Giorgio Chiellini distraught over tragic death of Alexander Manninger

The tragic death of Alexander Manninger, whose car was run over at a barrier-free level crossing in a municipality near Salzburg on Thursday, has affected the entire soccer world and in particular the clubs to which Manninger belonged. Among the clubs for which the former goalkeeper had defended the posts is Juventus, which through the words of Giorgio Chiellini, now an executive but in the past a teammate of Manninger himself between 2008 and 2012, wanted to express the condolences of the entire Bianconeri environment.

“Today is a very sad day, an exemplary teammate and a person of great value says goodbye to us – are the words of the former Bianconeri captain -. Hello Alex, rest in peace. Strong thoughts to your family.” Beyond Chiellini’s words, the club wanted to remark on Manninger’s professionalism during his time at Juventus: “In an era marked by the monumental presence of Gigi Buffon, Manninger knew how to make himself ready whenever he was called upon, becoming an absolute reference point for the locker room and a guarantee between the posts.”

“Today we say goodbye not only to a great athlete, but to a man of rare values: humility, dedication and an uncommon professional seriousness. Juventus extends a strong embrace to Alex’s family and all his loved ones in this moment of deep sorrow,” the Piedmontese club concluded.

In bianconero for four seasons, joining after two years at Siena, Manninger played a total of 42 games with Juventus (27 in the league, 3 in the Coppa Italia and 12 between Champions and Europa League). Although he never took the field, he was Buffon’s second in the 2011-2012 season that brought the Scudetto to Juventus.