MASSA. A huge pain strikes Italian football and beyond: the daughter of coach Silvio Baldini, Valentina, who had lived with a severe and rare condition since birth, has died at the age of 30.
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Valentina has always been a fundamental point of reference in the life of the current under-21 national team coach, who on several occasions had shared how her example had marked his personal journey. This happened during his time on the Empoli bench, but also in Palermo. «Valentina taught me to love without expecting anything in return – the Tuscan coach has often said -. She made me understand what it means to love unconditionally, just as my wife made me understand what it means to build a family. Having a family means trying to understand problems, especially those of those who are worse off, and this gave us a certain unity».
The daughter in the coach’s autobiography
Silvio Baldini also spoke about her in the autobiography published in 2022. Here is a truly touching passage: «My daughter Valentina is a little girl – because for me she will always remain my little girl – disabled. She is a 4-year-old child in the body of a woman. Today she lives her life with serenity, she does not want a mirror or lipstick, she does not want to be seen as a beautiful girl, she lives in her world with her thoughts and her pastimes. She wants to chase the ants walking on the ground or she wants the little yogurt cups and enjoys cutting them. Her world is tied to these sensations that make her feel good».
And then again: «The doctors always told us that this little girl would not have a long life and for this reason she always slept with me and my wife, because the thought of getting up and finding her dead anguished me. Even today we always sleep together, we have a slightly larger double bed and the three of us always sleep together. When she dreams at night she laughs continuously and if
she doesn’t it means she is unwell, has the flu or another type of problem; but when she dreams she always laughs, laughs, laughs and her laughter is truly contagious. When she laughs, she doesn’t do it like all of us, she does it loudly and so it’s a strange thing because you wonder if she is awake, but instead she is sleeping and keeps dreaming…».
The condolences
Her passing has caused deep emotion in the football world: numerous messages of condolence and support have been sent to the coach from clubs, fans, and professionals.
