More hated than pineapple on pizza: Italy's old foe as WC talisman?

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More hated than pineapple on pizza: Italy's old foe as WC talisman?

More hated than pineapple on pizza: Italy's old foe as WC talisman?

Loved in Bosnia, hated in Italy: Afan Cizmic has probably just had the most exciting week of his young life.The 14-year-old teenager shot to international fame in the World Cup playoffs when he stole ...

More hated than pineapple on pizza: Italy's old foe as WC talisman?

Loved in Bosnia, hated in Italy: Afan Cizmic has probably just had the most exciting week of his young life.The 14-year-old teenager shot to international fame in the World Cup playoffs when he stole ...

What's more divisive than pineapple on pizza? For Italian football fans right now, it might just be the name Afan Cizmic. The 14-year-old has experienced a whirlwind week, becoming an instant hero in Bosnia and a figure of infamy in Italy, all thanks to a moment of sheer gamesmanship on the world's biggest stage.

During the crucial World Cup playoff, Cizmic executed a move straight from the cheeky fan's playbook: he swiped Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma's penalty cheat sheet. That small act had massive consequences. Visibly flustered, the world-class shot-stopper dove the wrong way on every spot-kick, a pivotal moment in Italy's shocking failure to qualify for their third consecutive World Cup.

While Donnarumma protested to the referees, a cult hero was being born back in Bosnia. Cizmic, a young footballer himself, has been reveling in his newfound fame, giving media interviews and boasting how the keeper was "only guessing" after the theft. The story taps into the classic underdog narrative, where a clever bit of psychological warfare meets pure sporting passion.

The legend is growing online, with Bosnian fans petitioning coach Sergej Barbarez to bring their "golden boy" to the World Cup as a lucky talisman. Could a teenager whose claim to fame is a stolen notepad really inspire a nation on football's grandest stage? It's the kind of unpredictable, human drama that makes international football so compelling.

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