Until recently, Scottish players playing their trade in Italy was a mere memory of decades past.
Our stars headed to the peninsula in the 70s, then were back in vogue there during the 1980s. But that stopped as Serie A entered its 1990s heyday. Channel 4’s Football Italia and live match coverage opened up the European powerhouse to British fans.
Stars such as Ronaldo (the real one), Gabriel Batistuta, Juan Veron, Hernan Crespo, Roberto Baggio and their ilk lit up our screens as the cream of world football saw Italy as the place to be. The Italian top flight has since fallen behind the money-powered English Premier League and Spain’s La Liga, but still holds its own as one of Europe’s top five leagues.
