"The Vanni Sanna stadium in Sassari is in a pitiful state, barely able to host Serie C matches. It's a disgrace that the people of Sassari and all Torres fans don't deserve." The complaint comes from Michele Pais, a member of the Lega Nord and former president of the Regional Council, who points the finger at the state of neglect of the sports facility in the capital of Sassari.
The stadium that hosts Torres, claims the Northern League representative, "is today a symbol of neglect and a lack of planning for urgent interventions."
The finger isn't pointed at the club, which, in fact, along with its management, "is making extraordinary efforts to secure Serie C status for Sassari and legitimately aim for promotion," Pais emphasizes. The problem is "the Region, completely absent, which is leaving a stadium that no longer meets the minimum required standards."
The situation appears serious: the possibility of having Torres' home games played outside of Sardinia is being mooted. "It would be a huge blow and an absurd mockery for a city, a fan base, and a team that are giving their all. Forcing Torres to play away from Sassari would strike at the heart of sport and the identity of the north of the island," Pais notes.
According to the Northern League representative, the political responsibilities are clear and can be traced back to one specific person: "The current Todde administration. There is clear complicity on the part of the current regional administration, which has chosen not to honor the commitments made by the previous center-right legislature. €50 million had been earmarked for sports facilities in northern Sardinia to offset the allocation of another €50 million to the Cagliari stadium, with a minimum of €13 million for the Vanni Sanna stadium in Sassari."
Resources that were supposed to finance major sports infrastructure in northern Sardinia. "Those funds," Pais recalls, "were intended not only for the Vanni Sanna sports center, but also for the Latte Dolce facility and the Mariotti stadium in Alghero, and the swimming pools in Sassari, Alghero, and Porto Torres. Instead, this center-left government has chosen to fragment the resources throughout Sardinia with tiny, micro-projects, achieving only one result: wasting the funds without solving any structural problems."
A decision that was bluntly defined as "an unacceptable theft. It took away the oxygen of Sassari and the north of the island, betraying a strategic vision that focused on modern and competitive facilities. Today we are paying the consequences with a stadium that is falling apart and a team that risks being penalized for no fault of its own."
The final appeal: "Immediate action is needed. The Region must correct this grave error and give back to Sassari what it deserves. Torres, the fans, and the entire city cannot be left alone. Defending the Vanni Sanna means defending the history and sporting dignity of northern Sardinia."
(Unioneonline)