The European Championship started this weekend, delayed a year due to COVID, with a bunch of MLS players splattered across its lesser-fancied teams. This is quite a contrast to 25 years ago, when Euro 96 featured the first MLS player to ever appear at that continent's most prestigious tourney: Roberto Donadoni.

Of course, this was the first chance for an MLS player to appear at a Euro, as the league had just started earlier that year. The problem, of course, was twofold: MLS had very few European players, and those few were mostly lower-league rejects with questionable pedigree. Donadoni was an exception: a ten-year veteran of AC Milan with five league titles and three European Cups (two of those before it became Champions League) under his belt. Just two years before, he played in the World Cup final as Italy lost to Brazil. Donadoni was the centerpiece that Milan-loving Metro GM Charlie Stillitano tried to build his team around, for better of for worse.

To say that Donadoni's selection to the Italian team was unexpected is putting it mildly. At the age of 32, everyone thought that his best days were behind him. (Why would he come to MLS otherwise?) And yet, Milan kept him as long as possible to ensure is league title in 1996. Donadoni only joined Metro in May, with the scudetto already secured. The shock call-up to the national team, led by former Milan boss Arrigo Sacchi, followed.

So, after playing a few games in America, Donadoni went back across the pond. He wasn't expected to start, of course, as Italy was drawn into the group of death. Indeed, he didn't start the opening match, when his country faced Russia. The Italians scored early, but had a hard time as Russia equalized before the break. So, at the half, Sacchi took off budding starlet Alessandro Del Piero for Donadoni.

To say Italy won because of Donadoni might be simplifying it, but let's quote the game summary from UEFA.com: "Italy appeared rattled and struggled to rediscover their rhythm before the interval, but the appearance of Roberto Donadoni -- still a class act -- changed all that. Demetrio Albertini now had the help of a midfielder with experience and guile, and the Azzurri soon established their dominance." They won 2:1, and Donadoni was now entrenched in the starting lineup.

It was all downhill from there. Thinking the Czechs were the weakest team in the group, Sacchi's squad rotation backfired as Italy lost 2:1 after a first-half red card doomed the favorites. But Donadoni played well enough to keep his spot in the starting lineup for an all-important final group game against Germany.

Italy had to win to ensure a quarterfinal berth. Just nine minutes in, they earned a penalty kick. Alas, Gianfranco Zola's shot was saved, and the game remained scoreless. It did so until the final whistle, despite Italy throwing everything forward. Donadoni himself had one of the best chances of the match, only to be denied by the German keeper. Still, a scoreless draw would be enough for Italy if Russia beat the Czechs; having clawed back from two down to take a 3:2 lead in the 85th minute, it looked like the favor was there. But three minutes after the Russian goal, Czechia equalized to move ahead of Italy due to beating them head-to-head, and that was that.

Donadoni headed back to America, even as some pundits claimed he was Italy's best player at the tournament. There were rumors aplenty that he would go back to Milan; in the following offseason, Stillitano even changed the team's colors to still-beloved red and black stripes to make his star feel more at home. (OK, not really, but you can't deny the Milan influence.) After trying to carry Metro through a failed 1997 season, Donadoni finally went back, and helped Milan to another league title in 1999 at the age of 34.

This was not the last time Donadoni appeared at the Euros. In 2008, he was put in charge of the Italian team. This time, one win, one tie, and one loss was good enough to advance the Azzuri; they lost to eventual champion Spain on penalty kicks in the quarterfinals. Italy's one win came against France, who featured a striker named Thierry Henry. (Who, of course, won a Euro of his own back in 2000...)