Footballer, 21, shot dead after heated on-pitch row as onlookers flee 'scene of horror'

A footballer has been shot dead following an alleged bitter row over a foul committed during a match. Lorenzo Spasiano was shot at point-blank range outside his home as he left for work in the early hours of Tuesday (June 23) morning. The 21-year-old construction worker, from the Miano district in Naples, Italy, was shot in the chest with a single bullet.

He was rushed to Antonio Cardarelli Hospital but died from his injuries shortly after arrival. Detectives believe his death was a calculated act of revenge stemming from an altercation on a local football pitch earlier in the year. During the fixture, Spasiano clashed with another player over a foul.

Words were traded, there was physical shoving, and team-mates had to step in. The resentment is believed to have festered, resulting in subsequent street confrontations involving Spasiano, a dedicated amateur boxer.

Spasiano's father, Salvatore, an ambulance driver with the firm Croce Italia, was at home and heard the gunshot. He administered immediate first aid to his son before emergency services reached the scene.

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Witnesses described frantic scenes and Spasiano is said to have called out for his mother as he lay injured on the ground.

The family, widely known and highly regarded in the local community, has been devastated by grief. Spasiano was one of five siblings, and his mother cares for a disabled relative.

The local parish priest, Don Salvatore Cinque, described him as a diligent young man with no ties to criminality and someone that helped at the bakery situated opposite the church.

The neighbourhood association Nessuno tocchi Ippocrate said in a statement: "A simple game of football turned into a scene of horror...We strongly condemn every form of violence."

Miano sits on the northern outskirts of Naples, an area that has long been blighted by bitter clan rivalries.

Prosecutors are examining CCTV footage and questioning friends in a bid to establish the connection between the incident on the pitch and the suspected murder.