Salernitana have won the third game in a row and their coach Davide Nicola is targeting another achievement to dedicate to his son, who died in 2014.
The Granata beat Fiorentina 2-1 at home today. It was their second victory at the Stadio Arechi this season, the sixth in 2021-22.
Nicola is the third coach appointed by the Granata this term. They had sacked Fabrizio Castori in October and Stefano Colantuono in February. Nicola has now earned 12 points in 10 games at the Stadio Arechi. The former Torino coach famously saved Crotone and then Genoa from extremely dire situations, so he’s no stranger to a relegation miracle.
He will turn 49 on March 5. After taking Crotone to a completely improbable Serie A safety, he and his staff took a bicycle ride from Crotone to his home of Vigone (Turin), covering over 1,300km in nine days.
He stopped off at places where his playing and coaching career had important moments and was greeted in Turin by hundreds of fans. Nicola has now pledged that if he saves Salernitana from relegation, he will walk to Rome to meet The Pope.
Nicola took Genoa to safety in 2020 with 28 points in 21 rounds. This was Genoa, so of course, he was fired anyway. He was brought in by Torino after the Marco Giampaolo failure in January 2021 and again rescued them from a bad situation, but was again not kept on.
Like Crotone in 2017, Nicola took over a team that had 13 points after 25 rounds. However, Salernitana still have a game in hand – against direct rivals Venezia – so it could even be a better situation than the one he inherited at Crotone, where he picked up 21 points in 13 rounds.
Nicola’s son Alessandro was hit by a bus and killed just yards from his home in July 2014, aged just 14, while riding his bike. The coach wrote a touching letter to him after his feat with Crotone in 2017.
Serie A | Salernitana 2-1 Fiorentina: Miracle of the Arechi gets closer
“Hello, my love. I don’t know where you are or what you are doing.
“Perhaps, you were on that cloud over me when I was trying to make your lantern fly. Or maybe you are here close to me now. We’ve fought together this year, I know you’ve always been with me.
“You gave me the strength to go on and fight for the impossible. Perseverance makes the impossible possible, the possible probable and the probable certain.
“Ale, this is not my victory, but our victory, just like that promotion to Serie A with Livorno. I wanted to celebrate with you, look at you in the eyes and run to celebrate together.
“This is all for you. Each one of my conquer is your conquer. Every victory is your victory, each one of my dream is your dream. I want my heart to beat for you so that you can still live through me.” Now, he has the chance to dedicate another feat to him.
Wow
Reading this just gave me strength and hope.we fight for those we love and have lost.football is more than a game it is life.it can inspire and give hope to millions of people who don’t just watch but live and breathe football.thats what football can do,it’s a pity that many are in it just for money rather than to bring joy and happiness to millions that cheer and live for football.