Tag: serie a

How Sassuolo transformed themselves into a top six club

As featured on Guardian Sport ON 15 SEPTEMBER 2016, the small town of Sassuolo in the north-west of Italy geared up for something special. With a population of 41,000, the Province of…

After Gabriel Batistuta came Hernán Crespo

PRIOR TO THE 2002 WORLD CUP, Marcelo Bielsa found himself deciding who to play in the most advanced position of the field for Argentina. On one hand, an ageing Gabriel Batistuta had…

A Tale of One City: Genoa

CLOSE YOUR EYES and imagine you’re in Genoa, the city in the north-west of Italy where Christopher Columbus was born. On one side of the street you’ll find the Lanterna, the famous…

Liam Brady’s Italian sojourn at Juventus

CATANZARO IS A SMALL CITY located in the Calabria region of Italy. Known as the ‘City of Two Seas’, it is occasionally dampened by the sea and is subjected to snow-capped winters…

From AC Milan to political maestro: the story of Kakha Kaladze

Social media has become something of a breeding ground for letting the average supporter know what former football greats (and not-so-greats) are currently up to. However, somewhere mixed in with the postmen,…

How Italy united an ailing nation via a coin toss in 1968

The story of the European Championship’s emergence to global prestige starts with humble beginnings and a dream. International football, in and of itself, had only been in existence for just under a…

Nereo Rocco: the mad king of catenaccio

This feature is part of The Masterminds THE HISTORY OF FOOTBALL has seen a litany of great managers come from the Italian peninsula since the earliest days. These strategic thinkers and innovators…

How Giovanni Trapattoni adapted his way into legend

This feature is part of The Masterminds THE PRESS CONFERENCE was an explosive three minutes, leaving a cluster of Germany’s top journalists stunned and bewildered. Bayern Munich coach Giovanni Trapattoni was addressing…

From Swansea reject to Lazio legend: the story of Giorgio Chinaglia

Raised in Wales to Italian parents, Giorgio Chinaglia took a unique route to reach the top of football. We look back at the remarkable career of the man voted Lazio’s greatest player and who scored over 200 official goals to become the greatest import seen at the New York Cosmos.

The renaissance of Luca Toni

As something of a vagabond journeyman, Luca Toni has carved out an unlikely career as one of the continent’s most effective goalscorers. We celebrate his rise from obscurity to dominance at the World Cup, goals at Bayern Munich and longevity at Verona.