A whole new year, a whole new beginning. This is true especially for Serie A, Srikanth Iyer explores deep into the anxious Italian minds…
Birth of new icons.
Kaka is gone. Ibra is gone. Figo, Maldini, Nedved have retired. Suddenly Calcioworld finds itself without five of its biggest players. It’ll be intriguing to see who replaces them.
For Milan it’s likely to be another Brazilian. Pato is already the growing fan-favourite after proving his quality with alarmingly good goals to match ratio. He’s completely justified the huge price tag at such a young age. If this were England, where younger players get first-team opportunities very early, he’d already be a Rooney. Will the new icon be Ronaldinho? It’s clear that Milan don’t plan to spend a lot of the ‘Ricky Money’. Huntelaar was a desperate third-choice acquisition. Berlusconi has told Leonardo to make do with the squad he has and revitalized the post-prime legs of the funny looking Brazilian. He’s only 29 after all! Some believe that come transfer season end a major coup will be pulled by Uncle Fester Galliani. After all, having fans despise you is dangerous, especially in Italy!!
Ibra became cappocannoniere last season, with 25 goals. To be frank, many of his goals were the saving grace for the strong Inter side. However, his departure might prove to be a blessing for Inter, much like Arsenal post Henry who proved to be very effective themselves. Diego Milito whose exploits in Real Zaragoza and his home town Genoa proved his brazen target man abilities. He scored 20 plus last season and was a major lynchpin in Genoa’s squad. With Super Striker Samuel Eto coming in along with wads of cash, the icon status is ready to be filled in on this side of the San Siro.
With a two tower attack, Inter will rely heavily on the midfield playmakers and wingers but will also provide the squad with a lot more variations without either of them being the dominant form unlike last year. Don’t forget Javier Zanetti who’s already the everlasting inspiration in the team with the young and brash Balotelli and young full-back Santon who are clearly the future of the Italian national team.
Is Diego the missing ingredient that will make the pot pouri that is Juventus palatable? Their methodical style ever since the Capello era has been crying out for an inspirational playmaker. Camoranesi served as their best creative player but turned out far too injury prone. Del Piero was thus their only choice. But it is difficult to rely on 34 year old legs day in and day out. Has the much courted Diego filled this void? He’s already a fan favorite in Turin. Giovinco is the” Del Piero heir” in the squad and is likely to supplement Pinturicchio and Buffon as the charismatic emblem of the Bianconeri.
Cassano too has the rare chance to seal himself with the Sampdoria hearts. Its time he emulated what Totti did in Roma by leading the Blucerchiati squad to greater heights. If he continues his purple streak from last season, he’ll be likely to be the icon of Sampdoria, however, he is most likely to be sold off for a hefty price considering Sampdoria’s low turnover.
Fall of Roma and the Rise of Genoa?
Aquilani going to Liverpool may not be as bad as it seems for the Giallorossi. The injury prone midfielder never really exploded into the abundance of talent he really is and always seemed to be able to give more than he did. The club was already used to not counting on him being fit most of the times. With all the banter of “will the Sensi sell Roma? Will they not?” the transfer campaign has gone dry this pre-season. The shrewd signing of Marco Motta will add quality to the full backs. The Italy under 21 Captain is definitely one to look out for in the future.
Genoa over achieved last year with their 5th place finish after being promoted just 2 years prior. They had a brilliant transfer campaign last time around and the same can be said this year too. They have spent a total of 60 Million Euros this transfer season! That is right! But their spending was far from reckless. A model that should be learned from and replicated by all clubs with less financial might, the historically successful club (They have won 9 Scudetto, albeit ages ago.) have brought in the right mixture of young yet-to-mature bright prospects and great player in the dusk of their career. Selling off Diego Milito and Thiago Motta might seem a foolhardy move in first sight. But, Marco Amelia from Palermo; Spanish midfielder Alberto Zapater from Real Zaragoza for a fee of €4.5m; Argentinean forward Rodrigo Palacio from Boca Juniors for a fee of €8m; Midfielder Francesco Bolzoni from Inter Milan; Forward Robert Acquafresca from Inter Milan; French midfielder Houssine Kharja from Siena; Argentinean forward Hernan Crespo on a free transfer from Inter Milan; Forward Sergio Floccari from Atalanta Bergamo; I could go on and on with my mouth very watery with anticipation. The quality is certainly there. It’s just a matter of gelling in, a seemingly easy step but frequently underestimated by fans. Their attacking style proved really popular and Gasperini’s squad will now participate in the Europa League as well, which will truly put to test the squad depth, wherein lies the real challenge.
The explosion of new talents
A phenomenon much anticipated in Italy each year. While Aquilani and Giovinco are constantly expected to bring out their true potential each season, neither doing so either due to injuries or lack of first team chances. But each year we find new players having made the grade expectedly or unexpectedly. Floccari’s late bloom was reminiscent of Luca Toni while Balotelli and Pato were long expected to shine. Some like Montolivo or Marchisio continue to underperform but that doesn’t dampen the hopes of their coaches and fans.
Some come out as surprise, like Santon who replaced Maxwell in the first team permanently, leading the left back to join Barca, the European Champions!
Some clubs such as Fiorentina and Napoli have in recent history relied heavily on such young prospects in a bid to compete with the Big Three. The trend has continued this year with Parma joining in this policy as well. Of course, not all prospects mature to greatness, but when they do, you find the club suddenly catapulted into European contention and a far better future.
The most talked about young signing this year is 20 year old playmaker Javier Pastore from Huracan, for a hefty fee of 10 million Euros! He is seen as the new Kaka in many quarters and is possibly the missing link to Palermo’s Champion’s League chances this year.
Will Lazio implode this year?
Will the historically strong club break apart with in-squad dissidents? They beat Inter to win the Italian Super Cup in Peking this season. But is that merely a cloak on the internal struggles the coach faces. With star players such as Goran Pandev, Di Silvestri and Christian Ledesma desperate to jump ship, it’s more of a fight staying intact than bringing in better additions. While President Lotito’s cautious transfer policy and salary cap has been unpopular with fans and players, there is no doubt that it makes the clubs future much more secure. While Lazio is back as a top ten club with a chance to revisit glory days of 2001 which had the likes of Salas, Nedved, Thuram, Cannavaro and Crespo, this new instability threatens to throw away all the good work.
With match day finally arrived, all preseasons will be put to test. Juventus and Napoli have done well these two months while Milan has been dreary to say the least. But if the Italian mentality is anything to go by, friendlies are the worst gauge of the things to come.
Kaka is gone. Ibra is gone. Figo, Maldini, Nedved have retired. Suddenly Calcioworld finds itself without five of its biggest players. It’ll be intriguing to see who replaces them.
For Milan it’s likely to be another Brazilian. Pato is already the growing fan-favourite after proving his quality with alarmingly good goals to match ratio. He’s completely justified the huge price tag at such a young age. If this were England, where younger players get first-team opportunities very early, he’d already be a Rooney. Will the new icon be Ronaldinho? It’s clear that Milan don’t plan to spend a lot of the ‘Ricky Money’. Huntelaar was a desperate third-choice acquisition. Berlusconi has told Leonardo to make do with the squad he has and revitalized the post-prime legs of the funny looking Brazilian. He’s only 29 after all! Some believe that come transfer season end a major coup will be pulled by Uncle Fester Galliani. After all, having fans despise you is dangerous, especially in Italy!!Ibra became cappocannoniere last season, with 25 goals. To be frank, many of his goals were the saving grace for the strong Inter side. However, his departure might prove to be a blessing for Inter, much like Arsenal post Henry who proved to be very effective themselves. Diego Milito whose exploits in Real Zaragoza and his home town Genoa proved his brazen target man abilities. He scored 20 plus last season and was a major lynchpin in Genoa’s squad. With Super Striker Samuel Eto coming in along with wads of cash, the icon status is ready to be filled in on this side of the San Siro.
With a two tower attack, Inter will rely heavily on the midfield playmakers and wingers but will also provide the squad with a lot more variations without either of them being the dominant form unlike last year. Don’t forget Javier Zanetti who’s already the everlasting inspiration in the team with the young and brash Balotelli and young full-back Santon who are clearly the future of the Italian national team.
Is Diego the missing ingredient that will make the pot pouri that is Juventus palatable? Their methodical style ever since the Capello era has been crying out for an inspirational playmaker. Camoranesi served as their best creative player but turned out far too injury prone. Del Piero was thus their only choice. But it is difficult to rely on 34 year old legs day in and day out. Has the much courted Diego filled this void? He’s already a fan favorite in Turin. Giovinco is the” Del Piero heir” in the squad and is likely to supplement Pinturicchio and Buffon as the charismatic emblem of the Bianconeri.
Cassano too has the rare chance to seal himself with the Sampdoria hearts. Its time he emulated what Totti did in Roma by leading the Blucerchiati squad to greater heights. If he continues his purple streak from last season, he’ll be likely to be the icon of Sampdoria, however, he is most likely to be sold off for a hefty price considering Sampdoria’s low turnover.
Fall of Roma and the Rise of Genoa?
Aquilani going to Liverpool may not be as bad as it seems for the Giallorossi. The injury prone midfielder never really exploded into the abundance of talent he really is and always seemed to be able to give more than he did. The club was already used to not counting on him being fit most of the times. With all the banter of “will the Sensi sell Roma? Will they not?” the transfer campaign has gone dry this pre-season. The shrewd signing of Marco Motta will add quality to the full backs. The Italy under 21 Captain is definitely one to look out for in the future.
Genoa over achieved last year with their 5th place finish after being promoted just 2 years prior. They had a brilliant transfer campaign last time around and the same can be said this year too. They have spent a total of 60 Million Euros this transfer season! That is right! But their spending was far from reckless. A model that should be learned from and replicated by all clubs with less financial might, the historically successful club (They have won 9 Scudetto, albeit ages ago.) have brought in the right mixture of young yet-to-mature bright prospects and great player in the dusk of their career. Selling off Diego Milito and Thiago Motta might seem a foolhardy move in first sight. But, Marco Amelia from Palermo; Spanish midfielder Alberto Zapater from Real Zaragoza for a fee of €4.5m; Argentinean forward Rodrigo Palacio from Boca Juniors for a fee of €8m; Midfielder Francesco Bolzoni from Inter Milan; Forward Robert Acquafresca from Inter Milan; French midfielder Houssine Kharja from Siena; Argentinean forward Hernan Crespo on a free transfer from Inter Milan; Forward Sergio Floccari from Atalanta Bergamo; I could go on and on with my mouth very watery with anticipation. The quality is certainly there. It’s just a matter of gelling in, a seemingly easy step but frequently underestimated by fans. Their attacking style proved really popular and Gasperini’s squad will now participate in the Europa League as well, which will truly put to test the squad depth, wherein lies the real challenge.
The explosion of new talents
A phenomenon much anticipated in Italy each year. While Aquilani and Giovinco are constantly expected to bring out their true potential each season, neither doing so either due to injuries or lack of first team chances. But each year we find new players having made the grade expectedly or unexpectedly. Floccari’s late bloom was reminiscent of Luca Toni while Balotelli and Pato were long expected to shine. Some like Montolivo or Marchisio continue to underperform but that doesn’t dampen the hopes of their coaches and fans.
Some come out as surprise, like Santon who replaced Maxwell in the first team permanently, leading the left back to join Barca, the European Champions!
Some clubs such as Fiorentina and Napoli have in recent history relied heavily on such young prospects in a bid to compete with the Big Three. The trend has continued this year with Parma joining in this policy as well. Of course, not all prospects mature to greatness, but when they do, you find the club suddenly catapulted into European contention and a far better future.
The most talked about young signing this year is 20 year old playmaker Javier Pastore from Huracan, for a hefty fee of 10 million Euros! He is seen as the new Kaka in many quarters and is possibly the missing link to Palermo’s Champion’s League chances this year.Will Lazio implode this year?
Will the historically strong club break apart with in-squad dissidents? They beat Inter to win the Italian Super Cup in Peking this season. But is that merely a cloak on the internal struggles the coach faces. With star players such as Goran Pandev, Di Silvestri and Christian Ledesma desperate to jump ship, it’s more of a fight staying intact than bringing in better additions. While President Lotito’s cautious transfer policy and salary cap has been unpopular with fans and players, there is no doubt that it makes the clubs future much more secure. While Lazio is back as a top ten club with a chance to revisit glory days of 2001 which had the likes of Salas, Nedved, Thuram, Cannavaro and Crespo, this new instability threatens to throw away all the good work.
With match day finally arrived, all preseasons will be put to test. Juventus and Napoli have done well these two months while Milan has been dreary to say the least. But if the Italian mentality is anything to go by, friendlies are the worst gauge of the things to come.
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