Edited by. Ermelindo Brunetti - pupil of the Sports Press Officer Course by Sport Business Academy
Walter Junior Casagrande was not among the most famous Brazilians who played in Italy, but just mention his name to a fan of Torino or, better yet, Ascoli and immediately one realizes how beloved he was. Walter was born in São Paulo in April 1963 and made his debut in the first paulista league with the Corinthians jersey when he was only seventeen years old. In those years he got to know Socrates (the Doctor) and Vladimir, the iconic player of the bianconeri greenoro, and with them he founded Democracy Corinthiana, that is, a model of democratic team self-management but also a movement against the military dictatorship that ruled in Brazil.
In 1986 Casagrande made a change of scenery and landed in Europe, at Porto, where he experienced an unlucky year due to a bad injury, but could rejoice in the historic victory of the then Champions Cup. At the end of the season he moves to Ascoli for a little over a billion liras, a record sum for the Marche team of "presidentissimo" (that's what they call him in his city) Costantino Rozzi. He introduces himself to his new fans in worn jeans, T-shirt, leather bag over his shoulder, unkempt beard and long hair, and the first feeling he arouses is that of perplexity, whether due to the dross from the serious accident he had in Portugal, or because of some minor problems he had with the justice system. "But who hasn't committed some nonsense as a boy," Rozzi cuts Rozzi short at the presentation, facing uncomfortable questions from reporters. The president's trust will be quickly repaid: in a few months Casagrande becomes the idol of the bianconeri fans, although he does not score very much, in total only six goals, including the resounding goal at Fiorentina with a knockout spell from the goal line that deceives an incredulous Landucci. In any case - thanks to the many assists he gives to his teammates - he stands out among the protagonists of the painful salvation obtained by the bianconeri. The following season Ascoli was saved without too much trouble, but Walter plays very little due to a long series of injuries. In his third year, however, Ascoli finished in last place and was condemned to relegation; at that point everyone in town imagined that Casagrande himself would be among the first to leave the Marche team because of his high salary. Instead, surprisingly, the Brazilian striker finds an agreement with Rozzi that will prove innovative but also unique: the new contract includes a substantial bonus if he plays at least 30 games and scores 20 goals. Said and done: at the end of the season he will put together 33 games and 22 goals, graduating top scorer of the cadet championship. And this time it's really time for a change of scenery: he leaves Ascoli and lands at the Mondonico's Turin for a little more than five billion lire, much to the chagrin of Rozzi, who netted a very rich capital gain. In granata, he was welcomed by a "bread and salami" coach who played a perhaps unspectacular but extraordinarily effective soccer. Above all, "Mondo" turns out to be a great master of soccer: ask Vialli, Inzaghi and Vieri for references. Casagrande in Torino played two seasons, scored relatively few goals, but found the double in a historic derby with bitter rivals Juve. In the same year, he also played in the ill-fated Uefa Cup final against Ajax: in the first leg match, the South American signed two goals that gave the Granata an equalizer, who in the return leg succumbed without defeat, but with the mockery of three posts hit without finding the decisive goal. It is no coincidence that on that occasion he earned a nine-column headline in the Gazzetta dello Sport that read, "Casagrande the Bull". The following year Torino won the Coppa Italia and at that point the Paulista bomber left Europe and returned to his homeland, first to Flamengo then back to Corinthians.
He will remain in soccer as a commentator, but then a parenthesis will open in his life made of drugs from which he will manage to come out while, in 2007, he miraculously emerges unharmed from a car accident in which he risked losing his life and killing others involved. Once he has hit rock bottom, Walter decides to turn things around: he gets treatment in a specialized clinic and from that moment on he actively participates in Brazilian social life, also personally engaging in initiatives to support people in need, particularly orphans and prisoners. In 2016, he returned to Italy, to "his" Ascoli, where he was welcomed as an idol at the Del Duca crazy with joy. At the stadium, it doesn't seem like thirty years have passed, and Walter is moved by the chants of the fans he loved so much: "Casao oh oh, Casao oh oh oh, the curve goes crazy for you, Casao, Casao olè" and "From Sicily to Trentino, from the Apennines to the Andes, there is only Casagrande, there is only Casagrande!"
And how can we not agree with the Marche fans: because those who were lucky enough to see him on the field could not help but be thrilled with his plays from soccer poetry.
