The two were born just a few months apart and they were known as 'I gemelli del gol', the goal twins, during eight glorious years together at Sampdoria. Mancini and Vialli played together in a Samp side that won the Cup Winners' Cup and lifted the Coppa Italia trophy three times before their crowning glory, the Scudetto in 1991, the club's only Serie A title to this day. It could have been even more glorious, but Sampdoria lost the 1992 European Cup final to Barcelona thanks to Ronald Koeman's extra-time free-kick at Wembley. After that Vialli - the top scorer in Serie A in that title-winning season - left for Juventus and their prolific partnership was broken up. Federico Chiesa, scorer of Italy's goal against Spain, is the son of former Sampdoria star Enrico Chiesa.

Source: News 24 July 09, 2021 02:26 UTC