A car crash, a shark and a mixed bag of fortune for Scots in Italy
DENIS LAW (Man. City to Torino, July, 1961, £110,000. Aged 21) –
A high-profile, record transfer that failed spectacularly for the Lawman.
He struggled to adapt to the style of football and the Italian lifestyle, despite being joined at the club by England striker, Joe Baker.
A near-fatal car crash involving the pair six months after they joined Torino didn’t help, and that April, Law requested a transfer.
Torino wouldn’t play ball. After scoring 10 goals in 28 games for Il Toro (The Bull), Law walked out, headed home to Aberdeen, and was eventually signed by Manchester United.
JOE JORDAN (Man. United to AC Milan, July, 1981, £500,000. Aged 29) –
The striker’s combative style quickly earned favour with fans of the Rossoneri, who soon dubbed him “Lo Squalo” (The Shark).
But the big man struggled in his first season in Serie A, and scored just twice in 22 games as the club were relegated.
After spending the summer playing and scoring for Scotland at the World Cup Finals in Spain, Joe returned to hit 10 goals in 30 league games as Milan regained their top-flight status.
His time was up at the San Siro, however, and after another season in Italy with Hellas Verona, Joe was brought back to England by Southampton.
GRAEME SOUNESS (Liverpool to Sampdoria, July, 1984, £650,000. Aged 31) – With
Denis Law back in 1961 no room left in his trophy cabinet after a glittering spell at Liverpool, Souness was allowed to go on his Italian adventure in return for £650,000.
He had Trevor Francis for company, and in their debut season in Serie A, they helped secured the Italian Cup for the first time in La Samp’s history.
The pair were credited with helping spark the mostsuccessful period in the Genoa club’s history.
In April, 1986, however, Souness’s time in Italy came to an abrupt halt when Rangers knocked on his door, and made him player-manager.
LIAM HENDERSON (Celtic to Bari, January, 2018, £115,000. Aged 21) –
After five years at Celtic and loans spells with Rosenborg in Norway and Hibs, the Scotland Under-21 midfielder moved to the Serie B club on the shores of the Adriatic.
At the end of his first season, however, Bari were declared bankrupt, and Henderson moved to fellow Serie B side, Hellas Verona.
He was an important cog in the machine as his new club won promotion to Serie A via the play-offs.