The former president: “I cried for Serie B. When Gilardino was sacked, without me knowing it, I understood that my experience was over. Now I support De Rossi”
“In my life I have cultivated two great passions, medicine and Genoa. There isn’t a day when I don’t think about Genoa. Professional football is the furthest thing possible from the love of the shirt, and yet during my presidency I had 30 more children.” Alberto Zangrillo has no longer been at the helm of his favorite team for almost a year but he has not stopped being deeply in love with it and never will. An indissoluble bond that goes beyond the disappointment and suffering of the last period.
Zangrillo, how did you become a Genoa fan?
“As a kid in the 70s I went to watch training in Sant’Olcese. In 1988 I was in Modena for the play-off with which we avoided relegation to Serie C. That year my first son, Andrea, was born, the greatest Genoan I know. Yet Andrea has now lost the desire to go to the stadium.”
Was it the same for you too?
“There is a lot of bitterness for what happened, but I am very understanding and I am not giving up on Genoa. I bought the season ticket online, even though at the box office they had given the order not to sell it to me as I was a person not liked by the club: my gesture had been interpreted as a provocation. When I go to Ferraris the Genoa employees I pass lower their gaze so as not to be caught saying hello to me. I understand them and forgive them. When I was still on the board of directors they took me away the car pass and they gave me tickets in the guest sector. All signs, right? I’m very disappointed, they were three wonderful years in which I was able to propose my way of being a president-fan, a species in danger of extinction but with the pride of having contributed to creating enthusiasm to bring the very young people to the stadium.”
Can you tell us what happened?
“In the spring of 2024 there was an irreparable fracture with the club’s top management. I had a constant dialogue with those who continued to support Genoa financially, my contact was the banking advisor of A CAP. Then there was the capital increase that I voted for for the good of Genoa, learning after an unexpected development of which I had been kept in the dark. I feel betrayed and disillusioned. In football we have gone from family management to economic realities that are difficult to assess. who make promises. I myself was a victim of promises that later turned out to be unfounded. It’s the risk we take today, profit is the primary objective. But it makes me proud to have represented Genoa, earning respect and trust in the institutional offices feel the club heard in the buildings”.
Was there an explanation for why it ended like this?
“I believe the cause is a deep antipathy between me and the CEO Andres Blazquez, as well as a mutual distrust. But he counted and I don’t, I accept it. I remember a dinner 4 years ago at Diego Della Valle’s house in Milan. He loves me and didn’t understand why I was getting myself into trouble by accepting the presidency of Genoa. Remo Ruffini defended me because he knew I was happy. For two years Remo helped Genoa without any return, only my gratitude.”
What relationship did he have with the fans?
“The best moment was the banner that the North Stand dedicated to me: ‘President, thank you for always being there’. This concept is simple but very strong, they understood that I was always there for Genoa and nothing stopped me, not even a serious oncological disease faced in 2024 with unimaginable therapies, including cycles of chemo and radiotherapy. Everyone knew it but since 18 December 2024 no one has ever called me with a phone call from Pegli. Only Mattia Bani, once he arrived in Palermo”.
Was your relegation the most painful moment of your presidency?
“It was difficult to accept but then the Serie B was the most beautiful period. After the match against Napoli, in May 2022, I only saw two people cry: me and Marco Rossi. But the possibility of a relaunch was perceived. I felt it so much that I was personally responsible for the slogan ‘Only One Year’, just one year in Serie B. I apologized to the fans, promising that we would return to Serie A immediately. And so it was. The worst moment was the dismissal of Gilardino, who identified a lot with me. It happened without me knowing anything about it, that’s when I realized that my experience at Genoa was over.”
Is De Rossi the right man for salvation?
“I loved Gilardino, I appreciated him for his human qualities, and I didn’t have time to get to know Vieira because in that period it was better for me not to be seen. I believe that De Rossi has in his DNA the best qualities to manage Genoa. The players are good guys, the base is solid and I’m rooting for him: he can relaunch it if, as I think, he knows how to get into the hearts of the kids by listening only to himself.”
How do you see the future of Genoa?
“I don’t know, but it depends on only one thing: the enthusiasm of the Genoans who reward every effort if they perceive that the objective is achievable. “Only One Year” is an example of this”.
What if one day they asked her to be president again?
“I feel like saying that it won’t happen and I don’t want it to happen. If it does, I will say no because I also suffered a lot. I experienced wickedness without any kind of respect. This is not how I would put my heart right. I gave everything, it would be stupid to propose again and it wouldn’t be understood.”
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