The Lega Serie A announced that this evening’s match between Fiorentina and Atalanta was called off after Viola director Joe Barone was rushed to hospital.
It was due to kick off at the Gewiss Stadium at 17.00 GMT.
You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens from today’s Serie A games on the Liveblog.
The Viola had been at the team hotel waiting to make their way to the stadium when director general Barone was taken ill.
According to the latest reports, Barone was rushed by ambulance to the San Raffaele hospital in Milan.
Sky Sport Italia note that some of the players were present when Barone fell ill and were too worried for him to focus on taking to the field in those circumstances.
Only a few days ago it was the anniversary of the death of Fiorentina captain Davide Astori, whose heart stopped beating when he was asleep in the team hotel ahead of a Serie A match against Udinese on March 4, 2018.
Barone was born in Italy, but raised in the United States and is the right-hand man of Fiorentina President Rocco Commisso, taking the job in November 2019.
His 58th birthday is on Wednesday.
📢 The Atalanta vs Fiorentina match, scheduled for today 17 March 2024 at 18:00 CET, has been postponed to a later date.#SerieA | #AtalantaFiorentina
— Lega Serie A (@SerieA_EN) March 17, 2024