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Gianfranco Zola, Order of the British Empire|OBE
(born July 5, 1966 in Oliena, Sardinia) is a
former Italy|Italian Football (soccer)
|footballer, the Football Writers'
Association|Football Writers' Player of the Year
in 1997.

Zola signed his first professional contract with
Sardinian team Nuorese Calcio|Nuorese in 1984.
Five years later he signed for SSC Napoli|Napoli
in Serie A. Talented Zola scored two goals as
understudy to Diego Maradona as Napoli won the
Italian title in 1990. He helped Napoli to win the
Italian Super Cup in 1991 and he made his debut
for the Italy national football team|Italian
national side under coach Arrigo Sacchi in the
same year. In 1993, Zola left Napoli and joined
fellow Serie A side Parma A.C.|Parma. He won the
UEFA Cup with Parma and they were runners-up in
Serie A and the Coppa Italia|Italian Cup in 1995.

In 1996, Zola joined FA Premier League|Premier
League football club Chelsea F.C. He won the FA
Cup with Chelsea and was voted the English
Football Writers' Player of the Year in 1997: the
only player ever to receive the accolade without
playing an entire season. He helped Chelsea win
the English League Cup, European Cup Winners' Cup
and European Super Cup|Super Cup in 1998. He
helped Chelsea to win FA Cup again in 2000.

Zola left Chelsea and joined Cagliari
Calcio|Cagliari, a club from his native Sardinia,
in 2003. They obtained promotion to the Italian
Serie A soon afterwards. Then he renewed his
contract for Cagliari Calcio for one more year. He
retired in June of 2005.

Zola won 35 international caps, scoring 8 goals.
He played for his country at the Wc|1994 and
Ec|96. Zola last played in Football World
Cup|World Cup qualifier against English national
football team|England in Rome in October 1997.

In early 2003, 'franco was voted as the best ever
Chelsea player by the Chelsea fans. In November
2004, he was awarded an Order of the British
Empire|OBE - Honorary Member of the Order of the
British Empire in a special ceremony in Rome.

Despite speculation he would play on in the
2005/2006 season, Zola has now decided to quit the
game (end of June 2005), just a week before he
turns 39.

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succession box|title=FWA Footballer of the
Year|before=Eric Cantona |after=Dennis
Bergkamp|years=1997
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