Claudio Ranieri moved the entire Unipol Domus once again, in the end-of-match ceremony (after the tribute before the kick-off of Cagliari-Fiorentina) which marks the end of his second historic experience in the rossoblù.
Team, staff and managers all lined up to say hello on the pitch: the caller was captain Leonardo Pavoletti, who didn't play against Fiorentina this evening but did the honours. «This evening is important for all of us for a man who led us to salvation: our leader, our commander Claudio Ranieri», his call, with the coach entering the field cheered by the team and the public. The players all embrace him together, and in that embrace there is also an entire island that has spent four and a half years - between the first and second experience - impossible to forget.
The emotion - When a video is broadcast on the Domus scoreboard that summarizes what Ranieri has done in the rossoblù since 1988, the coach's eyes inevitably become teary, as do those of many fans. A moment of very strong emotion. The team behind him, excluding Pavoletti who is next to him, sitting on the lawn of the Domus. "Forever grateful", reads the company's message, which triggers a very long and heartfelt applause. «Loyalty, determination and courage: the most beautiful values of sport, thank you Claudio», president Tommaso Giulini tells him, handing him a plaque with the Cagliari logo.
The words - «Good evening everyone, thank you for what you are giving me», begins Ranieri. «I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart, what we managed to do we did together. I remember when I arrived a year and a half ago: I asked everyone for help, because only with you could we do what we did." Someone from the stands shouts "Well done" to him, but he immediately specifies: "Well done you and well done the boys." So a message directed to the hearts of the fans: «I want to say something important, you must always stay close to these guys. They may make mistakes, but the important thing is that they will never give up. They will always walk with their heads held high if they know they have you behind them, when they play they think of all of you, of the Island and how much you suffer, of the difficulties you have in traveling and being close to us when away. It is the best boost a player can have to feel that there is an Island behind them: I thank you, from the bottom of my heart." Then the tour of the pitch, going under the North to shake hands with the fans, while the chant "We will rise again, Claudio Ranieri said it" starts and many scarves are thrown at him from the stands (including one from Roma) which he picks up and carries with him self. Because what he did in Cagliari will be impossible for him and for everyone to forget.
