Gigi Riva would have turned 80 today, the words of his son

“We have reached dad’s 80th birthday, but unfortunately he is not with us.” Thus begins the touching message shared by Gigi Riva’s son, Nicola on Cagliari’s social channels. Today ‘Rombo di Tuono’, who passed away last year, he would have been 80 years old: “It’s difficult to say what my father was for me. Like all children of the time, I also experienced him like Gigi Riva. I didn’t see him often, I was born with a passion for football and grew up with the myth of Gigi Riva. I was waiting for the moment when they showed his goals on TV. He has always been a person who didn’t talk much, who didn’t like to celebrate himself, but every time I saw him on TV I got emotional. Growing up I understood that he was a man appreciated for specific values ​​and this allowed me to get to know my father better, who he had tremendous suffering as a child and then became a great man“.

“He left me important values, which I hope to preserve and treasure”, he continued, “on the day of the funeral I wanted to thank him. The funeral home was very emotional, they came to greet him from all over Sardinia. I have lost a dad, but also for many Sardinians it is as if they had lost a relative. There was so much suffering that day.”

Il link with Sardiniain any case, has never broken: “My father grew up in Sardinia and passed on to us his love for this land. In every town in Sardinia there is a memory of him, it is a name that will remain linked forever to this island. His bond was based on trust and respecttranscended football. I’m a huge Cagliari fan, I’m passionate, but once the match is over I’m clear-headed to understand where I can improve. My father taught me that you have to know how to win but also how to lose. We at Cagliari experience many emotions, even negative ones. A a true fan knows how to accept every resultif he saw on the pitch the desire to never give up. The bond between Cagliari and our family has never been interrupted.”

Then a special memory: “An hour before Bari-Cagliarithe play-off to go to Serie A, my father called Ranieri but he was afraid of disturbing. I knew it would have been useful instead. He said just one sentence: ‘All of Sardinia is with you‘. Few words, but before entering the field they can give you an extra boost. That promotion was the last sporting emotion I experienced with him”. Nicola Riva, who returned to the Cagliari board of directors, also remembered the first match at the Unipol Arena after Gigi’s death: “On the occasion of Cagliari- Turin, a few days after his death, there was a emotional atmosphere. The team was also influenced by this atmosphere, I will remember it forever.”