The midfielder who won promotion to Serie A with the Dea passed away today at the age of 77. He won an award for “great combativeness, in sport as in life”
They called him the “marathon runner”, due to his tireless spirit and the dozens of kilometers he clocked up on the pitch. And once, after a superb performance against Milan, Gianni Brera praised his combativeness, dedication and vision of the game. Giovanni Pirola, a former midfielder of physique and substance appreciated by Reggina and Atalanta fans, passed away this morning in his native Vimercate, at the age of 77.
who was
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Born in 1946, raised in the Vimercatese area, he began his career between Bolzano and Como. From 1968 to 1970 he was Reggina’s favorite in Serie B, before moving to Atalanta, with whom he won promotion to Serie A. After around a hundred appearances in the four seasons spent at Dea, he toured the Italy of football between Pescara, Modena, Parma and Pergocrema. Vimercate, where he married and lived, rewarded him in 2011 for sporting merit, awarding him the “Golden Pinamontino” as a “tenacious athlete and person with great combativeness, in sport as in life”. Pirola’s funeral is scheduled for tomorrow, at 11 am, in the sanctuary of the Blessed Virgin in Vimercate.