towards the post on its way into the back of the net.

Skills

As well as a powerful shot, Haessler was also a player of some technical quality who could carry the ball well and relished one on ones. The German would often slip away from his minders, injecting sudden pace into moves after an initial dummy.

Take this example from Roma’s 2-0 win over Bari on 24 May 1992.

Haessler picked up the ball on the right-hand side, just inside the Bari half. The German set off running, with Rudi Völler materialising on his left.

'Tommasino' skipped past one opponent, then beat another by cutting inside on his left before unleashing a powerful effort towards goal. It was saved by the goalkeeper, but nonetheless it was a demonstration of his shooting prowess with both feet.

This ability, combined with his tactical intelligence, made Haessler a player that could occupy multiple positions in midfield, both centrally and out wide.

In Roma’s UEFA Cup 1992-93 last-16 clash away at Grasshoppers, Haessler played a key role the move that led to Claudio Caniggia scoring the Giallorossi’s second goal.

Haessler started the move off with this delightful backheel for Giuseppe Giannini, who instantly looked for Caniggia. The Argentine defended the ball well, then turned to lay the ball off Haessler before barrelling into the box.

Haessler, meanwhile, drove forward diagonally in the opposite direction, drawing the Swiss defenders with him, shaping to offload to the incoming Ruggiero Rizzitelli. Yet Haessler instead used the outside of his boot to slice through the Grasshoppers defence, finding Caniggia alone in front of goal. The striker did the rest.

Our last Haessler highlight is another assist, this time for Abel Balbo in Roma’s 1-1 draw away at Cremonese on 20 February 1994.

An overhit cross from Massimiliano Cappioli from the left made its way to the other side of the box, where Haessler found himself in a tricky position, with two Cremonese defenders for company.

There was little chance of the German bringing the ball under, so he opted to surprise the opposition with a volleyed first-time pass back across goal. It wasn’t an easy move to pull off by any stretch of the imagination, but Haessler executed it to perfection.

Balbo, who had been drifting towards the near post in search of a ball to attack, realised his team-mate’s intentions and instead took a few steps backwards and managed to head the ball home.

Thomas Haessler: instinctive skill, spectacular goals, exceptional class.