Gianluca Vialli died

Gianluca Vialli is dead

Italian and international soccer, just days after the passing of Pelé and Sinisa Mihajlovic, loses another significant performer in the sport: Gianluca Vialli has died at just 58 years old, after a long battle with pancreatic cancer first diagnosed in 2017 and recurring in 2021.

In recent weeks, Vialli had left his role as team manager of the national team (his tears of joy and embrace with his lifelong friend, coach Roberto Mancini, after Italy’s Euro 2020 victory were unforgettable) to return to London and battle the disease, with the support of family members and those closest to him.

Vialli played professionally in the 1980s and 1990s, wearing the jerseys of Cremonese, Sampdoria, Juventus and Chelsea. Scudetto-winning with the Blucerchiati and Bianconeri, he also won four editions of the Coppa Italia, two Italian Super Cups, two Cup Winners’ Cups, a Champions League, a Uefa Cup, an FA Cup and an English League Cup. With the national team, he finished third at Italia ’90.

His coaching career was relatively short: first a player-manager at Chelsea, he was then a full-time coach in the 1999/2000 season, moving to the Watford bench in 2001/2002. He then turned to the role of technical commentator and moved on to managerial duties, most recently as team manager of the Italian national team.