Angelo Anquilletti

Operating as an orthodox, stay-at-home right-back for Milan’s legendary late-1960s side, Anquilletti treated crossing the halfway line like an unnecessary luxury, focusing instead on the absolute neutralization of the opposition's dangerous left wingers. Nicknamed "Angelo il dritto" for his unyielding, no-nonsense approach, he possessed a predatory timing in the tackle and a shadow-like marking ability that drove creative attackers to psychological exhaustion. His definitive masterclass came in the 1968 European Cup Winners' Cup final, where he completely suffocated Celtic’s iconic, mercurial winger Jimmy Johnstone. While he lacked the modern, overlapping flamboyance of contemporaries like Giacinto Facchetti, Anquilletti’s flawless positional discipline and defensive stoicism made him an indispensable foundation of Milan's domestic and European golden era.