Dino Baggio

Dino Baggio

Baggio with Inter in 1991
Personal information
Date of birth	(1971-07-24) 24 July 1971 (age 45)
Place of birth	Camposampiero, Italy
Height	1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Playing position	Midfielder
Youth career
1976–1984	Tombolo
1984–1990	Torino
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1989–1991	Torino	28	(2)
1991–1992	→ Internazionale (loan)	27	(1)
1992–1994	Juventus	49	(1)
1994–2000	Parma	172	(19)
2000–2005	Lazio	44	(1)
2003	→ Blackburn Rovers (loan)	9	(1)
2004	→ Ancona (loan)	9	(1)
2005	Triestina	13	(0)
2008–2009	Tombolo	1	(0)
Total		351	(26)
National team
1990–1992	Italy U21	18	(1)
1991–1999	Italy	60	(7)
Honours  Italy FIFA World Cup USA 1994
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

Dino Baggio (born 24 July 1971) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder.

Throughout his club career, he won the UEFA Cup three times, twice with Parma and once with Juventus. He obtained 60 caps at international level for Italy, and was part of the team that reached the final of the 1994 FIFA World Cup; he later also represented Italy at UEFA Euro 1996, and at the 1998 FIFA World Cup.

Despite sharing a last name, he has no relation to fellow former Italian footballer and team-mate Roberto Baggio.

Baggio began his football career at age five in Tombolo, a province of Padova. He was spotted by Torino scouts at the age of 13 and taken into the Torino youth system. He made his debut in Serie A as a 19-year-old against Lazio and became a regular member of the starting line-up, making a name for himself as a promising youngster. He emerged as a tenacious, hardworking, consistent, and versatile defensive midfielder during his time at the club, who was capable of playing in several positions. With Torino, he won the 1989–90 Serie B title, followed by the 1991 Mitropa Cup. He was loaned to Inter at the age of 20 in 1991 for the 1991–92 season, making 27 appearances and scoring 1 goal.

At the end of the 1991–92 season, Juventus bought the promising youngster for 10 billion Italian Lire, and during his time at the club, Dino Baggio would play alongside his unrelated namesake Roberto Baggio for two seasons, forming a notable friendship; Dino was often called "Baggio 2" or "the other Baggio" earlier on in his career, to distinguish the two players, as he was younger, and initially less well-known. As Dino Baggio had previously played for city rivals Torino, however, the Juventus fans were not initially pleased by the transfer. His solid and consistent play soon won them over, however, and he quickly became a mainstay in the Juventus midfield, winning the UEFA Cup in 1993, scoring three goals over the two legs of the final; one of his goals came in the first leg, while the other two came in the return leg. He also helped Juventus to a second-place finish in Serie A during the 1993–94 season.