The world football legend passed away prematurely/ Get to know the profile of one of the strongest Italian strikers in history, from the title with Sampdoria to the Champions Cup with Juventus

Even a warrior like him had to surrender. After suffering for years, Gianluca Vialli, one of the strongest strikers in the history of Italian football and the national team, leaves this life. One of the icons of recent decades, which saw him grab the championship title in 1991 with Sampdoria, and bring the title back to Turin with Juventus in 1995, before the historic Champions League a year later in white and white. Having emigrated to Chelsea after his experience at Juventus, he was able to be appreciated in England as a footballer and then a coach.

Born in Cremona on July 9, 1964, Gianluca grew up in a more than wealthy family and began his career at Pizzighettone youth team before moving to his hometown team. He started as a winger and then turned into a striker. He made his debut at Cremonese which he then contributed, under Emiliano Mondonico, to promotion to Serie A in 1984. Only that year he moved to Sampdoria under Mantovani, becoming a symbol of the club. In his first year he won the Coppa Italia (which when he left Genoa he would win twice more), then, with the arrival of Boskov and the incredible understanding on and off the pitch with Roberto Mancini, he would also win The Cup of Cups in 1990 and above all the historic championship of the following year 1991, at the height of a rivalry with the great Milan, Inter or Juventus. In 1992, he also won the Italian Super Cup.

This is his last match with Sampdoria before moving to Juventus. A few years in black and white which they won first, the UEFA Cup in 1993, before the Scudetto-Champions League double under Lippi (as well as a Coppa Italia and a Supercoppa).

After Juventus, he moved to Chelsea in 1996. In the first season he won the FA Cup, then in the double role of coach and player, he won the League Cup, the Cup Winners' Cup and the European Super Cup, making the most of a brilliant Gianfranco Zola. Experience in the national team should be added to his career, with which he participated in a European championship in 1988 and in two World Cups, in 1986 and 1990.

In total in his career he scored 275 professional goals and won the title as the best scorer in the 90/91 season.

As a coach, he managed Chelsea and Watford before devoting himself to the role of sports commentator, various charity activities and writing two books. In 2019 he returned to an active role in football by joining the ranks of the Federation as head of the Italian national team delegation, culminating in the 2021 European Championship won by the Azzurri, a team led by his great friend Mancini (and the tearful embrace between the two after the victory at Wembley against England is the most iconic image of that triumph).

However, he will always be remembered for his incredible ability to be decisive in the penalty area, finding the goal in a thousand different ways, using impressive progression, and extraordinary acrobatic ability. In addition, he understood how to position himself in the defensive phase and was essential to the pressing required by Lippi in his Juventus years. In short, he was one of the best Italian strikers of all time.