Igor Protti

Igor Protti (born 24 September 1967) is an Italian former professional footballer who currently works as a coach.

Igor Protti
Protti before a Bari match in 2020
Personal information
Date of birth (1967-09-24) 24 September 1967
Place of birth Rimini, Italy
Height 1.71 m (5 ft 7 in)
Position(s) Striker
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1983–1985 Rimini 7 (0)
1985–1988 Livorno 75 (12)
1988–1989 Virescit Boccaleone 31 (10)
1989–1992 Messina 105 (31)
1992–1996 Bari 112 (46)
1996–1997 Lazio 27 (7)
1997–1998 Napoli 27 (4)
1998 Lazio 2 (0)
1998–1999 Reggiana 24 (8)
1999–2005 Livorno 192 (108)
Total 602 (226)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Throughout his playing career, he made a name for himself as a prolific and opportunistic striker, who mainly operated in the penalty area. Protti started his career with his hometown club Rimini in 1983; although he played for several Italian club sides throughout his career, including Lazio and Napoli, he is mostly remembered for his time with Livorno, where he established himself as a legendary figure in the club's history during his second spell with the side, and eventually remained with the team until his retirement. Along with Dario Hübner, Protti is the only player to have won the top scoring titles in Serie A, Serie B, and Serie C1;[1][2] he is also the only Serie A top-scorer to have suffered relegation with his club (Bari, at the time).[3]

Career

Protti spent the majority of his early career playing for teams in lower divisions; he made his career debut in Serie C1 at the age of 16, with his home-town club Rimini, on 27 May 1984. After two seasons with the club, he later moved on to Livorno in 1985, for three seasons. After a season period with Virescit Bergamo, he was acquired by Messina in 1989, and he became an important figure with the club, making his Serie B debut with Messina,[4] and scoring 31 goals over three seasons.[5][6]

In 1992, he moved to Bari, and after two seasons in Serie B, he helped his team to achieve Serie A promotion. During the 1994–95 season, he scored his first goal in Serie A against Napoli, as well as his first ever hat-trick, against Lazio.[5] He came to more widespread notice during the 1995–96 Serie A season, in which he shared the top-scoring title with Giuseppe Signori, scoring 24 goals (including a brace against Inter),[6][7] despite his team, Bari, being relegated.[3] This achievement led to a move to Lazio in 1996, but Protti's stay with the Rome club was not successful, and after two seasons with the club, including a loan to Napoli during the 1997–98 season, he was eventually released from his contract in 1998.[5]

After a spell in Serie B at Reggiana (1998–99), helping the club to Serie A promotion, Protti returned to Livorno in Serie C1 in 1999, where he rapidly became one of the most popular players in that club's history,[8] scoring 11 goals during his first season with the club.[5][6] He later captained Livorno, leading the club to Serie B promotion during the 2001–02 Serie C1 season, winning the title, and finishing the campaign as the top-scorer,[5] and the following season he was the top-scorer in Serie B.[5] He subsequently led Livorno to Serie A promotion during the 2003–04 season,[5] before retiring in 2005 after the team had finished a surprising 9th in their first top division campaign in many years,[5] leaving the captain's armband to Cristiano Lucarelli.[9] Protti's number 10 was then retired by the club. He has also been given the freedom of the city of Livorno in 2007.[10] During the awarding ceremony, he asked the #10 jersey not to be retired any longer in order to "give anybody back the dream to dress it one day".[11] The number will be reassigned starting from the 2007–08 season, with Francesco Tavano wearing the number 10 shirt.[12]

Honours

Club

Lazio[5]

Livorno[5]

Individual

References
  1. Menicucci, Paolo (19 June 2003). "Protti ends on a high". UEFA.com. Retrieved 29 May 2016.
  2. Enrico Turcato (8 November 2010). "Dario Hubner supera ogni record". sportmediaset.mediaset.it (in Italian). Mediaset. Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  3. "Protti, capocannoniere retrocesso". gazzetta.it (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. 1 June 2009. Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  4. Gianluca Sasso (1 November 2014). "Igor Protti: "Non ho rimpianti, vi svelo i miei gol più belli"". ilgiornaledigitale.it (in Italian). Archived from the original on 27 April 2015. Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  5. "Eroi di Provincia: Igor Protti, Zar di Bari e Re di Livorno". dalepepe.it (in Italian). 24 February 2015. Archived from the original on 20 April 2015. Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  6. "Igor Protti". tuttocalciatori.net (in Italian). Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  7. Giuseppe Balenzano (14 January 2010). "Una doppietta di Protti stende l'Inter". solobarinews.it (in Italian). Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  8. Massimiliano Cappello (26 January 2015). "AdTech Ad Che fine ha fatto? Protti, lo Zar di Bari e Re di Livorno che si dedica al turismo". calciomercato.com (in Italian). Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  9. "Lucarelli in carcere per un torneo insieme a Igor Protti". lanazione.it (in Italian). 24 September 2009. Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  10. STRUGGLERS MEET AT LIVORNO | Sporting Life – Football | Football Transfers, Italy Serie A News, Fixtures, Results, Match Reports, Standings
  11. (in Italian)
  12. "Sarà ritirata la maglia di Morosini E si pensa di intitolargli un settore del Picchi". repubblica.it (in Italian). La Repubblica. 15 April 2012. Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  13. Roberto Di Maggio; Igor Kramarsic; Alberto Novello (11 June 2015). "Italy - Serie A Top Scorers". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 31 October 2015. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
  14. "Italy - Serie B Top Scorers". rsssf.com. RSSSF. Retrieved 2 April 2015.
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