Ex-Benfica man linked to the Mafia on prison: never played the star | OneFootball

Fabrizio Miccoli, a name that will hardly be forgotten by Benfica fans, made headlines at the time he was arrested due to his links to the Mafia. Years after being released, the former Benfica striker spoke about his life in prison, revealing that football was part of his routine.

"They threw a joke at me: 'Fabrizio, here we kill each other over two things: cards and the ball.' I got the message", the Italian forward began by saying, revealing that in prison football continued to be seen as something important by many of the inmates serving time.

"So I would put myself between the posts and, on the rare occasions when I played as a striker, I never acted like a star, I always held myself back", Miccoli admitted, acknowledging that he tried to keep a low profile in prison so as not to create any problems with the inmates who also played football.

"We played for an hour a week, it was a relaxed moment and it should stay that way", Miccoli added, explaining how the prison routine worked when it came to football. On the other hand, it is important to mention that the former Benfica striker was in the spotlight last year when he appeared alongside Nuno Gomes, supporting João Noronha Lopes's candidacy.

"[I was] In the car. The radio gave the news and I had to pull over because of the intense pain I felt. I stayed still for 10 minutes. I keep in a safe the earring that the Fiscal Police confiscated from him at Rome airport. I bought it at auction for 25 thousand euros; to represent me, I sent the wife of my bank's former director. I never wore it, I would have liked to give it back to him", the Italian recalled regarding the death of Diego Armando Maradona.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.