Only a few days ago he had announced his intention to resign from all his professional commitments to “use all the psycho-physical energies to help my body overcome this phase of the disease”. That cursed tumor that had been chasing him for years now. Gianluca Vialli didn’t make it: he died at 58.
The diagnosis and the “fear of dying”
In 2017 he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and since that day he has always shared his journey without hiding the fears deriving from the disease. In an interview with Alessandro Cattelan he had confessed that he was “afraid of dying”. “I don’t know when the light goes out what’s on the other side. But I also realize that the concept of death is needed to understand and appreciate life », he added.
Between Samp, Juve, Chelsea and the Wembley final: Gianluca Vialli, a role model for everyone
Stephen Chess
Cabrini’s letter to Vialli in his last days of life: “Dear friend, I am writing to you, you are not alone”
“I hope the cancer gets tired of me”
Vialli has always hoped that his story could be an example for others: «I was a player and a strong but also fragile man and I think that someone may have recognized himself. I’m here with my flaws, fears and desire to do something important », he said last year. «I’m not having a battle with cancer because I don’t think I would be able to win it, he is a much stronger opponent than me. Cancer is an unwanted travel companion, but I can’t help it – he added -. He got on the train with me and I have to go on, travel with my head down, never giving up, hoping that one day this unwanted guest will get tired and let me live peacefully for many more years because there are still many things I want to do».
When Vialli said: “I have two goals: not to die before my parents and to bring my daughters to the altar”
The sports career of Gianluca Vialli
Sports manager, coach, striker, Vialli was head of delegation of the Italian national team and one of the best center forwards of the 1980s and 1990s. Candidate for the Ballon d’Or several times, he finished 7th in the 1988 and 1991 editions. In 2015 he was entered into the Italian football Hall of Fame. Vialli is among the few players who have won all three major UEFA club competitions, unique among forwards. Top scorer of the Under-21 European Championship in 1986, of the Italian Cup 1988-1989 in which he established, with 13 goals, the absolute record for goals in a single edition of the tournament, of the Cup Winners’ Cup 1989-1990 and of Serie A 1990- 1991. Between 1985 and 1992 he totaled 59 appearances and 16 goals for the Italian national team, taking part in two World Cups (Mexico 1986 and Italy 1990) and one European Cup (West Germany 1988). He played 21 games and scored 11 goals with the Under-21 team, with whom he played in two category European Championships (1984 and 1986).
When Vialli said: “I have two goals: not to die before my parents and to bring my daughters to the altar”
Vialli, the last appearance on TV: “With Mancini at Wembley an embrace between sport, fear and life”
