The most famous Baggio in the world is Roberto Baggio. A football prodigy, one of the most popular players in the world over the last 30 years, who played for Fiorentina, Juventus, AC Milan and Inter, and almost leading Italy to World Cup glory. He was once voted as the world’s best player, picking up the most prestigious individual award, but his number of titles doesn’t go hand in hand with the aura of his individual greatness.
Around the same time, another Baggio roamed the pitches of the Serie A, and actually made an impact with the squadra azzurra. Dino Baggio, no relation, despite what everyone used to think back in the 1990’s.
Despite being the far less famous of Italy’s Baggio duo at the time, Dino has had quite the career. Playing for Torino, Inter, Juventus (a teammate of Roberto for two years), Parma and Lazio before the twilight of his footballing career. He also appeared 60 times for the Italian national team, scoring 7 goals. He took part in two World Cups and the 1996 Euro, playing in the ’94 World Cup final. He also helped Italy to the 1992 U-21 European champion title.
Perhaps his biggest achievement in club football are the three UEFA Cup titles he played a part in winning: One with Juventus, two with Parma.
And Baggio didn’t just play a part in those three titles: He played in all those finals, including the two legged finals of 1993 and 1995, and scored 5 goals in those four matches combined. He played in the 1999 final between Parma and Marseille (Parma winning 3-0), but didn’t score any goals. In 1993 he scored twice in the second leg as Juventus completed their triumph over Dortmund. Two years later, in the final between Parma and Juventus, he scored in the first and second leg to win it against his former club.
A slightly forgotten relic of Italy’s last decade of dominance in European football, Dino Baggio is slightly forgotten because he never won a Serie A title or major silverware with the national side. However, in a decade filled with exciting scorers and elegant defenders, the rough-around-the-edges was one of its best and most influential players, even if people seem to forget.