Juventus defender Leonardo Bonucci paid tribute to former Bologna manager Siniša Mihajlović after his recent death because of leukaemia.

The Serbian was a top Serie A player, most notably turning out for Lazio before becoming a manager in the competition as well.

He battled hard with the disease and continued to work at Bologna until this season, but he lost the battle yesterday at just 53.

Several players and football officials have been paying tributes to him for his fighting spirit as he continued working and remained confident he would defeat the disease.

The defender posted an image of the ex-manager on Instagram and captioned it:

“Football has lost a great Coach today. We lost a man with values that few have. Hello Sinisa.”

Juve FC Says

Mihajlović was a popular name in Italian football as a player and manager and his death has rocked a lot of people.

He will always be known as a terrific player and we hope his family has the strength to bear the loss.

Bonucci has suffered yet another injury, which is a clear sign to us now that he needs to be replaced as soon as possible because he is getting too old to be relied on.