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The severed head of a pig was delivered to Sampdoria headquarters in Piazza Borgo Pila on Saturday, a threat that marked the latest in a series of incidents of unrest surrounding the struggling Italian Serie A club. According to Reuters, the pig's head was found in a box along with a death threat addressed to former club president Massimo Ferrero and current vice president Antonio Romei.

According to Italian reports, the message to Ferrero and Romei read, "Le prossime teste saranno le vostre" -- "The next heads will be yours." Sampdoria stated that police were called to the scene to respond to what the club called in a statement "yet another serious act of intimidation".

The pig's head comes a month after a blank bullet was delivered to Sampdoria offices with a similar threat against Ferrero and Edoardo Garrone, one of the club's previous owners. According to Rai, the threat left at the time read, "Questa volta è a salve, il prossimo sarà vero" -- "This time it's blank, next time it will be real".

Ferrero, 71, continues to control Sampdoria through a family holding despite resigning from his position after being arrested in 2021 for bankruptcy fraud. Angry fans of Sampdoria, which is currently in danger of being relegated to Serie B, have alleged that Ferrero is running the club into financial ruin while recently turning down an offer to sell the team.

The Genoa-based club is currently second from the bottom in Italy's top division, six points behind the final spot in the relegation zone and eight points adrift of safety.