Former Italy striker and star of the 1990 FIFA World Cup, Salvatore ‘Toto’ Schillaci, has died aged 59, Afrosport reports.
Schillaci, who was the top scorer at the Italia ’90 World Cup in Italy, passed on in the early hours of Wednesday following a long battle with colon cancer. having being dianosed with the illness in 2022.
The former Juventus and Inter Milan forward has been hospitalised since September 7, although it was reported he was in stable condition.
Schillaci scored six goals to win the Golden Boot at the 1990 World Cup, and although the Azzurri lost in the semi-finals, he was also claimed the Golden Ball as the tournament’s best player.
He started his professional career with Messina in 1982, before joining Juventus seven years later in 1989, where he spent three seasons, and won the Coppa Italia and UEFA Cup titles. He moved to Inter in 1992 and in his two-year stint at the club, he won the UEFA Cup for a second time in his career.
Schillaci joined Japanese side Jubilo Iwata in 1994, spending three years with the J-League outfit as the first Italian player to play in the division, winning the Division 1 title in 1997.
Before his retirement in 1999, he scored a total of 154 goals from 417 league appearances for Messina, Juventus, Inter, and Jubilo Iwata. He played 16 times for the Italy national team, and scored seven goals.
