A burning defeat: about two thousand votes difference with the new president of the Sardinia Region Alessandra Todde.
But Paolo Truzzu, mayor of Cagliari, the candidate chosen by the centre-right to replace the outgoing governor Christian Solinas at Villa Devoto, after the admission of the knockout ("I called Todde this morning and said goodbye to her in the Regional Council"), says I immediately played as a team player with his party, the Brothers of Italy.
And he defends the invincibility of his friend Giorgia Meloni.
"I sent you a message this morning.
These are not national elections - he explains right from the start of the press conference after the defeat - the responsibility is mine: if I lost by two thousand votes and in my city the gap with Todde is 13 thousand preferences, the calculation is soon done. With a few more points in Cagliari I would have won."
A bit like the famous Spider-Man line: "My city, my responsibility".
The city is mine, the responsibility is mine.
For Truzzu, double farewell: to the Region's dream and to the tricolor sash of mayor.
After the proclamation of the elected representatives, he will opt for a place in the Regional Council.
The mandate in the Municipality would have expired in a few months anyway.
All that remains is to wait for the administrative date that the new regional council will set to understand whether Cagliari will continue with the deputy mayor or with a commissioner.
No outbursts, no alibis.
And he circumvents the 'ifs' of the questions with a counter question which is also a football metaphor in honor of his past in the curve and his present as a Cagliari fan: "Too many ifs, what if Luvumbo hadn't scored on Sunday?"
He diplomatically dribbles the insidious question about split voting several times, the lists that get more votes than the president have always fueled a thousand suspicions.
But he gives an indirect and polite jab to his internal opponent, the outgoing governor Christian Solinas and to the leader of the League Matteo Salvini: "Of course if we had had more time - he explains referring to the exhausting back and forth that crowned him as candidate only a few weeks before the vote - we could have worked harder and better. We lost by two thousand votes, perhaps starting a little early...".
Then he starts pointing the finger at himself again: "I wasn't able to explain the importance of the construction sites in Cagliari - he admits - I knew they were creating discontent, but I didn't think up to this point. I had asked the Cagliari candidates to take the pulse of city and they reassured me."
A victory in recovery, read appeal?
"Now it's not time for a recount - Truzzu cuts short - The Court of Appeal will have to do that. Once we see the report we will make some assessments. Of course, with such a small gap, we can also think about appealing, I know that in Cagliari alone there were a thousand null ballots,
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