Tragedy in Bari: 17-Year-Old Soccer Player Dies
Yet another tragedy on the road: Gianluca Monno lost his life in a traffic accident in Bari. The 17-year-old, who played for ASD Noicattaro, was riding his motorcycle when he collided with a car. Medical personnel responded promptly and transported him to the hospital, but unfortunately, there was nothing they could do.
His team remembered him this way on Facebook: “Soccer is the most beautiful sport in the world because it creates bonds that last forever. You, Gianluca, joined our family with the poise of a leader and the determination of a lion. We will remember you forever, and you will always be our lion. Now you are an angel who, together with our other angels, will watch over us and your teammates. Goodbye, Gianluca—you’re always with us.”
The young man had also played for Free Time, where he grew up: “Gianluchino, I remember how you’d stop on the field and stare into space when something wasn’t right. I’d come right over to hug you, and then everything would go back to normal—even your smile. You’ve left this void in all of our hearts, but it motivates us to hold each other even tighter—starting with your little brother.”
“Gianluca always had a great passion for soccer, the sport that accompanied his young life. In the face of such a painful loss, every word seems inadequate,” wrote Virtus Palese Calcio.
The Puglia Regional Committee of the National Amateur League also shared a tribute to young Gianluca on social media: “LND Puglia stands in deep sorrow with the family of Gianluca Monno, a young soccer player just 17 years old who tragically passed away in the last few hours. This news has left the entire Apulian soccer community in shock. Since childhood, Gianluca had nurtured his great passion for soccer, growing up on our fields and sharing with teammates, coaches, and clubs those values of friendship and belonging that make sports one big family.”
“Regional Committee President Vito Tisci, together with the Executive Board and the entire Apulian federation family, speaking on behalf of all the amateur and youth clubs in our region, expresses its most sincere condolences and sympathy to Gianluca’s family, his loved ones, his teammates, and ASD Noicattaro—the club with which he was currently registered—joining in the grief of all the sports organizations that accompanied him on his journey.”
