Paolo Di Canio has labelled his former West Ham teammate Stuart Pearce “an icon” following their friendship at the club.
Di Canio and Pearce spent two years together at West Ham from 1999 to 2001 and it’s clear from Di Canio’s words to Talksport yesterday that the pair had a great bond despite their short time as teammates.
“Ah Stuart, he’s a fantastic guy. To be honest, Stuart is an icon in Italy.
“When I speak to my friends that followed English football, eight out of ten talk about not Thierry Henry, with the greatest respect to him, but Stuart Pearce because he was great. When he used to play at Nottingham Forest when he was young and at West Ham I was lucky to meet him.
“Not only was he a great footballer but he was a fantastic man as well which was much more important for me.”
"I was really lucky to meet a man like him!" 👏
"In Italy my friends don't talk about Thierry Henry, they talk about Stuart Pearce!"
Paolo Di Canio brands his former #WHUFC teammate Stuart Pearce an 'icon'! 🤩 pic.twitter.com/CA93Qfr4jd
— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) May 5, 2023
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High praise for Pearce from one of the greatest characters to grace English football and those words are something that the former defender won’t be forgetting in a hurry.