LIVINGSTON fitness coach Nazzareno Salvatori, joined by first team and community co-ordinator Leigh Robertson. paid a visit to AC Milan's hotel during the week, as they travelled to Scotland to take on Rangers in a friendly match.

Nazza is good friends with the Rossoneri's head fitness coach, Daniele Tognaccini, and despite Tognaccini being unable to make the trip to Scotland, he arranged for Livi's representatives to travel to their base to meet with players and head coach Carlo Ancelotti.

AC Milan also kindly donated a signed home jersey to the club, featuring the autographs of footballing superstars such as Kaka, Ronaldinho, David Beckham and Andriy Shevchenko, which will be included in the auction at the forthcoming Sportsman's Dinner, to be held in the Almondvale Suite on Saturday 7 March.

Tickets for the event are selling out fast, with supporters encouraged to book now to avoid missing out on listening to great guest speakers Frank McAvennie and Derek Durkin, and the chance to bid on various items of football memorabilia including an AC Milan signed jersey.

"I worked in Italy in the Serie A for a number of years with Brescia, and I made many good friends during my time there with fitness coaches at various clubs." says Nazza, "One of those I got to know was Daniele Tognaccini at AC Milan.

"AC Milan are a great club and a great organisation. Daniele is the head fitness coach of seven coaches at AC, so it's in a big club!

"When they announced they were coming to Scotland, Leigh Robertson and Ronnie MacDonald asked me if I could get a signed jersey of all the players for their Sportsman's Dinner in March. So I phoned my friend Daniele and it was no problem.

"Unfortunately, Daniele didn't make the trip to Scotland because he had to stay in Italy to work the injured players who also didn't come across. He apologised that he wouldn't be able to see me, but arranged for me and Leigh to visit the hotel and meet the squad and the head coach."

Nazzareno and Leigh also got the opportunity to meet with first team members of the AC Milan squad, with Leigh pictured below with former Rangers midfielder Rino Gattuso. And Nazza got talking to Gattuso, to encourage him in his rehabilitation from a knee injury which kept him out of the trip to Ibrox.

" I met Rino Gattuso again. At first he didn't remember me, but when I got talking to him he remembered who I was! I talked with him recently after reading about his injury in the newspaper. He has a very similar injury to Raffaele de Vita, who I have worked with over the past few months on his rehabilitation.

"Rino is very keen to get back playing, so I told him that with Rafa, we got him fit again to train and play in matches within five to six months. And that was with Livingston, so I told him with AC Milan and all the people they have there to help, he should be back even quicker. He was very thankful to hear that."

Given the opportunity to meet with the management of one of Europe's top clubs, did Nazza try to encourage Carlo Ancelotti to send some of his promising youth players on loan to Almondvale Stadium?

"If we get to the SPL, then maybe it is possible that some of AC Milan's young players could come here on loan. But if we stay in the First Division, it is very unlikely, as playing at this level wouldn't be very beneficial to the player or to AC Milan.

"But it was good for Livingston Football Club to speak with the players and staff at AC Milan when they visited. It is good for a club like ours to have good ties with such a huge club."


Leigh Robertson pictured with AC Milan midfielder Rino Gattuso


The signed jersey - how many autographs can you spot?