Former coach Arrigo Sacchi fondly remembered his old colleague and friend Gigi Riva, calling it a ‘privilege’ to be at his side.
The legendary former Cagliari striker sadly passed away in hospital on Monday evening after suffering from heart issues. The 79-year-old fell ill at home on the weekend and his condition suddenly took a turn for the worse.
Riva spent 15 years of his playing career with Cagliari, becoming a club legend and local hero after he guided them to the Scudetto in the 1969-70 season. He later spent eight years as the club’s head coach after hanging up his boots in 1978.
Speaking on page 17 of today’s Gazzetta dello Sport, Sacchi first had high praise for Riva as a player.
“No doubt, he was the best Italian striker. Gigi Riva was unstoppable. A phenomenon.”
He spoke about his relationship with the former striker.
“He was a great player and a great person. Humble, polite, modest. A real man. He was the head of the national team delegation, never once was he intrusive, never once did he make his role or his personality impact things. Riva respected others and had a great love for the Azzurri shirt.”
The former coach touched on a story from their five-year period together with the Italy national team.
“I remember that once, I think before the match against Scotland at the Olimpico, he saw me doing push-ups. I told him: ‘Gigi, look at those muscles’. And he: ‘Good, continue’.
“We won the match against Scotland, and he forced me, on the eve of every match, to do at least fifty push-ups. I was sweating and he was counting.”
Sacchi discussed their time together at the 1994 World Cup.
“A little game we played between us immediately comes to mind, coaches, masseurs, physiotherapists, managers. Gigi sprinted to the wing and stopped suddenly. He was torn. He stayed in bed for two days. He had crazy pain in his leg.”
He spoke about Riva’s impact at the World Cup in the USA.
“He didn’t get involved in technical matters. But his presence was always important. Every now and then he told us about when he was a footballer, stories that came straight from the sixties or seventies.”
He remembered some of Riva’s stories.
“One evening he took me aside and told me how the retreats were at the time of Cagliari’s championship. Players gathered in a room and played cards. And they smoked, they smoked a lot.
“Once coach Scopigno, a very ironic guy, entered the room and started watching what was happening.
“After a couple of minutes, turning to his players, he said: ‘Will it bother you if I light a cigarette?’. Gigi, when he remembered that moment, always laughed.”
The former coach looked back at when he saw Riva playing in person.
“Of course, I remember that one Sunday I took the car and went from Fusignano to Bologna. It was the year of Cagliari’s Scudetto. The match ended 0-0, but he was very good, I still remember a header with the ball that was almost low to the ground.
“Near goal, but what a thrill! An image of absolute power remained in my memory, Riva was impossible to stop, he had a strong head, he had a deadly left foot, acrobatically he had the courage of a lion. No Italian, I still say, has ever reached those levels.”
Finally, Sacchi discussed what he liked about Riva on a human level.
“His correctness. He had only one word and he could be trusted blindly. On the other hand, his career is testimony to his character, he played for Cagliari, the great northern teams, Juve, Inter and Milan, wanted him, but he didn’t move from Sardinia.
“He was a man of one piece, elegant, gentlemanly, he had an unmistakable style. He may have seemed gruff, but I assure you that he had a considerable amount of irony. Being at his side, for me, was a privilege.”