The former Bari, Bologna and AS Roma defender faced some of the finest forwards of his generation, but when asked who was the hardest opponent, his answer was emphatic.
“There have been a lot because, in that time in Italy, there were some of the strongest strikers in the world,” he tells Football Presse.
But one stood above them all.
“I can say that the strongest player I have played against has been Ronaldo the Brazilian striker, to mark him was impossible for every defender.”
Mangone had established himself in Serie A with Bari and Bologna before joining Roma in 1999. He was part of Fabio Capello’s Scudetto-winning squad in 2000-01, sharing a dressing room with Francesco Totti, Gabriel Batistuta and Vincenzo Montella.
Ronaldo was at Inter Milan during those years, and Mangone had a front-row view of what made the Brazilian so difficult to contain.
“For me, Ronaldo was just from another level.”
That was a league filled with outstanding strikers. Christian Vieri, Batistuta, Montella and George Weah were among the players Mangone encountered during his career, while Ronaldo combined extraordinary acceleration with strength and technical ability in a way that made him uniquely difficult for defenders.
At Roma, the challenge continued in training.
Totti, Batistuta and Montella were now teammates, but Mangone still had to face them every day.
“To be honest with you all of them were very hard to mark in the training sessions, but I would mention a little bit more than the others Totti because from him you didn’t know ever what to expect.”
“He was a player who could see things that the others couldn’t.”
Batistuta was a different proposition. The Argentine had already become one of Serie A’s most feared strikers with Fiorentina before joining Roma, then scored 20 league goals as Capello’s side won the championship.
Montella offered another kind of problem, combining movement with a ruthless finish.
Mangone remembers that the quality extended beyond what happened on the pitch.
“Despite being such great players in the end they were so humble and they had a wonderful character as human beings.”
“They treated us less-known players very well and were there to help us in every moment we needed it.”
That 2001 Scudetto remains the defining achievement of Mangone’s playing career. After leaving Roma, he had spells with Parma, Brescia and Piacenza before finishing his playing career with Catanzaro in 2005.
He subsequently moved into coaching, working with Pavia, Reggiana, AlbinoLeffe, Gama, Brera and Villa Valle before returning to Serie D in recent years.
Mangone took charge of Castellanzese in 2025 and later moved to Trevigliese. He is now looking for his next coaching opportunity.
His career gives him an unusually strong perspective on the great attackers of that period. He faced Ronaldo, Vieri, Weah and Batistuta as opponents, while Batistuta, Montella and Totti became his teammates.
Yet when asked to separate the best from the rest, he did not hesitate.
Ronaldo was the one.
“To mark him was impossible for every defender.”
“For me, Ronaldo was just from another level.”