GIANLUCA VIALLI, FORMER ITALY STRIKER, PASSES AWAY AT 58 DUE TO CANCER

Gianluca Vialli, a former Italy striker, died on Friday at the age of 58. He was receiving treatment for pancreatic cancer.

Vialli, who played for Sampdoria, Juventus, and Chelsea and won 59 caps for Italy, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2017. A year later, he was given the all-clear, only for the illness to return.

“I know I’m not going to die of old age, but I’m hoping to live as long as possible,” Vialli said in a Netflix documentary that will air in March 2022.

He described cancer as a “travel companion” who he hoped would eventually leave him alone after putting him through his paces. “Illness can teach you a lot about yourself and push you to go beyond the superficial way we live,” he says.

Vialli was forced to step down as head of an Italian national team delegation last month, citing the need to focus on overcoming a new phase of his disease.

Vialli had been reunited with national coach Roberto Mancini, a lifelong friend and strike partner when they both played for Sampdoria, where they were known as “the goal twins,” while working with the Italy squad.

Vialli and Mancini led Italy to the Euro 2020 tournament in 2021, lifting the trophy in Wembley Stadium, where their Sampdoria team had lost the European Cup final to Barcelona 29 years earlier.

Last year, they celebrated with a tearful embrace “more beautiful than the hugs we used to give each other when I passed him the ball and he scored goals,” Vialli said in a November TV interview with Italy’s RAI.