Gianluca Vialli, 58, has left his role with the Italian national team.
The football icon needs to focus on fighting the cancer, which has returned.
The goal is to use all my energy, both physical and mental, says Vialli to the FIFA website.
In the spring of 2020, Italian football star Gianluca Vialli may rejoice.
He told me that his hair had begun to grow back and that he no longer needed to pencil his eyebrows.
But pancreatic cancer returned last year.
Vali has cancer
Gianluca Vialli was one of the captains who played a key role when Italy won the European Championship last summer, but he is now stepping down from his role as ‘head of delegation’ in captain Roberto Mancini’s squad.
After long and difficult deliberation with my wonderful team of oncologists, I have made the decision, Vialli says in a statement.
– The goal is to use all my physical and mental energy to help my body overcome this stage of the disease.
“The main character”
The Italian Football Federation supports Gianluca Vialli’s decision to focus on cancer treatment.
– Gianluca is a major hero of the Italian national team and will remain so in the future, says President Gabriele Gravina.
– By the tremendous strength of his spirit and the support of the whole Society, I am convinced that he will soon return.
During his active career, Gianluca Vialli played for such big clubs as Juventus and Chelsea (where he was also a playing coach). Vialli also won the top scorer’s title as Sampdoria returned to Serie A for the first and so far only time.