Ex-Chelsea Player Dies Of Cancer

Former Chelsea striker, Gianluca Vialli has passed away at 58-year-old after a long battle with pancreatic cancer.

Gianluca Vialli who represented Italy’s national team 59 times was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2017 but said in April 2020 that he had fully recovered from the disease.

In December 2022, Vialli resigned from his position with Italy’s national team to concentrate on his health after receiving a new diagnosis in 2021.

The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) president Gabriele Gravina said: “Gianluca was a splendid person and he leaves a void that cannot be filled.

“I hoped until the end that he would be able to perform another miracle. Yet I am comforted by the certainty that what he did for Italian football and the blue shirt will never be forgotten.”

All Italian games this weekend will begin with a moment of silence in Vialli’s honor, according to the FIGC.

In 1985, a year after joining Sampdoria, where he spent eight seasons and won the Serie A championship and European Cup Winners’ Cup, Vialli made his Italy debut.

A statement from Sampdoria reads: “We won’t forget your 141 goals, overhead kicks, cashmere shirts, earrings, platinum blonde hair, or bomber jacket from the Ultras. Yes, it was love, reciprocal, and limitless. You gave to us so much, and we gave to you so much. a love that will endure after you do.”

After losing to Barcelona in the 1992 European Cup final with Sampdoria, Vialli transferred for a then-record £12 million to Juventus. With Juve during four seasons, Vialli won the Serie A, Uefa Cup, and Champions League.