ROME – The world of football is mourning the death of Ezio Vendrame , a former footballer, among others, from Vicenza and Naples. Vendrame was called the Italian George Best for his incredible physical resemblance to the former Manchester United star .
The death of the footballer was announced by the former Italian national team player Aldo Serena through a post published on Twitter.
"Ezio Vendrame, one of the most eccentric and nice players of the 70s, died. He was 72 years old".
Aldo Serena called him one of the most eccentric players of the 70s, here are some anecdotes about Vendrame from Wikipedia.
Ezio Vendrame, when he scored from a corner after blowing his nose on the corner flag …
- When he played in Serie C with the Padova shirt in a match, to say the least combined and destined for 0-0, against the leaders of Cremona to shake those present he dribbled his entire team from one side of the field to the other without no one could stop him, until he faked the shot in front of his goalkeeper, who dived unnecessarily on him trying to lift the ball, then stop near the goal line and go back (" so the emotion was saved " he will then tell Vendrame in his autobiography book Se mandi in tribuna godo ): on that occasion a fan in the stands died of a heart attack and when this was reported to him, Vendrame replied asking how it was possible that a faint heart would go and see him play.
- Again with Padova, the episode of his failure, then returned, before the proposals to play badly the game against Udinese (his former team) who was fighting for the promotion from C to B: in that year Padova, who sailed in bad financial waters, paid his players the "minimum" game prizes established by the FIGC: 22,000 lire per point.
The emissary of the Friulian team offered him 7,000,000 lire for a "poor performance".
Vendrame initially accepted (" I had played badly many other times … and for free ), but once he entered the field, hearing that the Friulian public whistled loudly his name spoken by the speakers at the beginning of the game, he changed his mind and decided that he had to" punish that ungrateful audience … affair with the seven million, long live the 44,000 lire, "he will say years later.
Padova won 3-2 with his brace and memorable was the second goal, scored directly from the corner: before shooting he made the gesture of blowing his nose on the corner flag and declaring – by gestures – controversy to the opposing fans that from there he would have done directly, which happened on time.
- In the seventies he was a friend of the singer-songwriter Piero Ciampi. During a match at the Appiani stadium with the Padova shirt he stopped the game to publicly greet Piero Ciampi, after recognizing him by chance in the stands.
- On the album of the football players Panini 1967-68 he is the protagonist of a sensational error.
A figurine with his image is printed on the Spal team, but it appears with the name "Gildo Rizzato" and the personal data belong to this teammate of his (source Wikipedia).
Source: Blitz Quotidiano