Francesco Totti chose loyalty over trophies in his glittering career and is idolised by Roma because of that decision.
'Il Capitano' remained a one club man, scoring 307 goals in 786 appearances spread across 25 seasons in Serie A for the Giallorossi before his emotional retirement at the end of the 2016/17 campaign.
For how gifted a player he was, his career was anything but trophy-laden however, as the 41-year old only managed to lift one Scudetto in 2000/2001 as well as two back-to-back Coppa Italias in 2006/07 and 2007/08.
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Totti would have been proud of some of this goals...
Real Madrid's interest in the legendary Italian has been well-documented, with Totti revealing that while he would have tasted silverware as a Los Blancos player had he accepted their offer in 2004, but he valued his special connection with Roma more.
"There was a very important offer from Madrid in 2004. But I decided to give up on lots of titles so that I'd always wear just one shirt," he said in an interview with Sky Italia.
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"This was what mattered most to me. In the end, instead, I received love and passion, which for me were more important than winning cups elsewhere. I put Roma ahead of everything."
Totti did win his fair share of individual awards in his career, as well as his three trophies at the Stadio Olimpico.
But he acknowledges that had he followed the likes of Michael Owen, Zinedine Zidane, Luis Figo and David Beckham in becoming a 'Galactico', he would have had a greater chance of winning the Ballon d'Or.
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"I still won the Scudetto, Italian Super Cup and Coppa Italia with Roma," he added.
"But that didn't put me in a position to challenge the other players [for the Ballon d'Or]."
To conclude the interview, Totti was asked how much he would be worth in the current market if he was in the peak of his powers, saying:
"I think €200 million (£178 million)."
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(h/t AS)
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: Serie A, AS Roma, Roma, Ballon d'Or, Real Madrid, Italy, Francesco Totti
