Stefano Salvatori (29 December 1967 – 31 October 2017) was an Italian professional footballer. A tenacious, physically strong, and hard-working player, known for his energetic and tough-tackling style of play, he usually played as a central midfielder, but was also capable of playing as a defensive midfielder, as a full-back or centre-back. He played for several clubs in his homeland, including Parma, Fiorentina, Milan and Atalanta, and the Scottish club Heart of Midlothian. Salvatori also represented Italy in under-21 and B international matches. Playing career Club After starting his youth career with local side Lodigiani, Salvatori joined the Milan youth system in 1985; after struggling to find space in the first team, he was initially sent on loan to lower division teams Virescit Boccaleone and Parma in order to gain experience and playing time; with Virescit, he managed a third-place finish in the 1987–88 Serie C1/A, but the club lost out to Reggina in the Serie B play-offs. He later joined Fiorentina in 1988, where he made his Serie A debut, helping the club to qualify for the UEFA Cup in 1989. He returned to Milan for a second spell with the club, during which he won the 1989 European Super Cup over Barcelona under manager Arrigo Sacchi, appearing as a defender in the first leg, a 1–1 away draw. Milan also reached the 1990 European Cup Final that season, and subsequently won the competition following a 1–0 victory over Benfica, but Salvatori did not feature in the squad for the final; he made one appearance in the competition, in the first leg of the quarter-finals, against Belgian side KV Mechelen, coming on as a substitute for Angelo Colombo, and was an unused substitute in first leg of the semi-finals against Bayern Munich. He also appeared as a substitute in the second leg of the Coppa Italia Final that year, which ended in a 1–0 home defeat to Juventus, who ultimately won the tournament on aggregate. After still struggling to find space in the Milan first team, Salvatori returned to Fiorentina midway through the 1990–91 season, and remained with the club until 1992, making a total of 45 appearances in Serie A across his three seasons with the team, and scoring one goal. He then transferred to SPAL, and later joined Atalanta, helping the latter club to win promotion to Serie A in 1995, and subsequently reach the Coppa Italia