Stefano Mangoni
Alessandro Gazzi is a professional footballer, currently under the U.S. Alessandria Calcio 1912. He was born in Feltre in the province of Belluno on January 28, 1983 to father Francesco and mother Dolores and has a sister, Rebecca, who is 3 years younger. Married since 2007 to Deborah, he has three daughters: Camilla, Nicole and Emily.
His great passions outside of football are reading and writing, in 2020 an anthology was released “Per rabbia o per amore. Lo sport in dodici racconti”published by 66th and 2nd, in which Alessandro participated with a short story entitled "Dieci Minuti".
Good morning Alessandro Gazzi which kind of dream do you have when you was a child?
Well when I was a child and, although I started with swimming, my passion has always been football and clearly growing up the dream I had was to become a footballer but I have always considered it a dream and I have always tried to stay above all with my feet on the ground living the day and trying to have fun while I had the chance.
When did you realize that football could be your profession?
I realized that football could become my profession when I started playing in the spring of Treviso, the year in which the club then made me my first professional contract. Then from there to become an established footballer many years are passed.
But there was that moment when I realized that passion for football could turn into a profession.
Signing on my first professional contract was the moment I realized there could be a professional future for my career in football.
In your long career as a professional footballer you also have an experience in the Under 20 national team ...
Yes, with the youth national team, if I remember correctly, I did a friendly play with Germany and with the under 20 I played against Germany and I participated in a tournament on the island of Madeira and if I'm not mistaken it was 2003/2004 . It was a short but intense experience and I cherish it with me as a beautiful moment also because wearing the national team jersey at 20 is always a great joy, so I have only wonderful memories of those little ones of those few experiences in blue shirt.
What values has football for you?
Beyond the education with which I grew up, since I was a child, thanks to the values that my family passed on to me, in the professional field the thing that football has taught me is the fact of finding the right balance between passion and sport, therefore the playful part of the game and the work because in the end football understood as work in some respects has nothing to do with football as a sport so you must always find the right balance and above all never lose the playful part which is the fundamental one, the one that gives you something more to improve day after day and makes you do things with the right reasons. This is true for football but it is also true for any other professional sport or in work in general, therefore the balance between the aspect of the game and work and all the duties and rights that a professional has towards himself and others.
Was born in you first the reader or writer?
In me, the reader was born first, I have always read a lot, not particularly novels or books, but mostly music and cinema magazines and everything that has a little to do with my musical and cinematographic passions. Then slowly I began to read books such as novels and non-fiction books, so now even if I have a little less time, I always try to keep myself informed and also to study, also because I am enrolled at the university so to read there 'it's a lot. Then the writing came out slowly but that came when I was 32 years old.
When did you start writing? What prompted you to do it?
As I said I started writing at 32 after I had done a work on the mental aspect of my football profession and talking to a professional In the sector I worked with, I was stimulated to write, she told me that I had good skills of writing and from there I started. I saw that I liked and enjoyed writing. Later I started a blog in which every now and then I write some purely football stories trying to describe the feelings I have and feel on the pitch. I like to write about everything that is inherent to my profession as a footballer that I play every day and that I therefore know well.
Is there an episode of your football career that you have written or that you would like to write?
There are many things that I would like to write about my experience as a footballer but I don't have much time so when I have the chance I always write stories that have to do with my profession also because it is the job I know and I have been practicing for 20 years.
I play football as a professional and I certainly have some good memories that I like to pass on to others. I have the opportunity to think about it often and when I have time I start writing.
Have you received any recognition or did you participate in any project related to writing?
I have never received official recognition, but I am happy to be released to stay in an anthology that came out in September and is entitled “Per rabbia o per amore. Lo sport in dodici racconti”published by 66th and 2nd. My story within the collection is called Dieci Minuti and for me this was already a huge satisfaction.
In your future, when you stop playing football do you think writing will become a full-time activity?
When I quit with football I don't know if I'll write full time, but it's always a path that can be stimulating. However, I am lucky to be able to evaluate all the possibilities in the post career. For now, this passion, this desire to write, I keep it and I keep it as a passion and as fun because it is something that makes me feel good.
The Literary Parks are long that have inspired poets and writers, is there any author or place that has inspired you in writing?
Naming someone or some place who has influenced my passion for writing is a bit difficult for me. I believe that all the things I've read over the years for better or for worse have left me something. Of course, if I were to think about a place, the football field surely comes to mind, that's the place I prefer, the place made me grow and inspires me every time I start writing ...
C/O Società Dante Alighieri 
