FULIGNATI: WHEN FAIR PLAY MATTERS MORE THAN A SAVE!
A firecracker exploded near him during a match. Now his sporting conduct has earned him the Gentleman Morosini Award.
Not every decisive act by a goalkeeper takes place in front of the goal. Andrea Fulignati, Cremonese’s goalkeeper, received the Gentleman Piermario Morosini Award, given by Lega Serie B to those who stand out for their sporting conduct. The ceremony took place in Milan on Wednesday 7 October.
That afternoon in Frosinone
The reason dates back to last season. During Frosinone–Empoli, a firecracker exploded near Fulignati. The goalkeeper chose to resume playing: that is the conduct recognised by Lega Serie B. He had already received the Green Card, Serie B’s recognition for fair play, for the same gesture.
In Morosini’s name
The award is named after Piermario Morosini, the footballer who died at a young age in 2012. Accepting it, Fulignati remembered “a young man I never had the good fortune to know”, whose “life lesson is an example to everyone”.
A firecracker near a player remains a dangerous act, and the award does not change that. What is being recognised is Fulignati’s sporting conduct: a quality that matters even when the match becomes difficult.
