Tony Dorigo on England, Italy and a short stint with Souness at Torino

13-Jan-2021 11:04:56 | The Guardian

Dorigo recalls being asked to throw a game, training with Graeme Souness and defending for Gianluigi Lentini

Tony Dorigo is best known for his years as a swashbuckling full-back who marauded up and down the left flank for Aston Villa, Chelsea and Leeds during the 1980s and 1990s. He played for England at Italia 90, won the league title with Leeds in 1992 and has been commentating on Serie A games for well over a decade. Dorigo also enjoyed a fascinating season with Torino in Serie B in 1997-98.

His first experience of Italian football dates back to 1983, some 14 years before he would eventually pitch up in Turin. He was on the verge of breaking into the Aston Villa team as an 18-year-old when they travelled to Italy for a summer friendly against Udinese. Dorigo, whose father was born in Udine, had relatives in the stadium and was eager to impress European Cup-winning manager Tony Barton. Such was his enthusiasm to stand out that he aggravated an Italian legend.