LUIS FIGO - PORTUGAL

Date of birth: Nov. 4, 1972
Birthplace: Almada, Portugal
Club: Inter Milan (Italy)
Position: Midfielder
International debut: August 1994 vs. Peru

The 2006 World Cup is the final frontier for Portugal's Luis Figo.

During his 10 seasons in Spain playing for FC Barcelona and Real Madrid, the mercurial midfielder won a slew of individual and team honours: FIFA World Player of the Year, European Player of the Year, Champions League, La Liga (Spanish first division), Intercontinental and Copa del Rey (Spanish King's Cup) titles.

The only thing missing from his impressive resumé is a championship — any championship — with Portugal's senior national team.

After earning more than 100 caps for his country, Figo quit Portugal's national team in the aftermath of Euro 2004, but was coxed out of retirement in 2005 for the World Cup qualifiers.

Now Figo, who experienced a career renaissance this past season in Italy with Inter Milan, has one last chance at World Cup glory in Germany.

It wasn't supposed to be this way for a player regarded as one of the best in the world during his prime. Figo was a key member of Portugal's under-19 team that won the 1991 FIFA world youth championship (the soccer equivalent of the annual world junior hockey championship).

Figo, along with teammates Rui Costa, Joao Pinto, and Fernando Couto, helped their country win its second consecutive title (Portugal also won the previous tournament in 1989).

Greatness was pegged for the 1991 team, as the media dubbed them the "golden generation," so certain that they were going to have fabulous club careers and lead Portugal to World Cup and Euro titles.

Although they went on to enjoy distinguished stints with some of Europe's most glamorous teams, the international honours never came.

Portugal failed to qualify for the 1994 and 1998 World Cup tournaments, and spectacularly crashed out of the opening round in 2002 following shocking losses to South Korea and the U.S.

Figo and company did not qualify for Euro '92, and suffered heartbreaking losses in the quarter-finals in 1996, semifinals in 2000 and the finals on home soil in 2004.

The empty trophy cabinet is painful for a soccer-mad country such as Portugal, especially when the "golden generation," so full of promise, have not lived up to their name.

But this could be the year Portugal and Figo finally live up to their potential.

The 33-year-old Figo has lost a little bit of quickness, but he's still blessed with a wide array of attributes: superb dribbling, a rocket for a shot and visionary passing skills.

He left Real Madrid in a huff in 2005 after two inconsistent seasons — he also disappointed at the 2002 World Cup and Euro 2004 — but rediscovered his top form this past season in Italy when he helped Inter Milan win its second consecutive Italian Cup.

Playing his best soccer in years, Figo now has the chance to cement his reputation as one the best players of his generation by guiding Portugal to its first World Cup title in Germany.