He was gone before I fully fell for Italian football.

And yet his name still echoes to this day on a tragic list with the likes of Meroni, Re Cecconi and Morosini.

To be a Serie A protagonist with a “provinciale” takes something special, and Renato Curi had that gift.

Gutsy, determined and classy his desire to play on a bitter, damp day for “his” Perugia against Juventus would end up costing him his life.

A heart-attack took him, aged just 24.

All that remained was sorrow, and the speculation as to how high he might have scaled the game.

Read the rest of the series here.

Image via Storiedicalcio