May 24 1981, Bell’Antonio scores v Fiorentina to deliver the 19th Scudetto
Two photos capturing the new section of the Juventus Museum, chronicling 90 years under the Agnelli family
Fabio Capello’s Kings Of Rome
It ended with them besieged by their own supporters who, hungry for souvenirs, preceded to strip their heroes of those famous Giallorossi shirts, shorts, socks, vests, literally anything they could get their hands on to remember the occasion. It was a day they would never forget.
Everything about that sunny afternoon back in June 2001 was almost perfect for AS Roma as they ensured they took the points necessary to guarantee what would eventually prove to be only the third league title in the club’s history. Even the three names on the score-sheet – Francesco Totti, Vincenzo Montella and Gabriel Batistuta – perfectly reflected a season which had seen them lead Serie A from start to finish. It was a campaign that was perhaps the most dominant by AS Roma since they were formed back in 1927.
Read more at InBedWithMaradona.com
Midfielders At The Heart Of Juventus vs Napoli Clash
This Saturday sees the resumption of what is quickly becoming the hottest battle in Serie A as Napoli once again travel north to face off against Juventus, the team who represent everything supporters of the Partenopei despise. Seemingly their entire ethos is to rally against the establishment, painting themselves as outsiders, happy to live in the shadow of Vesuvius but never content to be put into the shade by Italian football’s biggest clubs.
Read more at WhoScored.com
Growing Pains For Milan Pair
“Chaos in Milan. It’s never this bad!” cried the front page of Corriere dello Sport last Monday, reacting to seeing the city’s two clubs both lose the previous weekend. Indeed, before Milan’s midweek win over Cagliari, the pair had combined to take just three points from seven home matches following three draws and four losses, with Milan themselves having already lost three league games this term.
Read more at ESPNFC.com
Brian Clough, Barcelona & Tedious Genius
To those of us who love a good stat, the regular output of various twitter accounts are like manna from heaven, allowing our inner geek to be continually nourished with the wonderful droplets of information dispensed. Whatever the league, player or competition in question, we read it, store it in our memory and then recycle it - incorrectly of course - a number of weeks later when it once more becomes relevant. In recent weeks and months however, a certain number of these stats have begun to be increasingly irritating, largely due to the sheer number of times they are reproduced and quoted.
Read more at ESPNFC.com
Juventus make welcome return to the Champions League
It hasn’t been the easiest of journeys but finally they are back. When the Champions League anthem is played over the Stamford Bridge PA system on Wednesday evening, the eleven men wearing the famous black and white stripes of Juventus will be the first to do so in almost three years.
Indeed, the last time the Turin side played a fixture in Europe’s elite competition was a 4-1 humbling at the hands of Bayern Munich in December of 2010. That loss saw them fail to progress from the group stage, and having been eliminated by Chelsea in the Second Round the previous season, the grand Old Lady of Italian football will be looking to give a better account of herself than anytime in recent history.
Read more at Independent.co.UK
Serie A Focus: It’s NOT All About The Money!
As is now customary, Italian sports daily La Gazzetta dello Sport has published the salary of every player in Serie A. The figures are given in terms of annual salary paid after tax and includes no bonus payments of any kind, allowing the most simplistic of comparisons across the teams, players and nationalities of the leagues players.
Among the breakdowns published by the famous pink paper is a ‘Highest Paid XI’, a fantasy team made up of the best paid player in each position, making an arbitrary selection in terms of formation and personnel. Of course, WhoScored.com has a very similar system when it comes to the ‘Team of the Week’ choices and so – in true off-the-cuff fashion – we have compared the two sides, pitting the big money earners against the Team of the Season (thus far) according to the WhoScored player ratings.
Read more at WhoScored.com
Why did Juventus sign Nicklas Bendtner?
Whether through drunkenness or as part of a publicity stunt he shows off his pants. He’s got a terrible attitude and thinks he’s the greatest striker alive today. These criticisms – plus many others that are unrepeatable here – have reigned down upon Nicklas Bendtner and Juventus since the former Arsenal man joined the Turin giants late last week.
Read more at WhoScored.com
That Watford & Udinese Thing: Reasons To Be Cheerful
In the summer of 1986 Udinese were in trouble. As punishment for their part in ‘Totonero bis’ – a match-fixing scandal which tore through the game and left many of its players and clubs tainted forever – the Friulian club were relegated to the second tier of Italian football. While his arrival may not have had the global impact of Silvio Berlusconi’s landing at Milan some four months earlier, Giampaolo Pozzo’s arrival would prove to be a watershed moment for a club who bear little resemblance to the one he bought 26 years ago.
Read more at InBedWithMaradona.com
Nomads And Icons: A Serie A Story
Daniele De Rossi recently reaffirmed his commitment to home-town club AS Roma, citing the affection shown to him the previous weekend when the Giallorossi played their first friendly of the new season at their Stadio Olimpico home. The 29-year-old midfielder spoke in reverential tones of his love for everything Roman and the deep-seated loyalty he feels for the club and its famous colours.
In rejecting the sustained approaches from Manchester City, De Rossi proved once again that, for footballers, the old ‘there’s no place like home’ adage can resonate as loudly as it does in any other walk of life. Even without home-field advantage, the comfort of familiar surroundings or the adoration of local fans afforded to De Rossi, most players quickly become accustomed to what they forever refer to as ‘their’ club.
Read more at ESPNFC
Serie A’s Week One Analysis: Il verdetto del campo
Italian’s often refer to ‘il verdetto del campo’ (the verdict of the pitch) as the definitive judge of players, teams and coaches and, by using the games of the opening weekend a number of points become apparent. Yes, after months of speculation, rumour and scandal, the world of Serie A finally gave us some on field action to discuss and, in doing so laid bare a number of inescapable truths.
Read more at WhoScored.com
Serie A Summer Transfer XI
Serie A returns this weekend and there have been many changes to the teams in Italian football’s top division; not only are there a host of new coaches at numerous clubs, but also a raft of new players in every side across the league. While there have been some major talents lost - with Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Thiago Silva and Ezequiel Lavezzi all moving to Paris Saint-Germain - there are also some excellent players arriving.
Read more at ESPNFC.com
