It is shortly after 10pm on a freezing night in northern Italy and one of England’s most famous footballers pauses in the stadium car park to reflect on yet another milestone.
Jamie Vardy’s goal in Cremonese’s 2-2 draw with Cagliari was his 150th in Europe’s top-five leagues. Five in Serie A, to go with the 145 for Leicester in the Premier League. When we tell Vardy’s wife Rebekah of the milestone, the response is immediate. ‘Two hundred next!’ she says with a smile. And even at 39, who would bet against him?
The Vardys soon disappear into their black, chauffeur-driven people carrier, bound for their new home in the town of Salo on Lake Garda, about an hour outside the city of Cremona, in Lombardy. It has been only four months but already Vardy is the main man here.
Moments earlier Cremonese head coach Davide Nicola had made for the people carrier, only to be told that it was reserved for someone else.
Just as the stadium announcer used to do at Leicester when listing the teams, the man with the mic at Cremonese names all the players in numerical order but leaves Vardy – now wearing No 10 instead of No 9 – until last, for that extra loud cheer.
Cremonese’s kit manufacturer Acerbis, a relatively small firm from nearby Bergamo, received so many requests for ‘Vardy 10’ replica shirts that they were selling out quicker than the company could make them.
Jamie Vardy has made a strong start to life in Italy with Cremonese, after leaving Leicester following 13 years in the East Midlands
His goal against Cagliari last week was his 150th in Europe’s top-five leagues
Wife Rebekah’s message for the 39-year-old? ‘Two hundred next!’
Groups of supporters from England – many of them from Leicester – have been attending Cremonese games and for the Cagliari match, one Vardy fan had booked an 11,000-mile round trip from Hong Kong in the hope of having his shirts autographed.
Vardy signed with Cremonese for this season, with an option of another if they stay in Serie A. He is 40 next year and though some will inevitably believe this to be his final season as a professional, Vardy has no interest in such predictions.
‘One of the lads in the dressing room told me about the 150 goals, and I still feel good,’ Vardy tells Daily Mail Sport. ‘While the legs keep doing what they are doing, I will keep playing until they tell me otherwise. I’m going to keep enjoying my 30s.
‘I’m…