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Serie A: 2012/13 Team of the Season

  By O-Posts Team | June 15, 2013 - 00:51 | , , , , , , ,
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Blighted by controversy, coloured by innovative formations and blessed with emerging talent, it couldn’t be anything else but a season in Serie A. We count down the campaign’s best XI with the help of, what else but a back 3?

 

Goalkeeper- Federico Marchetti (Lazio)

Marchetti saw himself on the fringes of the Cagliari squad upon his return from the 2010 World Cup with Italy, though his move to Rome has seen him return to the Azzurri such has been his form. 13 clean sheets in the league, as well as some solid performances as the Biancocelesti won the Coppa Italia.

Lazio also took points off the all conquering Juventus in Turin thanks to a fine performance from Marchetti, a superb flying save from Arturo Vidal being the highlight.

 
Centre-back- Hugo Campagnaro (Napoli)

The 32 year old Argentine has let his contract run out after four years in Naples and could be set to follow coach Walter Mazzarri to Inter Milan, though few Napoli fans can begrudge him his move after a superb season. Campagnaro made 29 appearances as the Partenopei finished runners-up in Serie A with just 36 goals conceded.

The no-nonsense defender made over 300 clearances at the back, as well as winning 61 of his 87 tackles.

 
Centre-back- Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus)

The 6 ft 1 inch defender is an imposing force at the back for the old lady, possessing overwhelming strength to shrug attackers off the ball and the height to win the majority of his headers, shown by a 68% success rate in the air.

As well as being formidable in defence, he also showed an elegant side of his game as he offered a good attacking outlet down Juve’s left and a 90% pass success rate indicates his prowess in helping Conte’s men build from the back.

 
Centre-back- Andrea Barzagli (Juventus)

If Chiellini’s great form wasn’t enough, he was partnered by Barzagli, the experienced 32 year old who made 34 appearances as Juventus steamed to the Serie A title with just 24 goals conceded.

Barzagli compensated for declining pace with supreme positional sense as Juve’s back-line remained firm throughout the campaign.

 
Left Winger- Alessio Cerci (Torino)

After signing for Torino from Fiorentina for a cut-price deal last August, the 25 year old left-midfielder looked to be on the scrap-heap, though Cerci’s season has been one of rejuvenation as he terrorised numerous defences to help Torino escape relegation.

He scored 8 goals and created a total of 60 chances in his 35 appearances, earning him a call-up to the Italian national team.

 
Right winger- Arturo Vidal (Juventus)

Vidal’s 50 successful tackles shows how effective he was in protecting Andrea Pirlo but the Chilean midfielder was far more than that as he joined Juve’s attacks with energy and dynamism, scoring 10 goals (as he finished joint-top scorer) and creating 35 chances from the right side.

A fine mover of the ball, Vidal completed 84% of his attempted passes, as his versatility was vital to Andrea Conte’s ability to shift his side’s system.

 
Centre-midfield- Borja Valero (Fiorentina)

Similar to Cerci, Valero’s first season at his new club has been a revelation. The Spaniard showed assured technique in the heart of La Viola’s midfield, assisting 11 goals, creating a mammoth 74 chances and dictating play with around 1,800 passes in total.

His quality was essential to Vincenzo Montella’s free-flowing side, making 37 appearances as Fiorentina qualified for the Champions League.

 
Centre-midfield- Marek Hamsik (Napoli)

The Slovakian playmaker is blessed with superb vision and his ability to drop deep to pick the ball up from the midfield and spray passes around in attack was vital to Napoli’s return to the Champions League.

He scored 11 goals as well as assisting 14 from his slightly altered position on the left side of attack, as well as creating 100 chances for his teammates.

 
Attacking midfielder- Francesco Totti (AS Roma)

It is impossible to leave the evergreen Italian attacking-midfielder out as he shows no sign of slowing down with age. His 12 goals moved him up to second on the all-time Serie A goal-scoring list with 227, while his 12 assists helped Roma salvage a disruptive season to finish a respectable sixth in the league, as well as runners up in the Coppa Italia.

Despite reaching the ripe old age of 36, Totti still managed 33 starts for the Giallorossi and remains integral to their fortunes.

 
Attacking midfielder- Stephan El Shaarawy (AC Milan)

The Egyptian-born youngster celebrated breaking into the Italian squad at the start of the season with a brilliant campaign where he hit 16 goals and assisted 4 to help the Rossoneri into third place.

From his position on the left side of Max Allegri’s 3-pronged attack, the 20 year old demonstrated electric pace, confidence to take men on and assured finishing throughout, striking up a potent partnership with fellow youthful frontman Mario Balotelli.

 
Centre-Forward- Edinson Cavani (Napoli)

The 26 year old Uruguayan hit-man is courting interest from right across Europe this summer and rightly so after a season in which he struck 29 goals to fire Napoli back to the Champions League after a year’s absence.

Full of pace, power and unerring finishing, Cavani is arguably the best central-forward in Europe and Rafael Benitez has a fight on his hands to keep the league’s top scorer at the San Paulo with his ambition to win trophies consistently outweighing just last year’s Coppa Italia.

 
Manager- Vincenzo Montella (Fiorentina)

Antonio Conte saw his team march to a successive title by a margin of nine points whilst Walter Mazzarri and Max Allegri both negotiated choppy waters at their clubs to finish in the Champions League qualification spots. Though it’s the manager who claimed the fourth who wins this gong, Vincenzo Montella for forging a cohesive, fluent Fiorentina.

His midfield of David Pizarro, Borja Valero and Alberto Aquilani were all transformed from stalling careers to providing the elegant backbone to La Viola, providing some of the most entertaining football in the division.

Stevan Jovetic and Adem Ljajic were excellent in attack, spearheading Montella’s 3-5-2 to a higher finish than the richer, more illustrious Inter Milan, Roma and Lazio.

 

Written by Adam Gray

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Inter Milan: Why Mazzarri could have been a wise man moving to the Nerazzurri

  By O-Posts Team | June 1, 2013 - 21:29 | , , ,
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On the 25th March last year, Claudio Ranieri was leading Inter Milan to a run of 2 wins in 13 matches and a 2-0 defeat to Juventus proved the final straw for club president Massimo Moratti. The day before Ranieri’s dismissal, Andrea Stramaccioni was leading Inter’s young crop to the championship of the inaugural Next Gen series, convincing Moratti that he was the man to oversee the transition from a tired squad still influenced heavily by the hangover from the treble-winning year of 2010, to a fresher, hungrier generation.

A season later and Moratti has sacked Stramaccioni after another year of frustration in which Inter finished ninth, 33 points behind Serie A champions Juventus. An injury crisis of bizarre proportions, hitting 17 players in total, saw the Nerazzuri fall from Champions League contention in January to the ignominy of mid-table in the second-half of the season.

Moratti, in his endless search for the revival of success, wasn’t buying the excuses and decided to make Stramaccioni his fifth managerial casualty since Jose Mourinho departed three years ago. The Italian oil tycoon has turned to Walter Mazzarri, having just called time on his successful four year reign at Napoli, in the hope he can turn Inter back on an upward curve. In Naples, he inherited a bottom-half Serie A side and transformed them into Champions League qualifiers, perhaps it is this record of turning mediocrity into sustained success that has appealed to Moratti.

But what has appealed to Mazzarri? Napoli had finished second and had just posted a financial profit for the sixth straight year. Aurelio De Laurentiis, Napoli’s owner, was unmoving in his support for the coach, yet Mazzarri has found a declining Inter, with a hire-and-fire regime in full effect and without the promise of European football for next term, a more attractive prospect.

Maybe it is because Inter are better placed to fight for trophies than Napoli and casting aside their respective league finishes of last season, it is not such an outlandish claim. Last November, it was Inter who ended Juve’s long-standing unbeaten Serie A run under Antonio Conte with a 1-3 win in Turin which moved them within a point of the Old Lady.

From that moment, disaster struck as Stramaccioni won only 7 of his remaining 27 matches as the dramatic injury curse set-in. Possibly, Mazzarri has seen the gross medical misfortune as more damaging to Inter’s challenge than any underlying squad malaise. He has already insisted on bringing the players back from their summer break two days earlier so they can work on their fitness with his conditioning coach Giuseppe Prondelli, whom he has brought with him from Napoli.

Tactics will also be an issue, with Stramaccioni failing to settle on one particular system and causing confusion as he shuffled between 3-4-3, 4-3-3 and 4-3-1-2, Mazzarri will likely to install the consistency of his 3-5-1-1 which served him so well at the San Paolo. It is no coincidence that his first transfer target as he arrives at the San Siro is rumoured to be Colombian wing-back Camilo Zuniga who served him so well at Napoli, opposite the right-sided Christian Maggio.

The spine of Mazzarri’s side is already in place with Andrea Ranocchia having started to show his potential at the back, behind a solid, experienced midfield duo of Esteban Cambiasso and Walter Gargano, with whom Inter have a “gentleman’s agreement” to sign permanently after a one-year loan spell.

A blow will surely come in the form of the evergreen captain Javier Zanetti finally having to call it a day at the age of 39 following a long-term leg injury, though Joel Obi, Samuele Longo, Marco Benassi and Ibrahma Mbaye have all suggested there is much promise in Inter’s next generation. Keeping hold of Freddy Guarin should be a priority of Mazzarri’s, having been a rare shining light in Inter’s disappointing season in attacking midfield, he will fit into a similar role in which Mazzarri produced excellent form from Marek Hamsik at Napoli.

The 51 year old manager seems well-placed to deliver continuity and possible success to Inter, though it remains to be seen just how patient Moratti will be with his new coach. The move from Napoli to Inter, at this moment in time, seems like regression but for Mazzarri it may be a very astute decision.

Injuries were the flaw of Strammacioni, find a solution to that and Mazzarri may finally give Moratti just what he is looking for.

 

Written by Adam Gray

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Napoli: Mazzarri’s exit ushers in era of change at the Partenopei

  By O-Posts Team | May 21, 2013 - 20:01 | , , ,
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After the curtain fell on the 2012/2013 Serie A season, it also fell signified the final act of Walter Mazzari at Napoli, revealing in the aftermath of a 2-1 defeat to AS Roma that suspicions he would end his four year spell at the San Paolo were true. The 51 year old coach will quit with his future plans as uncertain as that of the club he has just left behind.

Two days later and Aurelio De Laurentiis, Napoli’s film-maker owner, has publicly revealed that Manchester City are in talks to sign Edinson Cavani, the shining diamond of the club’s recent resurgence, scorer of 78 goals in 104 games since his move from Palermo in 2010.

The Uruguayan was at the forefront of the “Holy Trinity”, the attacking triumvirate, alongside Marek Hamsik and Ezequiel Lavezzi, that led Napoli to the Champions League in 2011. Lavezzi left for PSG last summer after a year of regression, they finished fifth, but Mazzarri managed to transform fortunes once more this season, guiding the Partenopei an automatic return to Europe’s premier competition through a runners-up spot in Serie A.

Mazzarri has been non-committal on his future for the duration of the season with his contract due to expire in the summer, but how his players have remained motivated to deliver success despite the unrest is testament to the abilities of the outgoing coach. There has been a 17 point improvement on last season as they finished second despite issues over strength in depth of the squad, only 13 players have started over 10 times for Napoli this term.

That has been largely down to the potent form of Cavani, scorer of 36 goals from 41 games despite suffering from an uncharacteristic goal-drought stretching 8 matches in the midst of the campaign. There was no coincidence in the fact Napoli went on a seven game winless run in the midst of El Matador’s goalless spell, his immaculate physique and powerful ability imperative to Napoli’s fortunes.

That he will be a monumental absence to the future of the club was best indicated by De Laurentiis’s desperation to tie his striker down to a six-year deal earlier in the season, in which he installed a £63 million buy-out clause. “I do not need the money, I need Cavani” he said.

There is a sense however, that the 26 year old is due to move on. In January, the gap between Napoli and Juventus at the top of the table was just 3 points and Cavani was targeting the end of Naples’ 23 year wait for a third Scudetto. The Uruguayan desperately wanted to win something during his time at the San Paolo and his three years has only reaped last year’s Coppa Italia.

Despite cautious ownership, recent accounts have revealed that Napoli are in the black for the 6th year running, ambition can often outweigh boardroom prudence and it has dictated Cavani and Mazzarri, sadly, should move on to realise it.

For Mazzarri’s successor, Napoli remain an attractive proposition. Threatened with the tribulation of losing Lavezzi and midfield enforcer Walter Gargano in the summer, the likes of Valon Behrami and Alessandro Gamberini were bought in, as well as Portuguese defender Rolando on loan from Porto. Mazzarri’s specialist 3-4-1-2 can be difficult to adapt to and that is what some of the players in their debut year have found.

In attack, Cavani’s goal-scoring burden hasn’t been eased by the struggling Goran Pandev or the extremely raw 21 year old Lorenzo Insigne. Gokhan Inler has perhaps suffered from burn-out in midfield, starting the season well but suffering from patchy form in the second half of the campaign.

However, with 73 goals scored, the most in the league, and a tally of 36 against giving them the second meanest defensive record, there is a righteous thought that Mazzarri is leaving behind an able squad that will only improve should De Laurentiis, as expected he will do, back his new man with sufficient finances.

Other than Cavani, the new man shouldn’t face too much disruption to his playing squad, Marek Hamsik, the gifted 25 year old playmaker who has laid on 14 goals for his teammates as well as hitting 11 himself this season, has already announced his desire to stay. Replace Cavani with a quality striker, Manchester City’s discarded Edin Dzeko has been mentioned, and the post-Cavani, post-Mazzarri world will suddenly look a lot brighter.

Replacing the eccentric, chain-smoking coach in the dugout will be a lot harder for De Laurentiis however, from struggling in the bottom half of Serie A under Roberto Donadoni to the Champions League under Mazzarri, the ex-Sampdoria manager turned Napoli into one of Europe’s most entertaining clubs along the way. His system, a modified 3-5-2, was highly innovative and centred around a dangerous counter-attack.

One will hope his presence remains in football as he moves on from Naples, a city that boasts a wealth of spectacular architecture. Now it is time for its club to rebuild again, without their revolutionary coach and ruthless striker.

 

Written by Adam Gray

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Javier Zanetti: Is it the end for ‘Il Trattore’, football’s endless narrative?

  By O-Posts Team | May 2, 2013 - 15:04 | , , ,
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Playing until 39 years of age would be an achievement for most ordinary football players, let alone suffering a serious injury at that archaic age and still expecting to make a comeback. Then again, Javier Zanetti is no ordinary footballer. Or at least according to former Argentina defender Roberto Ayala, who reacted to his former teammate’s injury by allaying fears it may force a premature conclusion, “no doubt he will come back and continue his career normally” he said.

It says something of the resilience of the man that a possible return from a ruptured Achilles’ tendon, suffered in the 14th minute of Inter’s 1-0 loss to Palermo on Sunday night, is even being mooted. “I had to change tyres after so many miles” said Zanetti upon leaving a hospital in Pavia on Monday evening, using the pit-stop metaphor like it was nothing to an indestructible midfielder who had ticked the dial over to 1,101 professional appearances before injury struck.

It was at the very same ground two years earlier in which Zanetti had suffered breathing problems, only to insist on playing on before fainting in the dressing room after the final whistle. It looked like he may have needed an operation, but the Argentinean soldiered on, leading Inter to a “mini-treble” that year of the Italian Super Cup, the Club World Cup and Coppa Italia.

They were just three medals of an illustrious career that has yielded 16 trophies with Inter during a spell  that has now meandered into an eighteenth year since moving from Banfield in 1995. His honour roll includes 5 Serie A titles, 4 Coppa Italias, 1 Champions League and 1 UEFA Cup amongst a series of minor trophies. Zanetti may not be the most decorated player in the game but few can match his longevity and remarkable loyalty, traits that saw him win the ‘Loyalty and Critics’ choice award in 2013.

It is an astounding record of personal achievement and endurance that he has featured in 845 of the 938 matches Inter have played since Zanetti joined them in the mid-90s, registering an appearance record of 90%. Between October 2006 and April 2010, Zanetti, known endearingly as “Pupi” in his native Argentina, made a record 137 consecutive appearances, only to have the remarkable stopped by reaching the yellow card limit.

During Zanetti’s time in Milan, Inter have passed through 20 managers and each one has found the Argentinean’s unrelenting professionalism and continual devotion impossible to ignore. Every supposed new dawn at Internazionale over the past two decades has been characterised by Zanetti’s diligence on the right, using his experience to defend solidly as well as use his relentless energy and evergreen legs to launch lung-busting runs from his usual withdrawn positioning on the right-side. It was slightly ironic to see Zanetti’s downfall on Sunday originate from one such run, he was shaping up to deliver a cross before his leg gave way and he was forced to signal to the bench, pain etched on his face.

Andrea Stramaccioni’s reaction was suggestive of the standing and reputation his Argentine midfielder still demands at the club. Stramaccioni, winner of the 2011 Next-Gen series as Inter’s youth coach has tried to usher in a younger generation with the likes of Ricardo Alvarez, Mateo Kovacic and Ezequiel Schelotto, yet Zanetti has played 40 times this season as the manager has found his wisdom and experience too important to ignore.

“To lose someone like him is an awful blow” he said, “because in such a difficult moment the value of someone like Zanetti to the team is incredible.”

Stramaccioni was in no disillusion about the seriousness of Zanetti’s injury and what it meant to his side but neither was the player when it came to the prospect of making a recovery. “My career isn’t over” said the midfielder, “my goal is to come back stronger than before and I believe I’ll overcome this too”. It was an unequivocal response to the most legitimate of doubts that this injury, ruling Zanetti out for six to eight months, just four short of his 40th birthday, just maybe, could finish him off.

That is not according him or even Ayala, who went on to say “this injury is not going to affect anything” when pressed on his fellow Argentine international. It maybe an outrageous claim, but there are few who would dispute the possibility of Zanetti making a return to try and overhaul Paolo Maldini’s Serie A appearance record of 647, which the Inter man stands just 45 games shy of.

It is his permanence and strength that has almost become mythological in Italian football, that concedes there will be little doubt Pupi will make the most illogical of returns.

 

Written by Adam Gray

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Serie A: A Preview of this Week’s two Titanic Clashes

  By O-Posts Team | April 14, 2013 - 18:02 | , , , , ,
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Juventus have set the pace in Serie A yet again. The Old Lady of Turin currently hold a 9 point lead over second placed Napoli and could see this increase if results go their way tonight. The Juventini will be looking to get back to winning ways after suffering elimination from the Champions League in the hands of Bayern Munich.

The German club destroyed their Italian counterparts, 4-0 on aggregate (2-0 H&A) to set up a mouth watering, eagerly anticipated, block buster clash with almighty Barcelona in the semis. Lazio on other hand, know that tomorrow’s game is the one of the last few opportunities to secure qualification to the next season’s Champions League.

Anything less than 3 points tonight and things will become very, very delicate. A.C Milan are one of the most in-form teams in the Italian League and it is no surprise that they have maintained third place for a long time now.

Victory over 2nd placed Napoli will take the Berlusconi owned outfit to within one point of tonight’s opponents and a chance to claim 2nd place in the next couple of weeks.

 

A.C MILAN-NAPOLI

The Milanese have won 4 and drawn of their last 5 Serie games and lie third in the League standings, four points behind 2nd placed Napoli. This would have been inconceivable at the beginning of the season with poor result after poor result coming for the 2011 Italian Champions. Allegri was on brink of a sack and things were going from bad to worse.

However, the ship has steadied ever since and it is a different Rossoneri now. The purchase of Mario Balotelli coupled with the rise to prominence of ‘Faraone’ Shaarawy has been very crucial to the Milan resurgence. El Shaarawy has carried the team all on his way at various times this season. The Egyptian-Italian’s phenomenal form has seen him earn caps with the Azzurri.

Today’s opponents, Napoli, also possess some of the deadliest footballers in Serie A. It is no accident that they sit a place ahead of Milan and still harbour the ambition of winning the Scudetto despite the 9-point lead Juventus have.

The Neapolitans, who have won three of their last 5 games, know that a win over the red and black will all but ensure 2nd place is theirs to lose. Edinson Cavani leads the scorers chart with 22 goals already this season. This means that two Uruguayans comfortably sit atop the marksmen list of two of Europe’s best leagues (England and Italy). He went scoreless for some time, but has come back strong to bang in the goals as he so regularly does.

Marek Hamsik provides the needed creativity from attacking midfield and chips in with some vital goals. Milan know all about these two guys. Stopping them tonight will not be a piece of cake.

Allegri must come to terms with the fact that ‘bad boy’ Mario will not be available for the next 3 games after he was suspended for collecting his 5th yellow card and insulting match officials in Florence. He is also set to face the disciplinary committee of his club for allegations of smoking on the train to the Artenio Franchi.

Consequently, ‘II Pazzo’ will lead the line with El Shaarawy and teenager, M’baye Niang. The EL-BA-NI partnership will have to wait until Mario returns from suspension.

Ricco Montolivo has been exceptional in the last month or so. The midfield pearl’s displays have caught the eye. A superb one again today and Milan could be singing the glory song.

 

PROBABLE LINEUPS

Milan:

Abbiati, Abate, Zapata, Mexes, Constant, Montolivo, Boateng, Flamini, Niang, Pazzini, El Shaarawy

The absence of Balotelli is a huge loss for Milan. Stephan El Shaarawy has not scored since the end of January. Well, Pazzini has goals in him.

 

Napoli:

De Sanctis, Campagnaro, Cannavaro, Britos, Maggio, Behrami, Dzemaili, Zuniga, Hamisk, Pandev, Cavani

Walter Mazzarri’s men use the wing-back system like Juventus. With Maggio and Zuniga marauding down the wings. Swiss duo, Behrami and Dzemaili will take the midfield roles with Hamsik ahead of them. Blerim Dzemaili has scored 4 goals in his last 2 Serie A games. He is a man in form.

The meeting at San Paolo ended all square (2-2).

 

 

LAZIO-JUVENTUS

Prior to midweek, the Laziali and the Bianconeri were Italy’s last two representatives in European Competitions. However, both of them have been thrown out with the Biaconceleste at least earning a creditable 1-1 draw at home to Fenerbahce. The extra motivation will be with the Rome based club.

The 5th placed team have lost three of their last five games. A draw in last weekend’s Rome derby was seen as two points lost. Hernanes has been tremendous for Petkovic’s side this season, but he let himself and Lazio down in that game by missing a penalty and conceding one at the other end that Er Pupone duly dispatched.

Miroslav Klose is back and that is a bonus for the Biancoceleste. His 10 goals before the long layoff helped the Sky Blues to Champions League places. They have since capitulated afterwards. The much travelled Sergio Floccari has deputised at times for the German Legend. It hasn’t been enough nonetheless.

Hernanes has been the shining light all season and bar the 2nd half performance v the Giallorossi last time out, he has rarely put a foot wrong. Federico Marchetti in goal has been one of the Aquile’s most consistent performers. The Italian goalie’s exploits haven’t gone unnoticed by Cesare Prandelli. Only that Gigi Buffon will be very difficult to displace. PSG’s Salvatore Sirigu has found that a futile mission too.

If the Coppa Italia finalists still want to qualify for the UCL, today’s game is a must win.

Juventus are no easy ride for anyone. Well, except you are Bayern Munich. Apart from the German destroyers, no side has been so dominant against the Old Lady since Antonio Conte took over and came back from a 4 month suspension in December.

Tomorrow night against the Biancoceleste, the league leaders have it all to do in order to restore the confidence that was nowhere to be found on Wednesday. Andrea Pirlo will not want to see Bastian Schweinsteiger anytime soon. The German midfielder gained revenge over the Italian master in both legs of the European tie. It was a performance that drew comparisons with some of the very best ever. A virtuoso display of excellence.

Marchisio cut a forlorn figure in both legs and his ineffectiveness when playing against Europe’s finest footballers showed to a great extent. The absence of Giorgio Chiellini is another minus for the Juventini. The defence without him have coped….with him, they are water tight.

Mirko Vucinic and his strike partners were no match for Dante and Danny Van Buyten who effortlessly kept them very quiet. A Cana-Ciani partnership might be weaker on paper, but can put on a similar show. Tonio Candreva is that stunning winger these days. He knows the Old Lady very well, having spent a season there on loan some seasons ago. His form this campaign has been great.

Ogenyi Onazi has shown flashes of what he is capable of, especially in the European stage. A vital squad member who can come in handy at any time.

 

PROBABLE LINEUPS

LAZIO:

Marchetti, Gonzalez, Cana, Ciani, Stankevicius, Candreva, Ledesma, Onazi, Hernanes, Mauri, Klose

The prominent Senad Lulic is suspended for this tie, so Alvaro Gonzalez comes in for him. The return of the imposing Klose is a massive boost for Vladimir Petkovic’s team.

 

JUVENTUS:

Buffon, Peluso, Bonucci, Barzagli, Asamoah, Marchisio, Vidal, Pirlo, Lichtsteiner, Vucinic, Matri

The return of Arturo Vidal and Stephan Lichtsteiner will be music to the ears of Conte. Although Chiellini is out through suspension, the old lady have enough in their arsenal to wreck havoc at the Stadio Olimpico.

Alessandro Matri is set to replace the Quag in attack, while Kwadwo Asamoah at left wing back is an automatic choice when fit.

 

Written by Ohireime Eboreime

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Borja Valero: Former Madrid man enjoying a Florentine Renaissance

  By O-Posts Team | March 27, 2013 - 19:25 | , , ,
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Florence is usually named as the birth place of the Italian renaissance, the rebirth of Italian culture through the medium of literature and art. Reformed after bankruptcy and their subsequent relegation in 2002, and then their flirtations with relegation again last season, it is the city’s football club that are continuing the historic theme of 14th century upheaval.

Fiorentina now sit 4th in Serie A under the guidance of their bright young coach Vincenzo Montella, four points clear of 5th placed Lazio and three points off AC Milan in third in the race for Champions League qualification, the competition which La Viola have not been a part of since 2010, the last season of Cesare Prandelli’s five year reign.

Fiorentina are now on their fourth manager in just over two years after Prandelli departed for the national team and are now looking up. In keeping with the Italian history that is often associated with the revolutionary city of Tuscany, it is a player of great artistry that is driving them back to the top.

Borja Valero’s career also has a touch of the renaissance about it. Released as a 22 year old by Real Madrid after just 2 appearances for his boyhood club, a promising debut year with Real Mallorca led to a move to England with West Bromwich Albion where he experienced relegation from the Premier League within just one year.

He soon returned to Mallorca on loan where he showed his great talent, winning the Don Balon award for best Spanish player in La Liga as Mallorca finished fifth to qualify for the Europa League.

Despite that, Mallorca could not afford to make the move permanent and it was left to Villarreal to offer him a route out of his troubled time in England with another season-long loan in Spain. There, he helped guide the Yellow Submarine to a fourth placed finish before suffering relegation a year later. Valero’s nomadic career that had so far only offered false starts, had to find another home.

Everton offered him a route back into English football but Valero turned it down, glancing instead towards the new era in place at Fiorentina under Montella. The Della Valle family ownership invested heavily in the likes of Alberto Aquilani, David Pizzaro, Matias Fernandez and Valero, who, at the age of 28, has finally seemed to get his stuttering career going in Italy.

In Montella’s 3-5-2 system, Valero sits alongside the defensive reassurance of Pizarro and Brazilian Romulo in a midfield full of technical ability which helps the philosophy of “alla Spagnola”, as Valero himself has called it, full of possession football and short passes. With 29 appearances so far, the ex-Mallorca man has played more games than any other Fiorentina player this season.

Montella was hired on the back of his work at Catania where he got them performing like “little Barcelona” and it is this style of expressive passing and cherishing of the ball that has helped Valero to thrive. Only Andrea Pirlo, at table-topping Juventus, has more assists than Valero’s 9 and after 29 Serie A matches, the Spaniard boasts a passing percentage of 87.7% with a massive 58 chances created.

Valero, in his sub-6ft frame and weighing in at just 73 kg, fits the mould of the stereotypical Spanish playmaker, nimble well-balanced and able to spring away from a congested central area to drive into attacking areas.

He averages 59 passes per game, with Stevan Jovetic and Adam Ljajic thriving off his ability to thread precision through balls, Fiorentina have hit 53 goals this term as a result of the creative quality Montella has packed his midfield with.

Such a productive year has failed to register on the radar of Vincent Del Bosque in the quest to add to the solitary cap he has with Spain, he has been left out of the recent squad to play Finland and France, though that may come down to the extraordinary generation of talent he is competing against.

The illustrious talent role of Xavi, Andres Iniesta, Cesc Fabregas, Sergio Busquets, Santi Cazorla and Xabi Alonso is a difficult line to breach but it will be enough to Valero to see his career finally starting to pick up momentum in a country where Spanish players have notoriously struggled.

Ivan De La Pena, Ivan Helguera, Gaizka Mendieta, Cesar Gomez and Javi Moreno have all headed to Italy and failed, Valero however, just like the influence of Da Vinci and co. back in the mid 1400s, has graced Florence with his Iberian brand of invention and artistry to become a revolutionary success.

At 28, with a career that has suffered relegations and upheaval just when it is threatening to achieve the promise he showed in his early 20′s at Mallorca, Valero’s time is coming just as he hits his peak.

Under Montella and his bright brand of creative, passing football, he could yet achieve success at the very top.

 

Written by Adam Gray

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Infographic: 2012/13 Serie A in Numbers

  By O-Posts Team | December 25, 2012 - 18:10 | , , , , , ,
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At PowerTable, we are always looking for new and innovative ways to present football data to fans of the beautiful game. We have therefore come up with our Serie A infographic which is a visual way of showing random data, stats and facts to do with the Italian football season so far.

For instance, how many different goalscorers has there been?  Who has made the most passes?  Who is the oldest player? Which team has scored the most goals in away games?  We think we’ve produced the best football infographic on the Serie A ever created, what do you think?

 

 

Website: www.powertablesports.com
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Serie A: The Battle For This Season’s Scudetto

  By O-Posts Team | November 13, 2012 - 21:58 | , ,
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12 weeks into the Serie A campaign, we see the defending champions Juventus on top of the League table. We can also see that this season there will be 5 teams in for the fight: Juventus, Inter, Napoli, Lazio and Fiorentina.

Let’s start off with Juventus, the defending champions look like the team to beat so far this year, or do they? Juventus had their 49 undefeated game streak snapped when Inter went into Torino and took all 3 points in a 3-1 win. So are they really the team everyone thinks they are? No, Juventus are 10-1-1 but having only played 2 strong teams, Napoli which they managed to take all 3 points, and Inter – you can’t really say they are the strongest side.

With only 6 points in Champions League, Juventus can see themselves knocked out of the competition if they don’t pull up their socks. On to Inter, for me the strongest side in Serie A so far, I say this because yes they are 9-0-3, but Inter are now a better side from the beginning of the season. With all the injuries and “bad calls” you can’t really say Inter deserved to lose any game. Inter clinched a spot in the Europa League with 2 games left and are now tied for first in Group H with 10 points. If Inter stay healthy and motivated then I believe they have the strongest side and a good chance to win their 19th Scudetto.

Now on to Napoli; for me Napoli isn’t a contender for the Scudetto because they always seem to start off well, and then choke in the end. With a lot of talk in this upcoming transfer window some star players could be departing the club; Cavani and Hamsik seem to be the most talked about of leaving in January. If true, Napoli will surely go down in the standings.

Lazio, we are starting to see a very strong Lazio side, Lazio may not be a Scudetto contender yet, but in the near future they will be on top of Serie A. Lazio are starting to build a very strong side, with Klose and Hernanes in the squad, they need a couple more players to become a real power house in Serie A.

Lastly there’s Fiorentina, a real underdog for the Scudetto. With young talent on this Fiorentina side it’s no surprise they are up in the standings. Stefan Jovetic is the future of this team, along with other young players. I wouldn’t be surprised if Fiorentina do win something this year, I believe this team could potentially win Coppa Italia and even finish with a Champions League spot.

I believe this is how the top 6 will finish come the end of the season.

1. Inter Milan (19th Scudetto)
2. Fiorentina (Champions League)
3. Juventus (Champions League)
4. Lazio (Europa League)
5. Napoli (Europa League)
6. Roma (Europa League)

 

Written by Peter Lodico

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Gian Piero Gasperini: A Roller Coaster of a Career

  By O-Posts Team | September 26, 2012 - 12:53 | , , , ,
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Gian Piero Gasperini

The name Gian Piero Gasperini returns to the football world, the last time the name was heard wasn’t really for the best reasons, but instead, a synonym of critics and insults.

For those who don’t remember, he was THAT Inter manager who was sacked with only five matches played thanks to his terrible results while on charge. Of those five games, he lost four; including Champions League fixtures, the Supercoppa Italiana vs rivals Milan and of course, Serie A encounters.

Inter president Massimo Moratti couldn’t be more embarrassed with such poor results and fired him after a scandalous 3-1 loss against a newly promoted team at the time, Novara. Gasperini left through the back door and his name wasn’t heard until these last few days, when he was appointed as Palermo manager, a team which he played in his footballing days and commends huge respect. He comes to replace Giuseppe Sannino, who achieved only one point with three Serie A matches played.

Gasperini’s career as a manager is not all nightmares, in fact, his move to Inter is the sore stain of a career filled up of great milestones. He managed Crotone in 2003, where he managed to promote the team to Serie B and maintained there position in his presence, and then, Genoa, oh sweet Genoa…

His move to the Rossoblu is what makes the name Gian Piero Gasperini ring a few bells on football pundits all around the world. He took charge, promoted them into Serie A in 2006, and Genoa all of a sudden, in 2008 became a team to fight for the Scudetto.

Gasperini was nothing without his Genoa, and Genoa was nothing without his Gasperini…when these two parted ways, they went downhill, both of them. Genoa became that team who fighted the Scudetto to the team who miraculously saved from not relegating into Serie B and Gasperini…we all know the story.

Gasperini became notorious in Genoa for his signings and his style of football, he brought players at the time, who funnily enough, play now at Inter, Diego Milito & Rodrigo Palacio. Thiago Motta passed through Gasperini’s football too, forming up, attractive football which even lead to bigger things, including Europa League participations and historic records.

In 2008-2009, Genoa reached 5th place in Serie A, the highest position ever reached in Genoa’s history, even Rossublu’s president, Enrico Preziosi, nicknamed Gasperini as “Gasperson”, claiming he was Genoa’s own Alex Ferguson.

Today, he must be somewhere around Palermo trying to get his name back. It’s amazing how one false move destroyed almost everything he had picked up so far- his debut on Sunday vs Atalanta, wasn’t the most encouraging thing to see for a Rossanero fan. They pushed through to win the game, but Atalanta stole the match with mere guts and desire, winning the match 1-0.

I think the players are there and his talent as a manager should be around too, but two things will be crucial for him if he wants to return- time and patience.

Hopefully when he goes full on as a Palermo manager, he could bring some players to reinforce his style of football, and get the name Gian Piero Gasperini back into the game as his old glory days in Genoa.

 

Written by Andres Hernandez

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Peanut Butter and Calcio: The Rossoneri’s disappointing start continues

  By O-Posts Team | September 23, 2012 - 21:44 | , , ,
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Allegri vs Udinese

Allegri… on the verge of getting sacked?

This weeks installment of Serie A was a low scoring affair all around however teams made the most of it as Juventus, Udinese, Atalanta, Genoa and Siena were the only teams that secured themselves all 3 points this round.

Round 4 of Serie A started off as Parma hosted Fiorentina in a relatively entertaining match up. Both Fiorentina and Parma were awarded penalties in the second half which we’re both kept out of the net until the dying seconds of injury time when the ref pointed to the spot in Parmas favor giving them the last chance of the game to tie it, and that’s exactly what they did. Midfielder J.Valdés stepped up for Parma and netted their only goal of the game ensuring that both Fiorentina and Parma would have to settle for 1 point each.

Saturdays second game saw current Serie A Champions Juventus play host to Chievo. Juventus started off slowly but finally broke through and made sure that they would come away with all 3 points as Fabio Quagliarella found the back of the net twice in a span of 5 minutes.

Many thought that Juventus would have trouble with Chievo when the manager rested key players like Andrea Pirlo, Andrea Barzagli and Sebastian Giovinco due to their mid week Champions League clash with European champions Chelsea. Juventus played well without these players but at times it was a little slippery. Juventus now unbeaten in 43 Serie A games and are alone at the top of the table with a record of 4-0-0.

Majority of sundays games were played to ties when Sampdoria – Torino tied 1-1, Bologna – Pescara tied 2-2 and Catania and Napoli shared points in a goalless game that almost saw Catania steal all three points near the end of the game.

Atalanta defeated Sicilian side Palermo in the dying seconds of their clash when Raimondi scored in the 88th minute stunning Palermo and giving them something to think about on their ride home. Cagliari and Romas game was postponed as Cagliaris stadium was ruled unsafe for spectators – no makeup date has been set as of today.

Lazio vs Genoa finished 1-0 in Genoa’s favor with Marco Borriello scoring the only goal in that game. In my opinion it should have been Lazio who took the win as for the majority of the game it was Lazio who was putting pressure towards the Genoa goal. Genoa goalie Stephan Frey had a very good game and deserved his clean sheet today.

Moving onto Milan vs Udinese where troubled Milan were looking to settle for nothing less than all 3 points because of their horrendous 1-0-2 start to the Season. There was a lot of talk speculating that if Milan were to lose that Massimo Allegri , Milans manager would be sacked and replaced with another manager who many speculate could be Milan and Italian football legend Pippo Inzhagi.

Udinese took the lead in the 40th minute when Ranegie found the back of the net. Hitting back was Stephan El Shaarawy who tied the game in the 50th minute giving Milan fans some hope. Udinese re-took the lead in the 68th minute and who else but skipper Antonio Di Natale through a spot kick. Milan players Zapata and Kevin Price Boateng were both sent off.

Milan were unable to find another goal giving Udinese the win and with Milans troubles continuing they now fall to 15th place in the table and 1-0-3 for the season.

Other Milan club, Inter Milan hosted Siena in the San Siro where fans were expecting Inter to walk all over Siena but in retrospective got totally the opposite of what they were expecting.

Despite Inter playing what seemed to be an amazing game could not find the back of the net as Siena went up 1-0, and never looked back when Vergassola scored in the 73rd minute. Inter fans encouraged their team to push for a equalizer but in the 88th minute Siena put the final nail in Inters coffin as Valiani scored the second and final goal for Siena.

 

September 26,2012, Week 5 Serie A:

Catania – Atalanta
Chievo – Inter
Fiorentina – Juventus
Genoa – Parma
Ac Milan – Cagliari
Napoli – Lazio
Pescara – Palermo
As Roma – Sampdoria
Siena – Bologna
Torino – Udinese

 

Serie A Week 4 Player of The Week:

Fabio Quagliarella (Juve) – 2 Goals ( vs Chievo )

 

Serie A Week 4 Flop Player Of The Week:

Stephan Jovetic (Fio) – 0 Goals ( vs Parma)

 

Predictions Week 5:

Catania – Atalanta 1-1
Chievo – Inter 2-1
Fiorentina – Juventus 0-3
Genoa – Parma 1-0
AC Milan – Cagliari 0-3
Napoli – Lazio 0-0
Pescara – Palermo 0-2
AS Roma – Sampdoria 2-2
Siena – Bologna 1-0
Torino – Udinese 1-3

 

Standings:

Juventus 12, Napoli 10, Lazio 9, Sampdoria 9, Fiorentina 7, Inter 6, Genoa 6, Atalanta 5, Catania 5, Roma 4, Torino 4, Parma 4, Udinese 4, Bologna 4, Milan 3, Chievo 3, Cagliari 2, Pescara 1, Palermo 1, Siena -1

 

Written by Matteo

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