Mancini: ‘Vialli said Italy must win 2026 World Cup, he’ll be there with us’

Italy coach Roberto Mancini reveals the last request Gianluca Vialli made before his death. ‘He said we have to win the 2026 World Cup and he’ll be there with us.’

They had a lifetime together, first as teammates at Sampdoria, then as friends and eventually reuniting in the Azzurri staff that won the EURO 2020 tournament in the summer of 2021.

Vialli had already received treatment for pancreatic cancer when they had that embrace at Wembley Stadium, but the illness returned over the last couple of months and he died on January 6.

“I went to visit Luca in London in December, and I’ll be honest, I was a little scared,” Mancini told Porta a Porta on RAI 1.

“He woke up, we laughed, joked around, called Attilio Lombardo on the phone. He told me: ‘I am relaxed, don’t worry.’ He was the one trying to raise my spirits.”

They also had a conversation that looked to the future and hoping Italy can make up for missing the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

“Gianluca told me we have to win the World Cup in 2026 and he’ll be there with us. He will certainly be right there and we hope to dedicate a great victory to him very soon.”

The memory we all want to keep of Vialli and Mancini is that wonderful hug during the EURO 2020 Final, when beating England on penalties to lift the trophy.

“That embrace held everything, both football and what was going on in our lives. I hope that victory gave him some joy. He was fundamental for that squad.”

It is not known when Vialli was first diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, but he had already received treatment when taking the job with Mancini’s Italy.

“He never spoke to me about the illness until 2019, but there were already rumours and I’d learned about it from a mutual friend. He told me that he was getting treatment and always felt positive.

“He was always a fighter, he never let go until the bitter end. That was his character, that of a gladiator. I am proud to have had Gianluca as a friend.”