Milan midfielder Ricci proud to receive Vialli Award: “It’s an honour for me”

Samuele Ricci is one of the players that received an award at the Gentleman ceremony on Wednesday night, and it was a special one he got.

Last night was a milestone anniversary for the Gentleman Award as it celebrated its 30th edition. The annual event dedicated to Fair Play in Italian football took place at the prestigious Scuola Militare Teuliè, with several Milan representatives present.

Ricci got the ‘Vialli Award’, named of course after the late calcio legend Gianluca Vialli, who was widely regarded as a true gentleman during his career as a player and manager. After claiming the prize the midfielder spoke on stage, with MilanPress relaying his comments.

“I want to thank the Vialli family for choosing to award me this prize. It’s an honour for me to be so close to what Gianluca Vialli represented, first as a man and then as a great striker in our football.

“I was fortunate enough to know him on the national team, and what amazed me most was his desire to be there, his smile, and his kind words for everyone. This shows the depth of the man he was, and he left an indelible mark on Italian football and on the lives of all of us footballers.”

Ricci made the move to Milan from Torino in the summer transfer window and was impressive in preseason, but for now seems to have fallen out of favour because Luka Modric is playing a deeper midfield role.