Gianni Rivera

1959–1962: Debut with Alessandria, early years with AC Milan and first scudetto

Nicknamed l'Abatino, and the Golden Boy of Italian football throughout his career, Rivera was the product of his hometown club's youth football academy; he joined the first team in 1958 and made his debut in Serie A for the Alessandria senior side against Internazionale on 2 June 1959 at the age of only fifteen years, nine months and fifteen days, in a 1–1 draw; later that year, he scored his first Serie A goal in a 2–2 home draw with Sampdoria on 25 October. He is the third youngest player in history to debut in Serie A, behind only Amedeo Amadei and Pietro Pellegri, and the second youngest goalscorer in Serie A, behind only Amadei. A year later, he was bought by AC Milan on a co-ownership deal, as an eventual replacement for the club's captain Juan Schiaffino in the playmaking role; although the club's officials were concerned about Rivera's diminutive physique during his trial, Schiaffino insisted that the talented youngster be offered a contract, and later served as a mentor to the young attacking midfielder. Rivera spent his first season at the club back on a year-long loan with Alessandria; during the season, he scored a goal in a 1–1 draw with Milan on 7 February 1960, and played 26 matches in total, in which he scored 6 goals, also earning the nickname Il Signorino (the little gentleman). Despite Alessandria's relegation, Rivera's performances throughout the season impressed…

Early years

Rivera was a part of the Italy national side between 1962 and 1974. Rivera made his international debut with the under-21 side on 9 March 1960, scoring 2 goals in a 4–1 pre-Olympic friendly win over Switzerland, alongside Giacomo Bulgarelli. At the Summer Olympics in Rome, Rivera made his tournament debut in a 4–1 win against Taiwan, at the age of seventeen, and teamed up with Bulgarelli in midfield to help the Italians to a fourth-place finish under Viani, scoring three goals in five matches. With the Italian senior side, Rivera made his debut on 13 May 1962 in a 3–1 away win against Belgium, at the age of eighteen. He took part at the 1962 FIFA World Cup in Chile with the national team, and made both his first ever competitive and World Cup appearance for Italy at the tournament, in a 0–0 draw against West Germany on 31 May; this was his only appearance in the competition, however, as Italy disappointed and suffered a controversial first-round elimination. Despite Rivera's creative talent, offensive capabilities, and technical skills, the celebrated Italian sports journalist Gianni Brera was critical of the youngster's performance, due to his lack of pace, physicality, and his poor defensive work-rate, nicknaming him l'Abatino (the little abbot), and also stating that the in-form Angelo Sormani should have played in his place. Later that year, on his fourth international appearance, Rivera also scored his first goal for Italy on 2 December, at the age…

Club

International

Scores and results list Italy's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Rivera goal.

Rivera was born in Alessandria, Piedmont, to Edera and Teresio; his father was a railway worker. Gianni began playing football with local side ASD Don Bosco, where he was scouted by former Milan midfielder Franco Pedroni, who was the assistant coach at Alessandria at the time, prompting Rivera to join the local Serie A side at the age of 13.