Italy’s Fiorentina announced on Tuesday the death of Joe Barone, the football club’s general manager, after suffering a heart attack before a match against Atalanta, which was also postponed.

Joe Barone, the general manager of Fiorentina, the creator of the Viola Park sports base, has died

The general manager of Fiorentina died on Tuesday, 24 hours before his 58th birthday.

Barone was admitted to the San Raffaele Hospital in Milan after suffering a heart attack in a hotel on Sunday before the game against Atalanta Bergamo.

“With deep pain and great sadness, Fiorentina is losing one of its landmarks today. A figure who marked the recent history of the club and who will never be forgotten.

CEO Giuseppe Barone died today after suffering a medical problem on Sunday.

We are devastated by the terrible loss of a person who gave his great professionalism, heart and passion to these colors, a friend who was always there, both in happy and in difficult moments,” the Viola club announced, Gazzetta writes. dello Sports.

Fiorentina’s general manager since 2019 and close to owner Rocco Commisso, Barone was the man responsible for building the famous Viola Park, a 29,000 square meter training facility due to open in 2023.