A host of Chelsea greats joined Gianfranco Zola for some gelato.
Former Chelsea FC winger Gianfranco Zola has taken some time off from footballing matters to chance his arm at ice-cream selling. Blues (and footballing) legends in the form of Andriy Shevchenko, Roberto Di Matteo and Dennis Wise were on hand at the opening of Unico to add some stardust to the affair.
Upon initially hearing this news, I had images of Zola attempting to lean out (he’s short) of a van with a soft ice and flake in hand. Unfortunately, he has been a bit more sensible and has instead set up a proper immobile cafe.
Some of you may still believe that this is a joke, but it’s not. Look at this photo of the quartet grinning.
Located in Bromley, London, this is Zola’s first venture of this kind. The Italian’s managerial career has not quite taken off (he currently finds himself with Qatari outfit Al-Arabi) so this news just demonstrates that his enterprising attitude that set him apart on the field translates into his real life.
Restaurants and the like are often industries with a extremely high failure rate, but trendy cafes and gelato bars are very much in vogue at the moment, especially in London. Thus, it is fair to say that Zola and his business partners may be able to strike gold with Unico.
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Local football club Bromley FC were invited down for the big day and the Chelsea great afforded the club website some time to explain what Unico is really about.
"“I am excited to bring the flavours that I love to Bromley. Unico was born from the friendship of myself, Leonardo and Elena and her family and our desire to bring the Italian tradition of gelato making to the UK.”"
That’s all well and good, but why should I go to Unico over other gelato cafes like *insert ice-cream parlour name*?
"The concept of ‘UNICO’ originates in Bologna – an Italian city famous for hosting the oldest university in Europe (dating from 1088 AD), for its distinctive Medieval structures built with red bricks, and for its lavish and rich cuisine.Because of this undying passion for food, and for ice cream in particular, there comes a desire to share all this in London, starting from Bromley.Our rule of thumb derives from our traditions, which consist in not only using the finest ingredients that have no conservatives or artificial flavourings, but also in consistently preparing fresh produce throughout the day. This way you can be sure to always find the freshest and creamiest gelato around! – via Unico official website"
Yeah, sounds decent that doesn’t it. I do like a bit of ice-cream and I certainly like a bit of Gianfranco Zola so this place seems to fit the bill pretty well.
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Joking aside, it’s always great to see players get their lives in order after the rollercoaster ride that is professional football. Many struggle to cope having not previously thought about their careers away from the field, but Zola appears to have his sorted.