The general director of the Serie A team is in intensive care, the phone call that saved him: “I feel sick”

Joe Barone's story has reached a crossroads. Certainly timeliness and clarity may have made the difference in this dramatic situation.

Sometimes it takes very little to save your life: a reflex, the quickness of mind to save someone's life or, even, to save your own. And it was a simple warning like “I feel sick” that made the difference. These few words, spoken on the telephone by the general director of Fiorentina, the Serie A football club, Joe Baronethey probably saved his life.

It was 3pm on Sunday 17 March when Joe Barone, in the hotel room, made the accusation an illness. There wasn't much time to actually do anything except realize something was wrong and make a phone call. In fact, the Viola DS Daniele Pradè was called immediately and he rushed to the hospital.

The news spread quickly and the Florentine, shaken by what happened, had to make decisions very quickly. With president Commisso connected from the United States, the club requested the postponement of the Atalanta-Fiorentina match.

Joe Barone underwent heart surgery in a short time and is now in cardiac surgical intensive care at the San Raffaele in Milan. His condition is critical but stable. The phone call certainly saved his life at the time, but now we will have to see what consequences it had, despite the timeliness of the operation.

The general director of the company is 57 years old, he is a sports manager with dual citizenship, Italian and American. Born in Sicily, in Pozzallo, he is moved to America at 8 years old with his family. His is a story of rapid social ascent. Joe Barone, in fact, met Rocco Commisso and started working in his company, Mediacom. In 2017 he became vice-president of New York Cosmos, acquired by Commisso.

In 2019 he returned to Italy as general manager of Fiorentina. He is one of the architects of the Viola Park project, the Viola club's sports center considered one of the most modern and innovative in Europe.

Now his story has reached a crossroads. Certainly timeliness and clarity may have made the difference in this dramatic situation. The whole of Fiorentina and the world of football are rallying around him and his family, awaiting the updates arriving in the next few hours.