Omero Tognon (, ; 3 March 1924 – 23 August 1990) was an Italian

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugb ...

who played as a

central midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

. He was mainly known for his physical power and his exemplary correct behaviour on the pitch, and never once received a caution during his eleven-year spell with

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...

Club career

Born in

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

, Tognon was a central midfielder who played for

during the 1940s and 1950s. Tognon played eleven seasons with Milan making 335 appearances preceded only by

Gianni Rivera Giovanni "Gianni" Rivera (; born 18 August 1943) is an Italian politician and former footballer who played as a midfielder. During his career as a footballer he was mostly utilised as an attacking midfielder. Dubbed Italy's "Golden Boy" by the ...

Paolo Maldini Paolo Cesare Maldini (; born 26 June 1968) is an Italian former professional footballer who played primarily as a left back and centre back for AC Milan and the Italy national team. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest defenders of a ...

Franco Baresi Franchino Baresi (; born 8 May 1960) is an Italian football youth team coach and a former player and manager. He mainly played as a sweeper or as a central defender, and spent his entire 20-year career with Serie A club AC Milan, captaining ...

, Billy Costacurta,

Mauro Tassotti Mauro Tassotti (; born in Rome, 19 January 1960) is an Italian manager and former footballer who played predominantly as a right-back. He currently serves as an assistant coach at Genoa. After making his Serie A debut with Lazio, he went on to ...

Nils Liedholm Nils Erik Liedholm (; 8 October 1922 – 5 November 2007) was a Swedish football midfielder and coach. ''Il Barone'' (The Baron), as he is affectionately known in Italy, was renowned for being part of the Swedish "Gre-No-Li" trio of strikers al ...

and

Cesare Maldini Cesare Maldini (; 5 February 1932 – 3 April 2016) was an Italian professional football manager and player who played as a defender. Father to Paolo Maldini and grandfather to Daniel Maldini, Cesare began his career with Italian side Tries ...

. He formed a tandem in midfield with

Carlo Annovazzi Carlo Annovazzi (; 24 May 1925 – 10 October 1980) was an Italian footballer who played as a midfielder. He was usually deployed as a right-sided, central, or defensive midfielder, although he was also capable of playing in defence. A large ...

. With Milan he won two championships, the first in

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the United ...

having played 37 of 38 games, and the second in

1955 Events January * January 3 – José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama. * January 17 – , the first nuclear-powered submarine, puts to sea for the first time, from Groton, Connecticut. * January 18– 20 – Battle of Yijian ...

without playing any games; he served as the club's

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

between 1953 and 1956. He later also spent a season with

Pordenone Pordenone (; Venetian and fur, Pordenon) is the main ''comune'' of Pordenone province of northeast Italy in the Friuli Venezia Giulia region. The name comes from Latin ''Portus Naonis'', meaning 'port on the Noncello (Latin ''Naon'') River'. H ...

before retiring in 1957.

International career

Tognon was selected to the

national team A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport. The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exa ...

for the 1950 World Cup but, along with Emilio Caprile, Giuseppe Casari and

Benito Lorenzi Benito "Veleno" Lorenzi (; 20 December 1925 – 3 March 2007) was an Italian footballer born in Borgo a Buggiano, province of Pistoia. He played as a striker. Club career Throughout his career (1947–1960), Lorenzi played with Italian clubs I ...

, he saw no action at the tournament. He would get another opportunity at the 1954 World Cup where he was immovable at in the centre of the team's defence. The second game against

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

was his last cap for the 'Azzurri'.

Honours

Player

Milan *

Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Cop ...

: 1950–51, 1954–55 * Coppa Latina: 1951, 1956

Manager

Arezzo *

Serie C The Serie C () is the third-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie B and Serie A. The Lega Italiana Calcio Professionistico (Lega Pro) is the governing body that runs the Serie C. The unification of the Lega P ...

: 1968–69

Individual

*A.C. Milan Hall of Fame

References

External links

Profile at FIGC

1924 births 1990 deaths Footballers from Padua Italian men's footballers Men's association football midfielders AC Milan players Serie A players Italy men's international footballers 1950 FIFA World Cup players 1954 FIFA World Cup players Italian football managers Hellas Verona FC managers {{Italy-footy-midfielder-1920s-stub