Salvatore ‘Toto’ Schillaci, the Italian star of the 1990 World Cup, has passed away at the age of 59 following a battle with colon cancer.
He was confirmed dead on Wednesday.
Schillaci had been diagnosed with colon cancer back in 2022, revealing his illness a year later in January 2023. He had been admitted to hospital on September 7 and had reportedly been in a stable condition.
Schillaci was best known to the international community for his starring role in the 1990 World Cup, where he finished as the tournament’s top goalscorer with six goals.
Starring alongside Roberto Baggio and later Gianluca Vialli, Schillaci found the net twice in the group stage against Austria and Czechoslovakia, before going on to score in the round of 16, quarter-final, sem-final and third place play-off against England.
As well as his Golden Boot, he also picked up the Golden Ball, confirming his place as the best player at Italia 90.
Schillachi also had a fantastic career at club level, scoring 61 goals from 219 league appearances for Messina across a seven year spell, before going on to Juventus and later Inter.
He is survived by his wife Barbara and three children Jessica, Mattia and Nicole.
