Footballer Mattia Giani falls dead while shooting at goal: AS Roma’s Gianluca Mancini is among those paying tribute to the striker, 26
- Mattia Giani tragically died after collapsing on the pitch
- He was seen holding his chest as he took a shot at goal
- Tributes have poured in from top footballers and his loved ones
Tributes have poured in for an Italian striker who fell dead aged 26 while shooting at goal during a match.
Castelfiorentino striker Mattia Giani was rushed to hospital after clutching his chest and collapsing seconds after shooting on goal in the 15th minute of a match against Lanciotto Campi in Tuscany on Sunday.
A club masseur reportedly tried to revive the player on the pitch after his heart stopped beating for several minutes, before he was taken to Careggi Hospital in Florence, where he died the next day.
Football players and family have poured out their hearts in tribute to the deceased player.
AS Roma’s Gianluca Mancini, whose sister is currently in a relationship with Giani’s brother Elia, dedicated his goal in the 2-1 Europa League win against AC Milan to Giani on Thursday, telling Sky Sports Italia:
‘My sister and Mattia’s family are suffering. The world around them has collapsed, but they will rise again. I wanted to dedicate this cause to him.”
Mancini was seen wearing a T-shirt that said in Italian: “Goodbye Mattia, with us forever.”
Castelfiorentino striker Mattia Giani (pictured) was rushed to hospital after clutching his chest and collapsing seconds after shooting at goal
Giani’s girlfriend Sofia Caruso (pictured, right) had moved in with him just two days before he died
AS Roma’s Gianluca Mancini, whose sister is currently in a relationship with Giani’s brother Elia, dedicated his goal in the 2-1 Europa League win against AC Milan on Thursday
Castelfiorentino coach Nico Scaridigli said of Giani: “Mattia was a great guy. He had a wonderful girlfriend who loved him more than anything.
‘From a sporting point of view, he was a good football player who was fun. He always had a knockout shot. Due to muscle problems alone, his career did not go as he deserved.’
Giani’s girlfriend Sofia Caruso, who he lived with for just two days before he died, revealed how their last day together was spent.
She said: ‘We woke up on Sunday. We talked and laughed: it was beautiful. Then Matti grabbed the bag. I stayed home. Then his cell phone rang: it was a message from him, the last one.
‘He wrote to me: ‘Dear, I left you the accreditation for the match in Giani’s name. I love you very much.’ He always told me he loved me like crazy, and I loved him like crazy, too.”
She added: ‘We thought about getting married, we said we wanted children. Mattia made me understand what love was and he took care of me. Matti was a pure and good person.
‘He always told me she would never leave me alone. I will love him forever. Now I feel like I have to move on for him.
Speaking about her last day with her boyfriend, Sofia said: “We woke up on Sunday. We talked and laughed: it was beautiful’
Mancini wore a T-shirt with the text: ‘Goodbye Mattia, forever with us’
‘I have to do it for his friends who have been calling me non-stop for days. I, on the other hand, called him all morning, but he didn’t answer. I am speechless and I am without tears.’
Meanwhile, Giani’s father Sandro filed a complaint to “understand how our son died” as several disturbing details about his son’s death came to light.
According to Sandro, there was no doctor on the sidelines at the time of the striker’s death.
In addition, the first ambulance arrived late and without a doctor. A defibrillator was only used by the doctor who arrived minutes later with a second ambulance.
Italian prosecutors have since opened a manslaughter investigation after disturbing details about the club’s preparedness emerged.
Lanciotto was also fined for not having proper medical staff at the time of the medical incident.