Alessandro Florenzi's family ties with sport run deep, and the Italian spent his formative years at the Atletico Acilia sports centre -where his parents ran the club bar. Before he turned three years old, he was already kicking a ball around with the encouragement of his relatives.

"I liked inviting my friends to play games, and sometimes we had forfeits. If I lost, then my mum and dad's bar footed the bill," he said in a recent interview.

His uncle was the person who developed his passion for AS Roma, and his father, Luigi, was the man who laid down the law in the Florenzi household: When young Alessandro misbehaved, his PlayStation would be taken away -but never his football. His first club was Atletico Acilia, the club where his parents served drinks, before a scout from AS Roma spotted him and began his career in earnest.

There was also a close bond with his grandmother, who went to see him play for the first time in 2014 -providing one of the most famous images of the year in Serie A. In the match against Cagliari FC at the Estadio Olimpico, she saw him score a goal that would carry a special dedication. The defender immediately turned and ran towards the stands to celebrate with her in the first rows of the stadium. The image would become so well known that the Italian Ministry of Health thought of Florenzi to participate in events to help the elderly, such as the Fundazione Telethon.