Fiorentina Captain and Italy international Davide Astori has died at the age of 31 and all of Sunday’s Serie A games have been postponed.
Fiorentina confirmed the news on Sunday morning in a statement posted on the club’s official website, with multiple outlets in Italy reporting the defender died in his hotel room before the game against Udinese.
“A profoundly shocked Fiorentina are compelled to announce that their captain Davide Astori, who was struck by an unexpected sudden illness, has passed away,” a statement read. “In this terrible and delicate situation, and in particular out of respect for his family, we appeal for everybody to show sensitivity.”
Genoa’s game with Cagliari, which was due to kick off at 12:30 local time, was postponed when the players were informed of the news during their warm-up routines. Visibly shaken as they left the field, an announcement was made at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris explaining the postponement and fans applauded as a picture of Astori appeared on the big screens inside the stadium.
Torino subsequently announced that their fixture with Crotone would not go ahead before the Lega Serie A confirmed that all of the weekend’s remaining fixtures, including the Milan city derby on Sunday evening, had been postponed.
A statement read: “Shocked by this tragic news, all of the family of the Lega Serie A warmly unites around the family of Davide Astori and Fiorentina. All of today’s games are postponed due to mourning. Ciao Davide.”
