Passing of Piermario Morosini puts things into perspective - Again!

Piermario Morosini, the Golden Boy of football as his coach at Atalanta called him, passed away on the 14^th April, after suffering cardiac arrest during his team, Livorno’s Serie B game against Pescara. Piermario collapsed while away from the ball, and there was no physical contact with any other player.

Two days later, various Tottenham Hotspurs players whine about being “cruelly robbed” of the FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea. Now it wouldn’t be overtly out of place to shake them up, and ask them to smell the coffee. Within the space of barely a month, there have been two publicized incidents of footballers losing their lives on the pitch, and Fabrice Muamba, by God’s grace miraculously recovering from a heart attack, yet Emmanuel Adebayor rants on about his sides loss due to the referees incompetence.

Just a while back, the unity displayed by world football was humbling and inspirational, with all involved in the game putting aside what are essentially petty problems, to come out and support those in need. True, everyone has their passions, and tempers are flared after an averse outcome, but, without meaning mean to sound excessively preachy, we must sit down a moment to thank what we have instead of nagging on about what we don’t.

If any one were to be characterized as having a heart of gold and temperament of steel, then it would most definitely be Piermario. Having lost both his parents by the time he turned 17, he was survived by a brother and sister, both sadly physically challenged. He lost his brother soon after the death of his father Aldo, and was left to raise his sister single handedly. That’s an example of courage and fighting spirit, not dealing with a 5-1 loss to Chelsea, which hardly leaves anyone with much more than temporary disappointment.

On the rolls of Udinese for long parts of his career, but loaned out to another club more often than not, the club president Giampaolo Pozzo described him as a “very serious, and professional lad” who always made it a point to turn up for the Udinese pre-season. Displaying outstanding professionalism at such a young age, you’d be hard pressed to find someone of his sort who just goes on with life no matter what it throws at you.

Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli, said that he was shocked by the incident, and that it made him “reflect on many things in life” and has tuaght him to “respect life”. It’s certainly pleasant seeing him atleast make a verbal effort to tighten things up, and it would do each one of us well to open up a page in Piermario Morosini’s troubled life and relate it with our own. No matter what hardships we have faced/are facing/will face, we’re more than capable of remaining optimistic and fighting till we can no more.

“Say not in grief that she is no morebut say in thankfulness that she wasA death is not the extinguishing of a light,but the putting out of the lampbecause the dawn has come.”

- Rabindranath Tagore

Rest in peace, Piermario Morosini (1986 – 2012).

You might also want to read:

https://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/04/15/r-i-p-piermario-morosini/