| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 17 March 1964 | ||
| Place of birth | Giussano, Italy | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Playing position | Striker | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1981–1986 | Como | 63 | (13) |
| 1984–1985 | → Sambenedettese (loan) | 33 | (13) |
| 1986–1990 | Milan | 13 | (2) |
| 1986–1988 | → Como (loan) | 33 | (3) |
| 1988–1989 | → Fiorentina (loan) | 30 | (14) |
| 1990–1992 | Fiorentina | 37 | (4) |
| 1992–1993 | Pescara | 35 | (11) |
| 1993–1996 | Udinese | 14 | (2) |
| 1994–1995 | → Brescia (loan) | 14 | (0) |
| Total | 242 | (62) | |
| National team | |||
| 1985–1986 | Italy U21 | 3 | (1) |
| 1989 | Italy | 3 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). |
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Stefano Borgonovo (born 17 March 1964) is a retired Italian footballer who played as a striker.
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Born in Giussano, Province of Monza and Brianza, Lombardy, Borgonovo began his professional career with Como Calcio, making his debuts at 17 in a Serie A match against Ascoli Calcio. After a loan spell at S.S. Sambenedettese Calcio, he established himself as a key player at Como, and in 1986 moved to A.C. Milan, who immediately loaned him back to Como.
After two years, Borgonovo was sent on loan again, this time to ACF Fiorentina, where had the most successful season of his career, scoring 14 league goals while playing alongside Roberto Baggio. This earned him three caps for Italy - his debut coming on 22 February 1989, in a friendly with Denmark (1–0 win) - and finally a chance to prove himself at Milan. He spent much of the 1989–90 season as backup to Marco van Basten and, despite earning a European Cup winners' medal, moved on, keen to play regular first-team football. Although then Milan coach Arrigo Sacchi was keen to keep his services, he returned to Fiorentina, where he spent two years without managing to recapture his previous form.
Spells at Pescara Calcio, Udinese and Brescia Calcio followed, before Borgonovo retired in 1996. He later served as a youth coach back at Como, but retired in 2005 due to poor health.
On 5 September 2008, it was revealed Borgonovo was suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, the same illness that slowly killed Gianluca Signorini, another former Serie A player, in 2002.[1]
To raise funds and awareness of the disease, a testimonial match was organized by Borgonovo's former clubs Fiorentina and Milan. The game, played on 8 October 2008 at Stadio Artemio Franchi, Florence in front of a crowd of 30,000 people, was attended by several former stars of the two clubs. Borgonovo himself attended the match despite his serious condition, with his former teammate Roberto Baggio at his side.[2]
In his 2010 autobiography Carlo Ancelotti: The Beautiful Games of an Ordinary Genius: The Life, Games, and Miracles of an Ordinary Genius,[3] Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti spoke of his former team-mate's illness, saying: 'Stefano was my team-mate, and he has a problem. We need everyone to help him because maybe there is a solution for this illness, but we have to be fast because his condition is not good. He cannot move, he can just speak with his eyes. He scored in the semi-final of the European Cup in 1990 against Bayern, and was a good striker inside the box. He was not so quick but very clever. He is a good guy, very funny, likes to joke, even now, but he has a very dangerous illness.'[4]