Pavarotti, Pasta and Perfect Modena – How Josh Doig has Mastered Life in Italy

Modena is one of those captivating cities where you are never more than two streets away from bustle or silence. 

A town with a reputation for noise – whether that be Enzo Ferrari’s supercars or Luciano Pavarotti’s unmistakable vocals – it also holds an appreciation for the serene. 

Locals pounding the pavement of Via Emilio – the perpetually busy road dissecting the city centre – use their ears as much as anything to navigate. Noise leads them south through the Piazza Grande, the mercato and bars bursting with aperitivo patrons. 

Just as enticing though is a turn to the north, where Modenese trickle out of the main artery and through its side streets in search of tranquility.

It is in one of these quiet places, off the beaten path, that Destination Calcio is greeted by one of the town’s adopted residents. 

Josh Doig steps out of his front gates with a big grin and a muted Prada T-shirt and shorts. The wardrobe is one of a number of areas subtly influenced since embarking on his Italian odyssey.

He has called Modena home since joining Serie A side Sassuolo in 2024. It is now four years since he left Scotland for the boot, following his initial move from Hibs to Hellas Verona. But it is here in Emilia-Romagna where he has truly found his feet.

“It’s the place I’ve probably felt most at home,” he tells Destination Calcio. “I feel like in Verona I was a wee bit up in the air, like it was still all new to me. 

“In Modena, being here two-and-a-half years now, I do feel I’m just chilled. I’ve got my routine that I’m in and I’m just relaxed. I just feel very settled here.” 

That sense of home is evident as he shows us around his favourite parts of the city. This is Doig’s Modena and, for the next couple of hours, we’re just living in it. 

Doig pulls off a solid impression of a local guide – the thick Leith accent that’s never left him the only giveaway that this is not his day job. 

There are nods to some of his favourite restaurants and coffee spots, as well as chats about two of the city’s most famous sons – Pavarotti and Ferrari. 

There’s an introduction to the wonky Torre della Ghirlandina. “Our very own leaning tower of Pisa,” Doig jokes about the only part of the city that forces the 6ft 2in defender to crane his neck upwards.

All the knowledge of his surroundings is brilliantly unanticipated. Even more so is the source of it. 

“It’s more my granny and people like that who know more about it because when they come they look into everything,” he says as we walk through a bustling Piazza Grande. 

“There’s so many small things that I didn’t know. Down that street is the home of Panini stickers. That’s where the original shop came from. It’s literally around the corner. My granny told me that. I’m like, ‘where’s that come from?’ 

“They’re actually shooting a series about the Panini family. So this whole square was blocked off a few months ago. It was all the old cars put up and it was cool. There’s always films or series getting shot in the square. A few times a month you’ll come here and it’ll all be cordoned off.”

It’s not the only piazza in the city that looks spectacular as we stroll around in the Italian sunshine.

Another square houses his favourite go-to for food. Osteria di Modena Rossi boasts a front-row seat to the comings and goings through the city’s Piazza Roma, as well as some of the best gramigna in Emilia Romagna, according to our pasta connoisseur. 

For the greatest culinary experience though, Doig recommends a trip to Maranello, the home of Ferrari, and the famed Ristorante Montana.

“Every time you go the food is just unbelievable,” says the 24-year-old. “It’s so cool as well. They’ve got all the Ferrari parts and wheels on the walls.

“Ronaldo’s strip is there, Haaland’s strip. If someone famous goes they get them to sign a bit of the tablecloth and then they’ll put that up on the wall.

“One of the coolest ones at the top belongs to the main Disney animator. He drew a few pictures and he signed it.”

It’s one of a few locations that forces Doig to get into his car to visit. The 25-minute journey to the training ground is another – his Porsche 911 befitting of a player who is officially the fastest at Sassuolo. 

While leaving team-mates in his dust at the Mapei Football Centre, however, it is the same group that helps him enjoy the slower pace of Italian life when time allows – whether that be lunches, gigs or 18 holes at the Modena Golf and Country Club.

“Out of every team I’ve played for, it’s probably one of the closest groups I’ve had in football,” says Doig, who names Tarik Muharemovic, Kristian Thorstvedt, Cristian Volpato and Armand Lauriente among his closest companions. 

“We’ve got a really good group of boys that all stay close. So we all do stuff together, we’re all out, the girlfriends are all so close as well. 

“Last week we were at Tame Impala together in Bologna which was brilliant. Thorstvedt stays a bit outside, he’s got a big back garden with a pool  and with it getting close to the summertime, we’re kind of nudging him, ‘Right, come on it’s got to be a garden party at some point!’.”

For now, we settle for a different type of garden and a stop for coffee at Juta all’Orto in the picturesque Parco Giardino Ducale Estense. 

First introduced to the spot by his girlfriend Freja, it’s one example of how there is still a strong Scottish influence shaping his life abroad. 

His country is also infiltrating calcio at large, with Doig part of Serie A’s burgeoning brigade of Scots. Kieron Bowie’s move to Hellas Verona in January brought the total to eight across the top two divisions. 

While catching up outside of facing each other is tough, there are plenty of notes to swap with compatriots on their experiences around the country – whether that’s the incredible atmosphere at Atalanta’s New Balance Arena or tips on the impossible job of containing Napoli and Scotland standard-bearer Scott McTominay. 

 “Scott is an absolute hero there now, they absolutely worship him,’ says Doig. “It’s just good to see a Scottish guy doing that, referred to as one of the best players in Serie A at the moment. He probably is, to be fair.

“I remember the first game of the season against Napoli, and Scott started left wing – at one point he ran in behind me on the opposite side. He’s got that free-roam role to do what he wants, and it’s working for him because he’s been brilliant. 

“He’s just everywhere, it’s his work rate. That’s one of the best aspects of his game. He just does not stop, runs the whole game. It’s the same with Billy (Gilmour), I think it’s a Scottish thing.” 

The ‘Scottish things’ in Italy aren’t confined solely to the pitch. 

Flecks of home have coloured experiences throughout his time in Modena, whether that’s the Hibs top that hangs in the Griffin Bar on the corner of the popular Via dei Gallucci, or the regular visits from his dad Tommy and mum Lynda. 

There is one thing, though, that he hasn’t been able to transport. 

“I was home a few weeks ago and I promised myself I was going to get a chippy,” he laughs.

“I got a fish supper and a fried pizza. Unbelievable. After a game at Hibs it was always Domino’s (pizza), junk food. But here you get all the meats, there’s sushi and there is pizza but it’s quality pizza. I do miss after a game when you can eat anything.

“I was always a battered sausage supper or a fried pizza. That reminds me of being a kid in high school. So bad for you though, I don’t know how I survived.”

As we make our way back there’s time to reflect on another survival story, and coping with the immense pressure that came with the move to Italy. 

Doig was only 20 when he uprooted and immersed himself into a new culture and language. A memorable start to life in Verona and a first goal helped settle the nerves and set the tone. 

“It was my first start, it was against Sampdoria at home, and all my family were in the stands – it was my dad’s birthday,” he recalls. “I remember I was so nervous. And then the ball just fell to me, open goal, right foot. I was like, ‘God!’

“After that, I got home, had just moved into a new apartment. I said to myself, ‘Wow, this is cool’.  “That’s probably one of the better feelings I’ve had in football. That’s probably been my best moment in Italy.”

One way or another, Doig envisages more moments to savour in his adopted home.

As we turn past a statue of Pavarotti and back into the quiet, the city’s draw no longer needs to be bellowed.

“Honestly, I love it. I try not to look too far ahead, but I do absolutely love it,” he reflects. “I said that when I retire, it’s probably a place I’ll look at and have a wee house here because it’s stunning. It’s just so chilled.”

Modena’s symphony has captured another heart.