An untimely death
Just weeks after the death of Argentinian football superstar Diego Maradona, Italy's goalscoring striker from their victorious 1982 World Cup has passed. Football fans everywhere are morning the death of the legendary Italian footballer whose death has been attributed to being caused by an incurable disease.
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RAI Sport presenter and fellow colleague, Enrico Variale, wrote on twitter:
Unforgettable Pablito, who made all of us fall in love in that summer of 1982 and who was a precious and competent work colleague in RAI over recent years.
Rossi's wife, Federica Cappelletti, shared a picture of the couple while on vacation with the caption 'para sempre' - 'forever'. She later wrote in a post on facebook:
There will never be anyone like you, unique, special ...
Stellar track record
Rossi won two series A titles, a European Cup and a Coppa Italia with Juventus. But the defining moment in his career solidifying his iconic status was his pivotal role in the 1982 World Cup in Spain scoring 6 goals in total.
He won the Golden Boot as the top scorer and Golden Ball as the player of the tournament making him one of the very few players ever to have attained such achievements. His 1982 World Cup overall performance has also been regarded as one of the best in the tournament's history securing him the Ballon D'or as Europe's top footballer for that year.
La Gazzetta dello Sport wrote on their website this morning after announcing the death of the famed footballer:
[Rossi was] the one who beat Zico’s Brazil, Maradona’s Argentina, Boniek’s Poland and in the final, the Germany of Rummenigge,”
Former Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi posted on Twitter:
In our hearts, forever. Farewell Pablito.
