Fiorentina have confirmed Davide Astori was found in his hotel room on Sunday and that his cause of death remains unclear.
Tributes have flowed in for the 31-year-old defender following the club's announcement that he had passed away.
Astori and the Fiorentina squad had been staying in a hotel in Udine ahead of their scheduled Serie A match with Udinese.
Club press officer Arturo Mastronardi says Astori's body was found in his room after he did not arrive for breakfast with the team on Sunday morning.
He added that an autopsy is due to be conducted and the rest of the squad will fly back to Florence, where club directors have visited Astori's family.
Our sincerest condolences to the family and friends of captain and Italian international Davide Astori, who passed away suddenly last night. March 4, 2018
"There was a deadline to show up for breakfast, at 0930," Mastronardi told the media in Udine.
"He usually arrived first. When he didn't turn up before the deadline, they went to check on him and, unfortunately, they found him in his room.
"The cause [of death] is not yet known. A magistrate came and they have taken him to the hospital for an autopsy. I think it will be done by the end of the day, but I don't know the technical details.
"The last to see Davide was Marco Sportiello. The medical staff and Sportiello will be talked to. As far as I know, Astori was not under any special medical controls.
"The team will return to Florence by a charter flight at around 1500. The family has been informed by the directors: the parents by telephone, while in Florence his partner has been visited by directors who were in the city.
"We have no other news at the moment."
All seven games due to take place on Sunday in Italy's top flight have been postponed out of respect.
The FIGC's thoughts are with the directors, coaches and staff who knew and respected Davide throughout Italian football, while we also offer our most profound condolences to the Astori family. March 4, 2018
