Serginho, who won the Champions League twice with AC Milan, is dealing with the loss of his son, who died last year aged 20.
The heartbroken Champions League winner has opened up about the shocking loss of his son at just 20 years old. Brazilian football icon Serginho, who twice won European football’s most coveted trophy with AC Milan, also experienced the infamous ‘Istanbul Miracle’ in which Liverpool won the 2005 final despite being 3-0 down at half-time.
The left-sided star, who won 10 caps for Italy, retired in 2008 after nearly a decade in Italy. Now 54, he faced the ultimate heartbreak last year when his son Diego tragically passed away. “Words cannot explain the pain caused by a tragedy like this,” Serginho told Gazzetta.
“I’ll never get used to talking about Diego’s death. Since he left, I’ve questioned every certainty I had. It’s the greatest pain a human being can endure. Today, I live for him. I’m sure another life awaits us, where we will be together forever.”
Serginho revealed that Diego was battling vaping addiction before his untimely death. “It all happened so quickly and the cause was unknown for a long time,” he said.
“He had pain in his shoulder, but we didn’t understand. He was an athlete and did jiu-jitsu. We put him through some tests and the results were perfect.
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“Over the next few weeks, his symptoms worsened, but almost suddenly. We know it was caused by smoking. He was vaping all day long. It had become a habit.”
Meanwhile, reflecting on Milan’s heartbreaking defeat to Liverpool 20 years ago, Serginho described the final as “cursed”.
He recalled: “In Istanbul, the opinion was that even if we had played the whole week, we would have lost.
“It was a cursed, surreal night. The save by (Jerzy) Dudek on Sheva (Andre Shevchenko)’s shot was supernatural. Years later, I talked to him about it.
“On the bench, even before the penalty shootout, we were unmotivated and convinced that it would not go well. We even said to Carlo (Ancelotti): ‘Mr., we are losing, this is a cursed penalty shootout.’
“And certainly from that spot,[Andrea]Pirlo, Shevchenko and I, the three best penalty takers, missed. It wasn’t a technical problem, it was a mental problem. Or, if you like, it was magic.”
Serginho dismissed the idea that Milan were already celebrating at half-time with a 3-0 lead. He said, “Guys, bull****. Actually the opposite happened. We all argued and words were exchanged.
“In fact, that season we often suffered from a lack of concentration when we returned to the pitch. And that happened in Istanbul as well. But you can imagine whether anyone would dare to celebrate.”
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