Salvatore Schillaci, former Italian forward and Golden Ball winner at the 1990 World Cup, has died at age 59. He played a pivotal role in Italy’s third-place finish that year. Schillaci had notable stints with Juventus and Inter Milan before making history in Japan's J.

Thousands of people turned up for the funeral of Italian World Cup hero Salvatore "Toto" Schillaci on Friday.Schillaci died on Wednesday at the age of 59 following a battle with colon cancer. The Italy striker was top scorer at the 1990 World Cup that his country hosted and epitomized a player exceeding expectations on soccer's biggest stage.

PALERMO, Sicily — Thousands of people turned up for the funeral of Italian World Cup hero Salvatore “Totò” Schillaci on Friday.

Juventus were among Italy’s football clubs to pay tribute to Schillaci, who became an icon for his unexpected goalscoring exploits at his country’s home World Cup, simply saying ‘Ciao Toto’ on social media with a picture of him in a Juve shirt.

Overall, he made 16 appearances for the national team during the course of his career. At club level, he represented the likes of Juventus and Italy and went on to score 154 goals from 417 appearances.

Schillaci began the 1990 tournament as a substitute but soon became Italy’s key player, scoring the winning goal in their opening match against Austria. Despite his fame from the World Cup, Schillaci only scored one more goal for the national team and retired from international football shortly after.

Watch the moment substitute Salvatore 'Toto' Schillaci announced himself on the global stage at Italia 90, with his side's first goal during Italy's first match against Austria.

Italian football legend Salvatore Schillaci has passed away at the age of 59. Schillaci was the top scorer at the 1990 World Cup, securing six goals and earning the Golden Boot. He also received the Golden Ball,