IN the summer of 1992, Gianluigi Lentini had the world at his feet.
A blessed winger, his pace, strength and comfortability with both feet made him the most sought-after player in Italian football.
Serie A giants Juventus and AC Milan went head-to-head in the battle to sign him from Torino.
Aged just 23, he became the world's most expensive player when the Rossoneri splashed £13million on the superstar in making.
The trappings of fame saw 'Gigi' enjoy Milan's nightlife, while embarking on a sordid affair with Italia '90 hero Salvatore 'Toto' Schillaci's wife.
Then, just a year later, Lentini would crash his canary-yellow Porsche 911 at 125mph in a rush to see his new love.
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A fractured skull and busted eye-socket saw the maverick placed in an induced coma.
He returned at the end of the season, but was a shadow of his former self in the coming years – perhaps tormented by the spectre of the talent he once was.
In later years, he would try his hand at becoming a beekeeper.
Most recently, he landed in hot water with the Italian authorities for allegedly lending money to a local crime boss.
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His story is one of caution, regret and disappointment.
The rise
A youth product at Torino, Lentini was instrumental in the club's promotion from Serie B.
Talk of a lanky wonderkid emerging from the second division began in those early weeks of the 1990-1991 season.
Third game in, Lentini was able to demonstrate his dribbling skills in a match against Inter Milan – with their German World Cup-winning core of Lothar Matthaus, Jurgen Klinsmann, and Andreas Brehme in tow.
It was the latter who was run ragged by the wing-wizard, who travelled 45-yards with the ball, before slamming it past Walter Zenga to seal a 2-0 win. The boy had become the man.
Torino would reach the Uefa Cup final that season, narrowly losing to an Ajax side that boasted Dennis Bergkamp on away goals – giving their fans incredible memories by knocking out the mighty Real Madrid in the semi-final, a tie where Lentini announced himself to the world.
His performances would earn him a world record £13million move to Silvia Berlusconi's AC Milan – who were the epitome of success in the country at the time.
He would later tell the Chronicle of his fee: "At that time I knew I had great talent – I was at the top of the world."
But, he wasn't the only superstar. Former Ballon d'Or winner Jean-Pierre Papin was signed that same summer for a then transfer record £10million, only to be eclipsed by Lentini a month later.
Lentini would have to fit in among the likes of Marco Van Basten, Ruud Gullit, and Roberto Donadoni in Fabio Cappelo's squad.
He would show glimpses of his quality – netting seven league goals to win the Serie A title.
A loss to Marseille in the European Cup final, though, would put a dampener on his season, as the Italian press made him the scapegoat for defeat.
The scandal
With an elevated status came an embarrassment of riches.
The simple boy from the small village of Carmagnola was new to the cosmopolitan life of living in one of Italy's most vibrant cities.
Entranced by the discoteque, he reportedly succumbed to Milan's nightlife.
The holidays to party island Ibiza he took as a Toro up-and-comer, before his new found hedonism, were just a pre-cursor.
By this time, Lentini had embarked in an illicit affair with blonde beauty Rita Bonaccorso, better known as Juventus ace Salvatore Schillaci's wife.
'Toto' was the breakout star of Italia '90 – but his marriage to Bonaccorso was on the wane, following reports of alleged affairs.
As she put it: "I fell in love with Gigi as a reaction, because Toto had been seeing another woman for months, indeed he lived with her together. I told him, 'Sooner or later I'll make you pay'".
One day, in a hurry to see his beloved lover, it would be Lentini who would me made to pay.
Life-changing accident
Gigi was in Genoa with Milan for a preseason tournament, with Bonaccorso longing to see him in Turin.
Hurried, he jumped into his speedy Porsche 911 and raced along the A21 motorway.
The motor suffered a flat tyre, forcing Lentini to pull into a service station to get a temporary one fitted.
He got straight back onto the road, not knowing the skinnier replacement wheel wasn't designed to be driven over 50mph.
After losing control at an alleged 125mph, the Porsche flipped off the road and into a ditch.
Luckily, a following lorry driver managed to pull Lentini from the wreckage before it became a ball of flames.
After suffering multiples injures, the most serious being a cracked skull and damaged eye-socket, he was put in an induced coma for two days.
The fall
Lentini returned in 1993, although his team-mates noticed quickly the swashbuckling winger had lost his mojo.
He suffered memory-loss, periods of blurred vision, and dizzy spells.
Many believe the coma robbed him of his cognitive skills.
AC Milan legend Marcel Desailly once revealed: “You could see the skills, how he was before the accident and after the accident, the balance was completely different”.
In the next three seasons, Lentini would rarely feature – scoring just six league goals.
He left for Atalanta, where he briefly regained enough form to earn a call-up to Arrigo Sacchi's Italy squad in 1996.
But a return to Torino a year later, who were then in Serie B, ended hopes of being an Azzuri regular.
That would kick-start the fall, where he would next play for Consenza until 2004 in the fourth division.
He bounced around in the amateurs, before quitting the game in his hometown, Carmagnola.
The aftermath
Today, Carmagnola is where Lentini, now 54, continues to live.
He harbours no regrets and is happy to be around friends he grew up with – playing pool in the local bar.
In 2019, he became a beekeeper – producing his own honey in his shop, Miele Lentini.
Sadly, it's no more.
Recently, Lentini found himself quizzed by Italian authorities after giving a local crime boss €100,000.
Gigi never denied handing over the cash, and insisted it was just a loan.
The man was later found not guilty of extortion – with Lentini appearing naive to the situation.
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It was naivety that made him the player he was, able to express his skill on the pitch with such freedom.
But, that trait would ultimately plague him throughout his life and contribute to his downfall.
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