UDINE. The savior of the homeland in the Apu Old Wild West house is called Alessandro Gentile. In the most delicate moment of the home match against Rimini, the Caserta winger got the Juventus team out of trouble by scoring all eight Udinese points in overtime.
A very difficult success and two points that are a breath of fresh air in view of the sprint that awaits Finetti’s team from here to the end of the first phase.
LEADERSHIP
That “Ale Gent” is a player with a strong personality was well known to all. That he could be a team man, from the point of view of empathy towards his teammates, is instead news. Already from the language of his body it is clear that the son of art has fallen perfectly into the new adventure in Udine.
In the game since the tap-off, Gentile is always one of the first to high-five a teammate who scores a basket or to cheer him up if he makes a mistake.
Mattia Palumbo also took his arm on Sunday after the quarrel that involved the Roman point guard and coach Carlo Finetti.
Speaking of the Tuscan coach: last Sunday, on the occasion of Cento’s unsuccessful away match, it seems that Gentile approached him at the end of the match to tell him «don’t worry, the team is growing».
NUMBERS
Let’s review Gentile’s figures starting from a figure provided by himself in recent days on the occasion of the official presentation: “I feel at 60% of physical condition”.
We can believe him, if we consider that at the time of his engagement by the Apu a period of athletic training had been envisaged to make him debut in mid-January. The former Olimpia Milano, on the other hand, was immediately launched on the parquet (8 minutes in the Coppa Italia against Cantù, even 27 the following Sunday in San Severo) and is getting into shape by playing and training in a group.
In the four league games played, he averaged 29.2 minutes for sales of 12.7 points, 7.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 15.7 rating.
MATURATION
Many remember an Alessandro Gentile who is difficult to manage from a character point of view, a sort of locker room breaker. The first month of Apu seems to tell us that the player from Caserta has filed some edges, that he is more mature as a man.
An important step was the four-metre flight last summer in Formentera, with a rush to the hospital and a fractured vertebra which forced him to stop for several months. Seeing death in the face changes your life, as he himself admitted: «An episode like this helps you grow – said the Juventus number 5 – and rearrange your life’s priorities. To still be here, able to walk and play basketball is a big win for me.”
Another important step in the maturation of the Gentile man (and consequently also the player) is the imminent paternity. Expecting a child is another of those things that make you reflect and consider life priorities.
UDINE LIFE
Gentile’s first month in Udine also went well off the field. He and his partner, the Serbian model Vanja Josic known for having played the role of “Mother Nature” in Ciao Darwin 8, have chosen to stay in a house in Tavagnacco. They love touring the historic center of Udine and frequenting the restaurants in the area, always with a smile on their face and maximum availability towards the many fans.
The former Azzurri player never refuses to a request for an autograph or a selfie. The “cyclone” Gentile with his charisma also had an important impact in the locker room of the Carnera sports hall, where he proceeded to install a loudspeaker for music, a second coffee machine and soon even a washing machine. In the midst of so much technology, the Playstation certainly cannot be missing, at home and on the road: “Ale Gent” is a tough nut to crack in FIFA matches.
Just like last Sunday against Rimini in overtime, when he rebelled against the idea of a bitter defeat after reaching a 13-point lead. —
© breaking latest news