Mountain folk hail good guy’s rise to top
That’s how it seems until you come across a story that proves football has a human face after all.
It is hard to imagine anyone less like a WAG than Dania Gazzani and any player more deserving than her husband Emanuele Giaccherini. The shy girl from a seaside town and the modest boy from a village in the mountains who triumphed against adversity — brought together by fate and bound together by faith. It seems too good to be true.
Two weeks ago an Italian TV crew went to interview Dania, the day after Emanuele made his debut in the 1-1 draw with Spain. To reach her they had to travel to Talla, the village in the Apennines where she lives with her in-laws.
No one goes to Talla by chance. It’s a lovely spot but to reach it you travel a narrow winding road that crosses a vast mountain to the south of Florence called the Pratomagno — sufficiently remote that it served as a guerrilla base for partisans fighting the Germans in the Second World War.
They spoke to Dania in the little square by the church, next to the partisan memorial.
“How does it feel?”
She laughed. “It feels fantastic. But it’s very hard to cope with emotionally, everything’s happened at once.”
Two years ago Giaccherini was playing for Cesena when he met Dania at an end-of-season party organised by fans. Neither of them had intended to go. Afterwards he contacted her via Facebook and eventually asked her out.
“I made excuses more than once,” she says, “because I was frightened by his world, I have to admit I had a lot of prejudices.”
Eventually it was her parish priest Don Marco Muratori — “my best friend and my spiritual guide” — who suggested she give the young man a chance and get to know him. “Precious advice” says Dania. “Since our first meeting we’ve stayed together.”
Married last June, this has been an extraordinary 12 months for both of them. Their first child, Giulia Maria, was born in October and Giaccherini’s career has soared since his move to Juventus last summer.
Originally signed in a “joint ownership” arrangement with Cesena he was not even in the starting line-up at the start of the season: eight months and 23 league games later he was a title-winner and playing for his country.
Success has come to him at the age of 27 after years of struggle and some pain. Badly injured in a collision with a goalkeeper early on in his career he had to have his spleen removed.
He was spotted by Cesena playing for a local nursery club Bibbiena but spent five seasons on loan at minor clubs or injured and was essentially written off. His size and build were against him, for all his skill on the ball. After battling to make a name for himself he was considering giving up his professional career and finding work in a factory.
Fortunately Cesena recruited a coach, Pierpaolo Bisoli, prepared to persist with him — and he also had an agent with a famous name who believed in him.
Furio Valcareggi has made a good career from spotting and promoting talent — his father Ferruccio managed Italy to the European title in 1968, and got them to the World Cup final in 1970 via that epic 4-3 extra-time win in the semi-final against West Germany.
“Giaccherini’s story is incredible,” he says. “I first learned about the boy 10 years ago. We offered him to clubs but no one wanted him — today they’d bite your hand off. I remember going to see him on his Serie A debut with Cesena at the Stadio Olimpico. I was as emotional as he was.
“He told me he’d like to have Totti’s shirt, and he gave it to him. I went to see him against Milan: we saw Ibrahimovic, Robinho, Pato... it was as if he was at the movies.”
Back in Talla, Giaccherini’s mates now feel as if they’re in a movie. He is likely to be on the bench rather than starting against Germany, but no matter.
The big screen will be out in front of the local cafe where they all watched Italy in 2008 when they lost on penalties to Spain.
“It’s a fairytale,” says Valcareggi. “Justice has been done, good has overcome evil.”
“Our lives should stay the same” says Giaccherini’s father Roberto.
“He must not change, he must remain modest, his friends are here, and he must continue to return here, as he’s been doing.”
Dania and little Giulia will be waiting.
