The singer at the team’s training camp: “Dominguez will be a champion. Orsolini, don’t go away. Immobile will score goals here; the atmosphere is right.”

Gianni is Champions League material: he opens all doors. Always. “Orso, you know you’d be good at singing too?” And together they sing “Fatti mandare dalla mamma.” Hints of twist. Gianni Morandi, a fan from the very beginning and former honorary president of Bologna, is still one of the best at singing, performing, entertaining, and cheering people up. On Tuesday evening, dedicated to young fans, he played the transfer market, asking sporting director Marco Di Vaio (“Ndoye and Lucumi are staying, right?” and former striker “Anything can happen in the transfer market, except for Orso”), got coach Vincenzo Italiano to sing (“Uno su mille ce la fa”), and stopped Riccardo Orsolini with a heartfelt phrase (“Have you signed? It would be a shame if you left,“ ”It would be a shame, yes,“ replied Orso), held the stage and told a story about a friend of his from Florence who was jealous of Italiano: no joy in purple despite three finals, but immediate trophy success in Bologna with the Coppa Italia. ”What friends you have,” smiled Vincenzo without any malice, simply keeping the mood light. “I really hope to stay for a long time,” added the coach. “What do I like about Bologna? Everything, especially the atmosphere at the Dall’Ara. There’s a desire to win here, you can grow a lot.” Gianni opens all doors and makes everyone talk with ease. Then, yesterday afternoon, he showed up at the training session: applause from over two hundred fans, he stayed behind the scenes, giving the players a high five before they entered the field, a hug to Ciro Immobile, Fabbian, Orsolini (“We’re the couple of the summer now”), Lykogiannis, Lucumi, Freuler, and had a chat with Italiano. Gianni is always Champions League material, yes.

On stage, he wished Vincenzo Italiano a long tenure on the bench.

“Vincenzo has strength and character, and he knows how to convey that to his players: I really hope he can stay as Bologna coach for ten years, because ten years means that the results have been good.”

How much do you want Bologna to sing next year? Songs of joy, of course…

“You know, we sing anyway. You sing when you’re very happy, but also when things aren’t going well. You sing to let off steam, that’s it. Let’s see, let’s see. If you sing out of happiness, well, that’s certainly better.“

Can this Bologna team be considered stronger than last year’s, considering the signings made so far?

”It’s too early to say because the balance isn’t right yet, things aren’t settled, and then if someone stays until the end, they leave. We’ll have to see… Let’s say that the story isn’t over yet. But I hope they all stay, and if they all stay, well, we’ll be almost stronger than last year, if they all stay…“.

For the Scudetto? Just kidding…

”Ehhh, yeah, right”. He laughs heartily.

What is the strongest and most beautiful image you have of May 14, the day of the Italian Cup victory against Milan after fifty-one years?

“I was at the Olympic Stadium in Rome, I was there, I believed in it even though I knew Milan was very strong. But I felt something in the air that was in our favor. It was a really exciting moment.“

And then?

”I remember I was next to Laura Pausini, who is a Milan fan even though she’s from Romagna, and then there were other artists like Sangio (Sangiovanni, ed.), who is also a Milan fan. They suffered, and I felt a little sorry for them. When you win, you always think about your opponent because we know what it means, given how many times it has happened to us. But this time I rejoiced, just this once…”.

Now there’s Ciro Immobile, who has always scored goals and will try to do so for his Bologna.

“I’m very happy because I respect him a lot. I’ve always followed him, but then you know, everyone knows him. He was a center forward for the national team, and I hope he continues to do well. Bologna is the right environment for him, I’m convinced of it.”

Since you’re staying at the Bologna hotel, who would you take aside to say, “Hey, don’t go…”?

“I really like that young kid, Benjamin Dominguez, who also has the skills of a great champion. I hope he grows up with us and becomes a truly great champion. He has what it takes, I wish him well.“

And what would you say to Dan Ndoye, who is wanted by Napoli and also by clubs in England?

”I would sing that when you leave the old road for the new one, you know what you’re leaving behind but you don’t know what you’ll find.”