Gianluca Mancini’s recovery from injury gave the Roma defender an unexpected companion: a bicycle, the Tuscan hills and a growing affection for cycling that reaches back to childhood memories.
From recovery rides to the Tuscan climbs
Speaking on Eurosport’s A Ruota Libera programme with Riccardo Magrini, Mancini described how cycling became part of his time away from football. What began with rides alongside friends developed into a genuine passion once he had spent time in the saddle.
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As a child, Mancini had already been close to amateur racing through a neighbour who competed. He would travel with his father by car to watch the events, following the riders on the climbs and handing bottles to competitors as they passed.
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Those early days also left him with vivid images of the physical demands of the sport, including exhausted riders holding on to car windows to be pulled along during the toughest moments.
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During his injury rehabilitation, he began riding with friends in Tuscany and experienced the difficulty of steep roads and elevation changes for himself.
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The effort, however, brought its own routine and pleasure: stopping at a bar for coffee and a small pastry, returning to the road, reaching the top of a climb and taking in the view with the group.
“Once I got on the bike, this wonderful passion arrived,” Mancini said. He stressed that cycling has become as much about company and shared effort as the ride itself, with each member of the group contributing in a different way.
The mental link with football
For Mancini, the connection between elite football and cycling is principally psychological. A rider on a climb can hear an inner voice urging him to stop, he said, much as a footballer may feel he has nothing left during a match or a demanding training session.
The essential response in both sports is to overcome that moment rather than yield to it. Mancini believes a strong mentality is what allows athletes to continue towards their objectives, whether the test comes over a mountain road or during a high-level football fixture.
The riders he follows
The Roma player named Mathieu van der Poel as his favourite rider, while also highlighting several figures from the current peloton.
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Filippo Ganna is an athlete Mancini enjoys watching, particularly for the power he produces on the bike.
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He has recently been following Lorenzo Finn.
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Isaac Del Toro is another rider Mancini would like to meet. He admires his ability to reappear strongly late in races after seeming quiet for periods.
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Tadej Pogacar, in Mancini’s view, stands above everyone else. Watching the Slovenian perform at his best, he said, can give him goosebumps.
A lasting affection for Milan-Sanremo
Among the major races, Milan-Sanremo is the one that has most captured Mancini’s imagination. His affection for the race is tied to those childhood trips beside his father, watching amateur competitors battle through demanding climbs and feeling close enough to the action to pass on bottles.
For a defender accustomed to the pressures of Roma and Serie A, cycling has therefore become more than a rehabilitation pastime. It is another demanding sporting world, one defined by resistance, companionship and the ability to carry on when the body asks for a pause.
