FOOTBALL4GOOD MAGAZINE - DECEMBER 2019

THEY MAY PLAY DIFFERENT POSITIONS ON THE PITCH, BUT ENIOLA ALUKO AND GIORGIO CHIELLINI HAVE A NUMBER OF THINGS IN COMMON. BOTH THE STRIKER AND THE CENTRE-BACK WON THE SERIE A WITH THEIR RESPECTIVE JUVENTUS TEAMS LAST SEASON AND HAVE EARNED MORE THAN 100 CAPS FOR THEIR NATIONAL TEAMS, ENGLAND AND ITALY. BEYOND THE PITCH, THE TWO PLAYERS HAVE GAINED ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS AND STRESS THE IMPORTANCE OF EDUCATION. ON AND OFF THE PITCH ALIKE, THEY BELIEVE IN THE POWER OF TEAM PLAY. IT WAS THIS CONVICTION THAT RECENTLY LEAD ENIOLA TO JOIN GIORGIO ON ANOTHER TEAM: COMMON GOAL. The 32-year-old striker was announced as the move- ment’s 135 th member at the beginning of November during Web Summit, the world’s largest tech conference. A few days before the event, Eniola met with the captain of the Juventus men’s team, who was one of the first play- ers to become part of Common Goal, shortly after it was launched in August 2017. We joined them in Turin, where they spoke about what being an “athlete with a purpose” means to them, why they continuously strive to train their brains as well as their bodies and how they want to use their standing as stars of the game to bring people together on and off the pitch for social change. A CONVERSATION WITH ENIOLA ALUKO GIORGIO CHIELLINI 24 FOOTBALL4GOODMAGAZINE | DECEMBER 2019