Jamie Vardy has been heralded as a ‘king’ by the Italian press after his Cremonese debut was met with a pantomime atmosphere of cheers and boos on Monday night.
The striker had a quiet half-hour off the bench in their 0-0 draw at Hellas Verona but the buzz generated by his ‘mythical’ reputation resounds from the reports of the day.
Vardy and his wife Rebekah, who watched from the stands, were monitored by a platoon of 13 dedicated photographers, according to La Provincia Cremona – and that was just the start of the circus.
The local paper claims says that Vardy was greeted with a ‘roar’ when he came on and a standing ovation when he made his first touch, even if his performance was relatively subdued.
Of course, the Verona fans played their part, welcoming him with a chorus of boos when he was subbed on – though even some of them were wearing Vardy shirts, apparently.
The consensus among the reports is that Vard worked hard, made all the right runs, and stretched the opposition, but did not get much supply and still needs to accustom himself to the rhythms of Serie A football.
Rebekah Vardy (left) watched as Jamie Vardy (right) made his Cremonese debut on Monday
Rebekah soaked up the history as the duo paid a visit to Verona for his first Serie A outing
Vardy received a ‘roar’ and a standing ovation and even opposition fans wore his shirt
National paper La Repubblica said that Vardy, 38, was unable to outdo the ‘lacklustre’ performance of the man he replaced, Federico Bonazzoli.
Spanish outlet Sport were more specific in their criticism, describing his performance as ‘timid’.
Local media were kinder in their assessment.
Cuore Grigiorossi said that Vardy is already a candidate to start in their next game against Parma on Sunday and that his lack of involvement was mostly due to Cremonese being on the back foot.
Meanwhile, La Provincia Cremona said he had a ‘charming’ debut, commanding ‘respect and fear’, and that this felt like the start of something. The paper described Verona’s Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi as the ‘court of King Jamie’.
As for Rebekah, she received her fair share of attention – at one point, she shared a picture on her Instagram story of five photographers all training their cameras on her.
In a rather puzzling analysis, La Provincia Cremona said that she ‘applauded him [Vardy] with discreet elegance, never losing her British aplomb’ – whatever that’s supposed to mean.
And she was happy to share a photo of her posing outside Verona’s beautiful Roman amphitheatre, which has stood for almost 2000 years.
The duo are living ‘La Dolce Vita’ after Jamie called time on his 13-year stint with Leicester
Rebekah had company as she soaked up a good atmosphere at the 0-0 draw on Monday
The stadium in Verona was described as the ‘court of King Jamie’ as he attracted attention
Rebekah shared a photo of five photographers snapping pictures of her at the stadium
Rebekah and Jamie are settling into life in Italy after he made the switch from Leicester City following an iconic 13-year stint, during which time he won the Premier League title and FA Cup.
A friend of Rebekah told the Daily Mirror that the couple are now living ‘La Dolce Vita’, having left behind England and the controversy over the Wagatha Christie scandal involving Coleen Rooney.
The Vardys are having a Netflix documentary made about them and it is likely to feature glimpses of their life in Italy.
