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(Reuters) – Italy’s Serie A held a minute’s silence in memory of Gianluca Vialli before Saturday’s match, while old teammates and rivals paid their respects to the former Italy international.<\/p>\n
Vialli, who won 59 caps for Italy and had an illustrious career at Sampdoria, Juventus and Chelsea, died on Friday at the age of 58 after a long battle with cancer.<\/p>\n
His former Juventus teammate Gianluca Pessotto read a touching letter before Saturday’s match against Udinese, saying: “You are our guide, on and off the field, in the locker room and in the win. I was a teammate.<\/p>\n
\u201cCaptain, my friend, I will never forget your sense of humor, grace, charisma and tenacity.<\/p>\n
“No one can forget the memories you gave us with football and goals. We miss your smile so much. We are ready to hug you. Bon Voyage, Captain. We love you.”<\/p>\n
Juventus’ Federico Chiesa dedicated the 1-0 victory over Udinese to Vialli, telling DAZN: human\u2026<\/p>\n
“We could talk for hours about how great a man he was. Victory is his.”<\/p>\n
Vialli’s lifelong friend, Italian coach Roberto Mancini, paid tribute to his “little brother” in an interview with the Corriere dello Sport, saying: “Gianluca is the best of us, perfect and brave. It was a man,” he said.<\/p>\n
On Friday, Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte chose not to attend his FA Cup pre-match press conference, mourning the death of his former team-mate.<\/p>\n
“A few months ago we had dinner together in London and shared memories of adventures and battles on the field,” Conte said on Instagram.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnfortunately, you have had to fight the big and terrible battles of your life over the last few years. , I have told you and written to you that I am proud, brave, and have fought this disease like a lion…”<\/p>\n
At a press conference on Saturday, AC Milan coach Stefano Pioli told reporters: “2023 started poorly because we lost a champion of sport and life, a generous and relevant person with unique values.” said.<\/p>\n
(Reporting by Aadi Nair and Tommy Lund; Editing by Toby Davis)<\/p>\n