Genoa – IS It was Roberto Mancini yesterday morning who warned his friends of Sampd’oro that Gianluca Vialli had closed his eyes forever. In these hours, among other things, Lombardo (who turned 57 yesterday) should have left for London, to visit him in the clinic where he had been hospitalized since mid-December. The little news that filtered on the bomber’s health conditions in the last few hours had become very worrying. But “Attila” didn’t have time to say goodbye to his brother Luca for the last time.
The coach of the national team was the one who for days, ever since the clinical picture was compromised, he was maintaining, for all, contact with the family, especially with Vialli’s wife, Cathryn White Cooper. And he was one of the first to be informed of the news, while he was boarding a flight to Doha at the Rome airport. Shortly after, Vialli’s family released the statement: «With immeasurable sadness we announce the passing of Gianluca Vialli. Surrounded by his family, he passed away last night after five years of illness faced with courage and dignity. We thank the many who have supported him over the years with their affection. The memory of him and his example will live forever in our hearts.
Mancini entrenched himself in silence during the day. He didn’t answer the phone or texts. Already tried by the recent loss of Sinisa Mihajlovic, he now had to deal with another great pain. An important piece of his life is gone with Vialli. In an interview released before Christmas she had described their relationship thus: «We are brothers. A fortune to have crossed my life with hers. We had the same experiences, the same fears, the same emotions. This is why our friendship knows no end. Saying lasting friendship is an understatement, I’m there for him, he’s there for me. I shared work with him, free moments, the bullshit one does when they’re young.”
Yesterday outside the clinic where Vialli was hospitalized some fans hung scarves of Sampdoria, Juventus and Chelsea, the teams of his career together with Cremonese. The discretion and confidentiality with which Vialli and his family have always lived will also accompany him on his last trip. The funeral will be held privately in London the day after tomorrow. Vialli would later have expressed his willingness to be cremated. Perhaps a public ceremony will be organized in Cremona. While it will almost certainly be held in Genoa, an attempt is being made to organize it in the next few days. As had happened for Vujadin Boskov in 2014, a mass in memory of him was held at the church of the Consolation, in Via XX Settembre about a month after his disappearance in Serbia. Vialli was also there that morning to remember their legendary coach with his teammates.
Sampdoria recalled their bomber on social media. And she will do it again tomorrow afternoon on the occasion of the match against Napoli, associating her memory with that of Sinisa Mihajlovic. A video dedicated to the two Sampdoria champions will be projected on the big screens before the kick-off, while the players will have to warm up wearing a special shirt. Then there will obviously be a minute’s silence, as on all other football fields. Even the fans are organizing to remember Vialli with a choreography. It will be a Sunday of great emotions at Ferraris. But the pain is strong and Vialli could also be remembered in the next home match, the one against Udinese on 22 January.
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