A year on from the tragic death of Fiorentina captain Davide Astori, Italian broadcaster Sky Sport have put together a tribute package to him and among many people to pay tribute was Inter defender Andrea Ranocchia.

“We had a close relationship, we had fun together,” Ranocchia said.

“He was a happy person and he laughed a lot, he had an English kind of humour. He was a great boy who was in love with life and with out of the ordinary optimism.”

Inter midfielder Radja Nainggolan, who was teammates with Astori at Cagliari, also paid tribute to the centre back who would have turned 32 in January.

“He was an important player, he wanted to take the team on his shoulders and he commanded it well.

“Everyone listened to him, he had a strong character that kept everyone in line and when I think of Davide, I think only about beautiful things and the matches we played together.”