One of football’s all time greats Gianni Rivera was born on this day in 1943. Son of a railway worker, Rivera grew up in the Piedmontese town of Alessandria where he began his footballing career with ASD Don Bosco.
There he caught the eye of former AC Milan midfielder Franco Pedroni who then worked as the assistant coach of U.S. Alessandria Calcio 1912 – Rivera’s hometown’s major football club.
Blessed with outrageous skill, Rivera began his professional career in 1959. Italian football’s ‘Golden Boy’ made his debut for Alessandria against Inter Milan at the tender age of just 15 years and nine months.