Friday 12 June marked the beginning of the fourth edition of the Memorial event dedicated to Davide Astori, the Viola captain who played for Fiorentina from 2015 until his untimely death in 2018. Once again this year, Fiorentina U10 will take part in the tournament organized by the club to pay tribute to Davide and the values he always embodied, both on and off the pitch.
Two representatives of the Fiorentina Academy attended the tournament inauguration: Director Valentino Angeloni and Maurizio Niccolini, who is in charge of the Academy teams from ages eight to 14. The two directors received the annual award, which this year was dedicated to Riccardo Braschi, the 19-year-old forward who led Fiorentina U20 to their Scudetto victory this season, 43 years since their last win.
Another key figure from Fiorentina history at the event was Cesare Prandelli. The historic Fiorentina coach shared a wonderful memory of Davide.
Here’s what he said:
What’s your favorite memory of Davide?
“My favorite memory of Davide is not related to football, training sessions, matches or call-ups. One day, in Via dei Serragli, a car came up towards me, pulled over and he came out of it. He hugged me and told me, “I’ve just become a dad.” We got emotional and hugged and that’s my favorite memory of Davide. He was happy, he’d be smiling all the time and exciting to be around.”
What would you say Davide has left behind?
“The legacy he has left behind is his behavior. To me, people are who they are based on how they behave, especially over time. He was always authentic. He had a strong personality, he had character, but he was always fair. That’s why these tournaments are important: they’re a way to pass on Davide’s values to these kids.”
What’s your relationship with Florence?
“I have a strong bond with the city of Florence. I live here. I’ve become a Fiorentina fan and when I go up north, people have to watch how they talk about this team because I can lose my temper [laughs].”
Giancarlo Antognoni, the legendary Fiorentina captain for 15 seasons, also talked about Davide.
What is Davide’s football legacy?
“Davide was an important player in Fiorentina history. He was team captain as well as the symbol of the team in those years. He taught his team-mates a great deal as well as to us managers at the time.
“His behavior and actions were commendable and so was his ambition. Fiorentina in those years were very ambitious. So we always want to do our best to keep his memory alive because we really learned a lot from him, both on and off the pitch.”
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