After four years as a Hammer, Paolo Di Canio will be leaving the club this summer when his current contract expires. Signed as a gamble by Harry Redknapp in January 1999 the former Lazio and Celtic striker soon won over a sceptical Hammers faithful to become one of the club's most loved players in recent years.
Of course, with any kind of real genius there is often a flipside - and Di Canio's 'Mr.Hyde' has been evident perhaps a little too often for the liking of some.
But - as Trevor Brooking has said only recently - that fire and (often misguided) passion is part of the very essence which makes Di Canio such an extraordinary talent - the very special kind of player who is worth paying the entrance fee
alone to watch.
Whatever your personal feelings toward the man it cannot be argued that the Boleyn Ground will be that little bit emptier for the absence of one of the greatest entertainers ever to don a West Ham shirt. So, as something of a tribute, I have selected my ten most memorable Paolo moments; feel free to agree/disagree at your will by visiting the KUMB forum!
So join me friends and raise a glass as we bid farewell to the man top DJ Jeremy Nicholas calls 'Paaaaaoooollllooooo Deeee Caaaaaannniiioooooooooo' ...
Paolo Di Canio Fact file
Signed: January 1999 (Sheffield Wednesday, £1.7m)
Appearances: 140
Goals: 51
KUMB Awards
Player of the Year: 1999
Player of the Season:1999/2000
Goal of the Season: 1999 (v Wimbledon), 2000 (v Man Utd)
Club Honours
Player of the Season: 1999-2000
Runner-up:2000-2001
The Top Ten
10. Paolo's fatal intentions
Di Canio goes one step too far in an attempt to prove his love for West Ham. Some players are happy to signal their affection for a club with predictable displays of badge-kissing; well so did Paolo, but naturally he has to go a step further; prior to the FA Cup quarter-final with Spurs he tells reporters that he is prepared to commit hari-kari if the Hammers fail to win any silverware. We don't and surprisingly neither does he ...
9. Making a monkey of Keown: West Ham 2 Arsenal 1 - 3rd October 1999
Paolo announces his presence with a goal of true quality - and even better, it's the boys from the red side of North London on the receiving end. As Martin Keown approaches on the edge of the box Paolo mugs him with a gentle lob before
firing a volley over the head of an equally static David Seaman. Adds another for good measure in the second-half to secure our first home Premiership win against the Arse.
8. Paolo's 'penis-face' insult
Paolo
reveals in his 2000 autobiography how he once lost his rag with Fabio Cappello, his boss when with Lazio during the early stages of his career. The presumably gobsmacked Cappello was (apparently) told in no uncertain terms by Paolo "you're
crazy, you're sick in the head - you f*ck off! I'm not going to hang around here and look at your ugly penis-face any longer." Not surprisingly weeks later Paolo is on his way to Celtic and one step closer to East London ...
7. The cheeky penalty: Liverpool 2 West Ham 1 - 18th August 2001
Possibly the first time we saw Paolo's infamous chip from the penalty spot. Liverpool's Pegguy Arphexad is the first of many to be left bemused (and not a little embarrassed) as Di Canio steps up, pauses, and deftly floats the ball into
empty net. Hammers at the other end of Anfield insist to this day that Di Canio miskicked it but it proves to be deliberate as he does it again - and again and again, until he comes unstuck and is made to look rather foolish in a game against
Aston Villa later in the season.
6. The piranha dilemma
In 2002 Di Canio reveals that a proposed move to Manchester United falls through not because of the Reds failure to sell Dwight Yorke but due to his gardener's threat to poison his pet piranhas should he leave West Ham. "The man who
feeds my piranhas says he will kill them if I leave, so I said I won't go. I begged him not to kill them as they are like my children. So now the fish are happy ..."
5. Fair Play: Everton 1 West Ham 1 - 16th December 2000
Now we never win at Goodison Park, everyone knows that. So it's 1-1, we're in the final minute and Di Canio receives the ball in front of an open goal with Blues keeper Paul Gerrard prostrate on the floor. So what does Paolo do? Slam the ball into the back of the net to break our Merseyside jinx? No, he picks the ball up and calls on the trainer to see to Gerrard. The players are stunned, the fans can't believe it, and our best chance of 3 points at Goodison for many a year evaporates before our very eyes. UEFA are humored sufficiently to award Paolo that season's 'Fair Play' award. SO that's alright then ...
4. The peculiar 'fracas' with Frank Lampard: West Ham 5 Bradford 4 - 12th February 2000
Having been denied a clear penalty Di Canio pleads with Harry Redknapp to substitute him (presumably to avoid another one of those 'Allcock' moments). Harry refuses and the Hammers promptly win another penalty. Paolo's having none of it as Frank Lampard steps up to place the ball on the spot; he goes into one and (eventually) wrestles the ball from a startled Lampard. The Italian bangs home the resulting penalty (although Frank has the 'consolation' of netting the winner 7 minutes from time) and the Hammers go on to win one of the most extraordinary games ever seen at the Boleyn.
3. Goal of the season: West Ham 2 Wimbledon 1 - 26th March 2000
A
true moment of genius; with Dons keeper Neil Sullivan covering his near post Di Canio's options look limited as he hones in on goal to the left of the penalty box. But with a flash of inspiration he uses his right foot to volley home an
unstoppable shot which audibly drew gasps from the Boleyn faithful. Nothing came close as Di Canio walked the Goal of the Season award.
2. The final goal: West Ham 1 Chelsea 0 - 3rd May 2003
Having been out of the frame for nearly two months the need for anything resembling an alternative attacking option necessitates Di Canio's recall to the squad. On to rapturous applause with 25 to play he stubs home the winning goal which keeps alive the Hammers hopes of avoiding relegation. Bedlam ensues - and Paolo cries - a lot.
And number one? It has to be ...
1. FA Cup glory: Man Utd 0 West Ham 1 - 28th January 2001
Nobody
gave the Hammers a chance in Hell when they travelled to Old Trafford for this live FA Cup fourth round tie. But as the game progressed and the travelling 9,000 found their voice the Hammers began to sense a real shock could be on the cards. With 14 minutes remaining Freddie Kanoute played Paolo through one on one with Fabien Barthez; the Frenchman hailed a cab (or something equally bizarre) as Di Canio bends the ball round him into the bottom corner to send the Hammers faithful into ecstasy. Pure theatre - pure Di Canio.
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