Luigi Bertolini

Luigi Bertolini
Personal information
Full nameLuigi Bertolini
Date of birth13 September 1904
Place of birthBusalla, Italy
Height1.81 m (5 ft 11 1⁄2 in)
Playing positionMidfielder
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
1926–31Alessandria117(7)
1931–37Juventus138(5)
1938–40Tigullia-(-)
National team
1929–1935Italy26(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.
† Appearances (Goals).

Luigi Bertolini (13 September 1904 – 11 February 1977) was an Italian football (soccer) midfielder.

Biography

Born in Busalla, province of Genoa, he played in the 1920s for Savona, Alessandria and Juventus. He played 135 matches for Juventus, scoring five goals, helping the team to win four Serie A tournaments. For the Italy national football team he made his debut in 1929, and won the 1934 FIFA World Cup.

With Luisito Monti and Attilio Ferraris, Luigi Bertolini made up the legendary Italian midfield established at the 1934 World Cup. In that tournament he started every game and was only rested by Pozzo in the first quarterfinal encounter against Spain. Bertolini is very recognizable in the photos of the 1934 Italian team by virtue of his big white bandana which he used to protect his head from the seams of the ball when doing headers. He went from Alessandria to Juventus in 1931, becoming an integral part of the remainder of their five year championship run. He was also one of the 'Lions of Highbury' in the narrow loss to England in November 1934 known as the Battle of Highbury. As the story goes, during the second half he was disoriented from fatigue and with the English constantly in attack, he kept calling out for Luisito not realizing that Monti was not on the field (due to a broken bone) and the midline was just himself and Ferraris. He retired from playing in 1937. He began his coaching career with Tigullia in 1938.

References