“For the ultras in San Siro’s Curva Sud, there is only one capitano and it is not Gianni Rivera, nor is it Paolo Maldini. It’s Franco Baresi. “Baresi went through everything with Milan in ways the aforementioned greats did not. “The club remain indistinguishable from the Maldini dynasty, with Cesare and Paolo lifting the European Cup and, more recently, Daniel making his Serie A debut in red and black. “But Milan and Baresi were family in more ways than one. By the time he moved to Milanello, Franco and his siblings were orphans. The club took him in and allowed the shy, taciturn boy to develop into one of Italian football’s most celebrated leaders.” Franco Baresi, the legendary former AC Milan defender and Italy international, has passed away at the age of 66. @JamesHorncastle wrote about Baresi for The Soccer 100, The Athletic’s definitive book on the 100 greatest players of all time. 🔗