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This Saturday was the funeral of the former player who died on December 9 at the age of 64.
World champions in 1982 and hundreds of fans flocked to Vicenza (northeast Italy) this Saturday to pay a final tribute to Paolo Rossi, hero of the third star conquered by the Nazionale, at an emotional funeral in Italy.
His travel companions in the World Cup in Spain carried the coffin of ‘Pablito’, inseparable from the 1982 title, in the cathedral square of Vicenza, a city whose club he led to unexpected performances (2nd in 1978).
“If I am world champion, it is thanks to him,” said Fulvio Collovati, former defender of the national team who was present
Top scorer of the 1982 World Cup (6 goals), Rossi was the great architect of the Italian triumph. A performance rewarded by a Ballon d’Or the same year.
His death last Wednesday, at the age of 64 and after a long illness, raised a wave of mourning and national tributes, particularly in Vicenza, where he led his club to Serie A.
Thanks to Rossi, the championship scorer in 1978 (24 goals), the modest club finished the season as runners-up, behind only Juventus.
An indelible memory in this city in the northeast of the country where thousands of people came to honor him on Friday at the Menti stadium, where Rossi’s coffin was exposed in public.
And this Saturday, despite the restrictions imposed by the pandemic, hundreds of people gathered outside the city’s cathedral.
“A brother” for Cabrini
“I have not only lost a teammate, but a friend, a brother,” said former Italian defender Antonio Cabrini.
“Together, we fight and win, sometimes we lose, always wanting to get back up. We are part of a group. We didn’t think you would be leaving so soon. Goodbye Paolo! “
Rossi’s son Alessandro carried the coffin with his father’s companions, followed by his widow, Federica, and his daughters Sofia Elena and Maria Vittoria.
The entrance to the cathedral was adorned with a large-format print of the Gazzetta dello Sport cover the day after Italy’s 3-1 victory over Germany in the World Cup final, where Rossi opened the scoring.
A T-shirt of the Italian team with the number 20 and a Vicenza scarf were placed on the coffin.
After the ceremony, a long applause and the sound of the cathedral bells accompanied the chants of the people outside, who sang a loud “Paolo, Paolo …”.
After his cremation, his ashes will return to his native Tuscany, his wife said this week.
