Cassano dropped, Pazzini shopped
By: Stephen |
6 Comments
Well, I’ve been a naughty blogger of late, and not just because of the winter break and Samp’s pretty miserable form. I got a new job for a few months, a job that requires my presence in Bari, of all places. Yep, until June, I will be resident in Cassanotown, and I have to say, my first impressions of the place are all positive. I’ve rambled around Bari Vecchia quite a bit, which is where the big man grew up. There are lots of little hoodlums running around the place, kicking stones and rolled-up paper – all Cassanos in the making.
Of course, there’s some Cassano news up in Genoa, and, worringly, it’s not good at all. Details regarding a spat between Del Neri and Cassano are thin on the ground, but one thing is for sure – Cassano’s not going to be playing against Udinese this weekend, having not even been included in the squad. Del Neri has a truck of excuses to back up his decision – need more muscle up front, need to grind out results, Cassano needs a rest – but, to me, it seems that the Mister doth protest too much. The whole thing reeks of something a little more unpleasant. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him bundled out the door before the transfer window shuts – a sulky Fant’Antonio in the dressing-room is not what Samp need right now.
Speaking of transfers, Juve are loitering with intent, greedily eyeing up Giampaolo Pazzini. Now, of course I want Samp’s main goal-getter to stay, but if some wild amount of cash was to be throw in our direction, I really do believe it should be grabbed with both hands. Let’s not forget Fabio Bazzani and Emiliano Bonazzoli – both were phenomenal for a season or two, and approaches from the big teams were staunchly rebuffed in the hope that they would be the one to propel Samp up into the dizzy heights of the CL spots. In the end, both suffered huge losses of form before moping off to try to re-discover themselves, neither with any real success. Of course, Pazzini is younger and seems to have much more going for him, but he’s hardly been setting the Marassi alight of late. When Cassano’s not on form, Pazzini really struggles. Why not bank the cash and invest in three or four younger prospects? After all, reinforcements are needed all over the pitch.
Category: Uncategorized
Samp in crisis? Maybe just a little
By: Stephen | 5 Comments
Well, so much for bouncing back.
After the derby demolition, Samp meekly rolled out of the Coppa Italia at the hands of Livorno and then got pounded by Milan in 23 short minutes at the San Siro on Sunday.
Del Neri was surprisingly forthright about the recent results. “We really cannot play any worse than this”, the mister declared, probably because there was nothing else to say and no positives to draw.
I haven’t seen Samp look as unmotivated, uncoordinated, ineffective and lacking in confidence as this in a long, long time. Pazzini looks like Peter Crouch’s heavier, more immobile twin, Cassano’s tricks succeed only in giving away possession, Mannini has none of the spark that we saw two months back and Poli looks every bit the inexperienced kid he is.
The next fixture doesn’t look likely to stop the rot – in-form Roma, unbeaten in five, make the trip to the Marassi on Saturday evening having leapfrogged Samp into sixth spot with last weekend’s derby win over Lazio. It could be that the winter break is coming at just the right time to allow Samp to regroup and sort things out, which, hopefully will include the signing of a quality defender and some decent backup for Pazzini up front. Pozzi doesn’t cut it, and Bellucci, when fit, is generally consistently rubbish.
Finally, there was another worrying clash between some Samp fans and Cassano at the training ground – just as you might expect, it followed a pretty typical pattern of abuse from fans, abusive response with rude gesture from Cassano. I don’t know what to make of the whole thing, simply because abusing Cassano seems like the most counter-productive thing that any Samp fan could do. When things do turn around, it will be Cassano at the centre of it. They guy needs to feel loved, and he’s done enough for Samp to deserve a bit of support during a rough patch.
Category: UncategorizedGutted
By: Stephen | 9 Comments
Wow.
Wow.
Not for a second did I think it could possibly be that bad. When your team gets two men sent off and gives away two penalties, you’d be forgiven for thinking that your team was the dirtiest of the two teams by quite a distance, however I’m sure examining Cassano’s legs this morning would show a different story. I’ve heard Genoa’s persistent fouling being referred to as ‘tactical’ by some sources – lending it a legitimacy that it is frankly mind-boggling. Sadly, it was remarkably efficient in breaking down any fluidity that Samp tried to build up. Had Biava’s sending-off come earlier, had the referee stamped his authority on the game, well, we probably would have still lost, we were that rubbish. But at least it’d be easier to take. What makes the referee’s incredible worthlessness even harder to accept is that he wasn’t even baised, he was just really, really bad. Tissone should have seen a straight red for a vicious two-footed tackle, but didn’t even get booked. Rossi’s straight red at the end was clumsy and late but by no means malicious.
Now that I have spewed some vitriol, I can finally say that regardless of dreadful refereeing and underhanded ‘tactics’, Samp were completely and totally hammered. Obliterated. Eviscerated. Genoa had too much drive, too much pace, too much determination, were fantastically well-organised and, were they not Genoa, would completely deserve the victory.
I really can’t think of anything more of a logical nature to say, I am just too gutted. I could rant about Palladino’s petulant mockery of the Samp fans after converting the second penalty, or Sculli baiting Cassano, but there’s nothing to be gained from that. I could talk about Samp’s failure to register a shot on goal and the incredible incoherence that was visible all through to team, but that would just make me quite miserable. So let’s just look forward to Tuesday night’s low-key Coppa Italia clash with Livorno and hope for some improvement when the pressure is off.
Category: UncategorizedAnnoyance in the Azzurri squad
By: Stephen | 2 Comments
Of course, it’s been caused by the man who is not even involved. And satisfyingly, it’s Genoa’s Raffaele Palladino that he is annoying. The striker responded tetchily to journalists who suggested that he is only in the squad because Cassano isn’t, even though he is clearly only in the squad because Cassano isn’t. “I earned my place in the squad”, claimed Palladino, but the facts tell a different story – two goals in eight games for the Rossoblu’s fourth top scorer doesn’t really compare to one goal and six assists, whatever way you look at it.
All this talk of bitter Genoa players is getting me a little annoyed now too, so let’s take a little look at a fellow Cassano fan making his opinions clear in Italy’s friendly with Holland at the weekend:
And this week’s final Annoyed Italian is our very own Giampaolo Pazzini. The source of his ire is another striker not involved in the Italy set-up – the Brazilian, I mean Italian, I mean married to an Italian Amauri. As an Irishman, I see no problem whatsoever in players representing a country they weren’t born in, and didn’t even grow up in – Ireland’s successful years in the mid-Nineties would never have happened without the likes of Aldridge, Cascarino and Townsend tracing their lineage back Granny Margaret or Uncle Paddy from Tipperary. Nationality is a lot more than a letters printed in a little maroon booklet. Bring Amauri into the Azzurri squad, and let Pazzo show his irritation by keeping him out of it.
Category: UncategorizedCagliari 2-0 Sampdoria
By: Stephen | Add Comments
I didn’t get to see this game, so can’t offer anything much more than the highlights that were my Samp fix for the week.
Stankevicius’ sending-off seems more and more unjust with each viewing, especially since Jeda’s blatant dive was much more of a dive than Cassano’s, shall we say, loss of equilibrium due to the force exerted on him by a Cagliari defender in the penatly box earlier in the half. And surely he was far too far from goal for it to constitute a clear goalscoring opportunity? Yes, last man and all, but there certainly was a lot of work to do, especially with Castellazzi in the form he is currently in. The man in green (darn it, I want that jersey so much) has been in flying form of late, with his save from Chiellini’s header against Juventus a few weeks back among the best I’ve ever seen.
Del Neri has been quite upset about a variety of refereeing decisions in the last few games. Yes, we have seen three red cards in six away games this season (Tissone v Atalanta, Padalino v Lazio and Stankevicius v Cagliari), but in those six, there have also been two home players sent off, so let’s not start going all Mel Gisbon and Julia Roberts with our theories just yet.
So, let’s all have a relaxing international weekend by watching Ireland beat France before waking up just in time to watch France beat Ireland. A home game against Chievo sounds like a great opportunity to sort out a slump in form (let’s ignore the fact that their away form has been quite a bit better than ours this season, eh?)
Category: UncategorizedThe people have a right to know!
By: Stephen | 3 Comments
The Cassano v Lippi plot, although beginning to bore and stagnate somewhat, has taken yet another mildly interesting turn.
Riccardo Garrone’s comments about knowing why Cassano isn’t involved in the Azzurri setup (apparently it’s a “very, very ugly story“) have provoked a campaign in the Corriere dello Sport, demanding an explanation from The Powers That Be in sky-blue suits.
Like I said, the whole story is beginning to grate, but I can’t help but wonder what ugly thing Cassano could have done. Maybe Lippi’s mother was one of the 600?
No doubt time will tell, as there is plenty of flogging to be done to this dead donkey.
Category: UncategorizedPhew!
By: Stephen | 1 Comment
Samp 0-0 Bari
This was a tough one to call pre-kickoff. How would Samp react to the demolition at Juve, and what about Bari’s excellent away form (including two draws in the San Siro against Milan’s finest) so far this season?
In the end, Samp were lucky to escape with the point. The last five minutes of the game were everything that the previous eighty-five had not been – pulsating, exciting, eventful, completely and totally dominated by Bari. Castellazzi’s lunge at Barreto should have resulted in a red card for the Samp keeper, but in the end he stayed on the pitch to see the penalty sail wide of his left post as he lay prone on his right side.
And, of course, as the eternal optimist, I had a vision of Cassano picking the ball up straight from the kick-off, jinking around two befuddled Bari defenders before dropping a perfect cross onto Pazzini’s head for Samp to steal a almost barely arguably possibly maybe deserved victory (making slightly more chances means you deserve to win, right?).
Instead, Bari were the ones pushing forward, and Bari were the ones who dropped in a perfect cross and Bari were the ones who stole the points for an almost deserved victory, only for the referee’s assistant to incorrectly raise his flag for offside. It was almost embarrassing.
Either way, definitely a point gained.
Perhaps more worrying than the last minute chaos party in the Sampdoria box were the boos for Cassano at the final whistle. True, he has been a little off colour for the last couple of games, but booing him? The man has done more for this team than anyone else over the last decade, and I don’t just mean on the pitch. He was the first high-profile signing since the return from Serie B and lent us a level of class and glamour at a time when when we needed it most. I have a feeling that he was a little stung by the Bari manager’s comments before the game, claiming that he his not as good a player since he has moved on from his bad-boy act. Cassano’s response to the minority of booing cretins was quite a throwback to those good old days: “Qui si sono abituati troppo bene . Si sono abituati a mangiare la Nutella e appena devono mangiare un po’ di m**** si comportano in questa maniera.” – “They have it too good here. They’re used to eating Nutella and just when they have to eat a little bit of s**t, they behave like that”.
This, coupled with a veiled threat to leave, is slightly worrying business for Samp. Of course, Cassano will leave us sooner rather than later, but having an irritated Cassano on the books certainly would be in no-one’s interests. So, a bit of appeasement for Fant’antonio, please.
Ciao, amici Doriani
By: Stephen | 4 Comments
Hi there,
I’m theoffside’s latest signing, drafted in mid-season through a combination of feeling the need to shout loudly about Samp’s good start to the season and not really having much better to do on these nasty dark winter evenings.
I’ve been a Samp fan for about fifteen years now, a love affair that began, as I’m sure many British and Irish Serie A fans can relate to, thanks to Channel 4’s weeky Sunday afternoon fix of calcio. The love began with Gullit and Lombardo, developed with Montella and Boghossian, but really showed its true colours when Samp dropped into Serie B in the late Nineties. My fandom was challenged for those difficult four years, but my crappy internet connection and I always managed to tune in for the scores, good, bad or indifferent.
So my delight was immeasurable when Samp’s return to Serie A coincided with a year abroad for me as a part of my Italian studies. Of course, I chose Genova as my destination. And it was a phenomenal year – I saw every home game bar two, and made it to Milan, Turin, Siena, Bologna, Modena and Verona for away games.
Sadly, my year came to an end, but my love was as fresh as ever, and still is.
I’m looking forward to talking Samp with y’all.
Stephen
Category: UncategorizedTransfer summary: the story so far
By: Rolf | 5 Comments
So, we’re in the middle of July and the majority of Doria’s transfer activity has (probably) taken place.
Here’s a Doriani’s take on the action:
Delvecchio to Catania.
I don’t know what to say. Delvecchio was quickly becoming one of my favourite Sampdoria players of all time, and a key player in a Sampdoria side that has looked brilliant ever since the other half of the Goal Twins M.2 arrived in January, and then bang and he’s off to Sicily. At his peak, he leaves a team who came within a penalty kick of winning the Coppa and who looks to seriously challenge the top 4 (or should that be 5?) next season for, well, for Catania.
No offense to Catania, but it’s a damned strange transfer.
Pieri to Livorno
Easily replaced, nothing to lose sleep over at all. Wish him luck with the Commies.
Campagnaro to Napoli
Never really impressed me at Samp, wish him all the best with Napoli, but it would be patronizing to say he’ll be deeply missed.
Bonazzoli to Reggina
Good old Emiliano, you gave us some great moments (his volley against Milan back in 2005 springs happily to mind), and you’ll always have a special place at least in this Doriani’s heart. But the feeling is that it was time to say goodbye, and I think that the best place for you to relaunch your career is with Reggina in their promotion charge next season. Best of luck.
Padelli & Koman to Bari
Maybe I haven’t been paying as much attention to our squad as I should have, but who the hell are these guys? Anyway, as this Koman fellow is only on a loan he might have the chance to make his name noted with Bari. If not, then I doubt I’ll ever hear of him again. And the other guy’s name was…?
Fornaroli to San lorenzo
Just as well. Let him take a few kicks with Viggo Mortensen’s favourite club and prepare for the tough job of being a striker in Serie A.
Zauri from Lazio
Only here on loan, which is a rather smart move. If he can find form here then I’d be more than happy to keep him, and if not then it’s straight back to the blue side of Rome. Smart deal.
Mannini from Napoli
Another smart deal, Mannini looked like a good prospect the times I saw him in action with Napoli, and I reckon his failed ban (one of the more entertaining scandals in Italy over the last months, only topped by Berlusconi’s Playboy mansion) has fuelled his desire to prove himself.
Category: UncategorizedBack on track (well, sort of)
By: Rolf | 3 Comments
All right, I’ve been gone since March (as you’ll hopefully have noticed). My absence has many reasons, and I won’t bore you with them, but lack of time does account for quite a lot of it.
Now however, I feel prepared for another go, one that hopefully will see a bit more contuinity on my part.
This post won’t feature much, except for an update on all our transfers so far, but I promise to review them all on a later stage, as well as our…well, the Lazio match. Yes, THE Lazio match.
Oh, and it’s goodbye to Mazzari and welcome to Antonio Del Neri.
So far, our mercato has seen these transfers taking place:
In: Mannini (Napoli), Zauri (Lazio).
Out: Pieri (Livorno), Delvecchio (Catania), Campagnaro (Napoli) Padelli (Bari), Koman (Bari).
Notice the paramount absence of the names Cassano, Castellazzi, Gastaldello and Pazzini in the ‘out’ list.
So, I’ll leave you all with a bona sera and a “Forza Bucerchiati per sempre!”
And, painful as it is, I guess we’ll have to congratulate Lazio. Well done to you and good luck in the Europa League.
Category: Uncategorized
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