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Calcio FC Weekly
Partying Like It Was 2023
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Welcome to Issue 9 of Calcio FC Weekly!
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AC Milan are top of Serie A on their own for the first time in two years, Fiorentina and Genoa are sinking without trace and Sampdoria have hit yet another low.
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Don't forget you can get in touch with us on our socials and at newsletter@destinationcalcio.com
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Here's a taste of what's on the menu today:
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- Plenty to be happy about at AC Milan
- Broken hearts (again) at Marassi
- Should you really trust algorithms?
- Cristiano Ronaldo chewing grass
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Out On Their Own
What were you doing on October 6, 2023? AC Milan were flying solo at the top of Serie A, which is where they find themselves once again after beating Fiorentina 2-1 on Sunday.
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Rafael Leao scored both goals, ending his league goal drought at the San Siro after more than 500 days and finally converting a penalty for the Rossoneri, whose 54% miss rate from 12 yards was by far the worst in Europe’s top five leagues and has been addressed in these pages.
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Milan have 16 points after seven games, one more than Inter Milan who moved level with Roma after beating them at the Olimpico, and Napoli, who lost at Torino.
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It means Il Diavolo are alone at the summit for the first time in two years, since beating Genoa 1-0 at Marassi on matchday eight of the 2023-24 season to be precise.
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Massimiliano Allegri (pictured below) has turned the Rossoneri into a legitimate Scudetto contender yet he is urging his players to remain grounded.
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"This sends no signal to the title race; we are miles away from the total points needed for our goal," he said. "We can't get excited yet, we still have a very long way to go."
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Milan must now handle the pressure of being top, something which has proved beyond their rivals this season as the lead has changed almost every week since mid-August.
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Allegri has an injury crisis to deal with but will welcome bottom-of-the-table Pisa on Friday night when his side could open up a four-point gap before settling in to watch Napoli take on Inter 24 hours later.
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Napoli made the most of playing just once a week last season under Antonio Conte, a luxury they cannot afford this term, and the same applies to Roma and Inter.
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Arrigo Sacchi and Fabio Capello both returned to Milan but never managed to live up the standards they set in their first spells at the San Siro. Allegri could be bucking the trend.
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A Love Breakdown at Marassi
Genoa walk on to the pitch at Marassi to a song by Italian singer, and die-hard fan, Bresh called Guasto D'Amore, which roughly translates to 'a broken heart for love'.
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Taken literally the title means 'love breakdown' and sadly for those of a Rossoblu persuasion, broken hearts and breakdowns perfectly encapsulate Genoa this season.
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Sunday's goalless draw with Parma was their campaign in a microcosm. Playing with an extra man after Abdoulaye Ndiaye was sent off shortly before half-time, Il Grifone huffed and puffed but were kept at bay by the outstanding Zion Suzuki.
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The Parma keeper pulled off an incredible save to deny Jeff Ekhator from close range and then saved Maxwel Cornet's 97th-minute penalty.
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The stats told their own story. Genoa had 19 shots to their opponents' one, 68% of possession and dominated the game in almost every metric. They did everything bar score, a recurring issue this season as they have found the net just three times in seven games.
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They sit 19th in the table with three points, the same as Fiorentina and Pisa.
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Ironically, Pisa are managed by Alberto Gilardino, the man Patrick Vieira replaced in Genoa last November.
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The former Arsenal captain faced the music on Sunday as the Gradinata Nord launched a cascade of boos and whistles at him and his players.
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"The booing is understandable given the performance, especially because we didn't score," Vieira said. "We have to accept that criticism; our supporters expected a win and they did their part."
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At this rate, the Derby della Lanterna may play out in Serie B next season, which leads us neatly on to...
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Don’t Trust the Algorithm
“We have finally found a spark and we’re going to prepare the next game as if it were a Champions League fixture,” proclaimed Massimo Donati last week ahead of Sampdoria’s visit to Virtus Entella.
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That spark was extinguished in Chiavari on Friday night when the Blucerchiati were put to the sword by their local rivals as Donati's men made the newly-promoted Entella look like Real Madrid.
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It also signalled the end for Donati (pictured below), who was sacked a day later and replaced by Angelo Gregucci and Salvatore Foti.
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The latter, who served as assistant to Marco Giampaolo at Sampdoria and then to Jose Mourinho at Roma and Fenerbahce, is the club's choice to replace Donati but he does not hold a UEFA Pro Licence.
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It means Gregucci will nominally be in charge for the foreseeable future, with Foti taking control of training, much like Cesc Fabregas did at Como.
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Donati's Sampdoria won once in eight league games, drawing twice and losing five times for a meagre return of five points.
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But as an editorial in Genoa’s local paper Il Secolo XIX reflected on Sunday, he was a bizarre choice to begin with, Sampdoria plucking him from the obscurity of the Greek league based on the suggestions of an algorithm.
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No, really. The club's CEO of football Jesper Fredberg championed Samp's use of data and analytics to find their new manager in the summer, a search which led to Donati.
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But it turns out that data alone may not be the best indicator of a manager’s suitability for the job.
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His appointment was the latest blunder of Matteo Manfredi's tenure, which has been nothing short of disastrous.
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Barely four months since avoiding relegation to Serie C courtesy of Brescia’s financial demise, Sampdoria are yet again drifting towards the abyss.
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This is a club that frankly deserves much, much better.
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New Derby Lights Up Serie B but it's the Same Old Story for Sorry Sampdoria
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A rickety old ground creaked and shook as Virtus Entella inflicted more misery on Sampdoria in their first ever Ligurian derby on Friday night. Dan Cancian on a momentous night in Chiavari.
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Vince Grella Relishing the Challenge of Getting Catania Back to Serie A ‘Where They Belong’
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Catania are third in Serie C girone C and right in the thick of the promotion race which, as club vice-president Vince Grella told David Ferrini and Emmet Gates, is exactly where they want to be.
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Golazzo: Youri Djorkaeff - Inter Milan vs Roma, 1997
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Inter Milan beat Roma at the Olimpico on Saturday, giving us the perfect excuse to delve into Emmet Gates' piece on that Youri Djorkaeff goal 28 years ago.
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Don’t forget, Destination Calcio will be bringing you live Serie B action during every round of the 2025-26 season on DCTV
- Click HERE to find out the matches we will be showing across the next few weeks.
- Click HERE for the full 2025-26 calendar.
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Things you may have missed this week
- Inter Milan have become the first Serie A side to win at Roma in five consecutive seasons. Saturday's victory took the aggregate score at the Olimpico over the last five years to 11-2.
- Remember Fabio Borini? The former Liverpool, AC Milan and Sunderland striker and one-cap wonder for Italy has signed with Salford City.
- Cristiano Ronaldo once smelled and chewed grass to show his frustration with Maurizio Sarri, according to former Juventus defender Gianluca Frabotta. “During a tactical drill, Sarri was showing Ronaldo the movements he was supposed to make on set-pieces," he told Corriere dello Sport. "He was a bit annoyed. He didn’t need instructions; he was different. He could feel inside where the ball was going to end up. To make the coach understand, he tore up some grass, smelled it and chewed it.” Perhaps realising his team-mates were puzzled, Ronaldo explained: "I like to understand the pitch, and where the ball goes."
- Arsene Wenger, Fabio Capello and Gennaro Gattuso, along with Thierry Henry, were in attendance as Como beat Juventus 2-0.
- Only 11 goals were scored in Serie A this weekend, the lowest figure in a single matchday since the league expanded to 20 teams.
- Cesc Fabregas had some choice words for Igor Tudor after the Juventus boss described Como as a "small club, who just spend a lot of money." After his side beat Juve, Fabregas fired back. "Tudor, whom I refer to with respect as 'Mister Tudor,' unlike him, who only called me 'the Como manager', said that I just take any players I can get," the Spaniard said. "Perhaps they didn't explain to him how things work here. But clubs like Milan, Inter, and Juve always have a clear identity. Last year, we could have beaten one of those teams, but we probably would have ended up relegated. Tudor has a different kind of job: he has to win every time. We do not."
- Massimo Donati's wife did not take her husband's sacking well. In an Instagram post, Luana Di Bella accused Sampdoria of forcing Donati to "take the blame for the s***storm you've created", without ever "backing him and allowing him to implement his ideas."
- Sampdoria may be in dire straits on the pitch but their support off it remains superb as ever. A thousand fans packed the away end at Virtus Entella with some spectacular tifo flags. The pick of the bunch was one depicting a young Gianluca Vialli in a splendid away kit from the Phonola era, while another impressive one featured Captain Tsubasa in a Blucerchiati shirt.
- Massimiliano Allegri has called for Serie A to change the late kick-off from 8:45pm to 8pm. "It would allow players to go to bed earlier and get more rest," he said. "The 8:45 kick-offs mean a late finish for everyone." It would also ensure journalists don't require a gallon of coffee to function the following day. Keep fighting the good fight, Max.
- Fiorentina are off the bottom of the table only on goal difference and are yet to record their first Serie A win of the season. It's not what La Viola expected when they replaced Raffaele Palladino with Stefano Pioli in the summer, so should the former AC Milan manager be sacked? Not according to Fiorentina sporting director Daniele Prade. "Sacking Pioli? If there is one person who should be sacked it's me," he told Mediaset after the weekend defeat by Milan. Prade's honesty, one suspects, will do little to placate irate fans.
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Watch the Calcio FC podcast on YouTube and listen on Spotify
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Kit of the week
Few clubs have produced stunning kits as regularly as Genoa. The red and blue contrast on their shirts makes them immediately recognisable, while their recent efforts paying homage to their English roots and Boca Juniors connections have become instant classics.
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It would be hard to pick the best home kit Genoa have had but their 1992-93 entry has a legitimate shout.
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The white Errea logo is a throwback to a time when calcio ruled the world while the old Genoa badge was vastly superior to the current stripped-down version.
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And that is before we get to the white button under the collar, which features a red and white motif on dark blue background. As is the case on the cuffs, the blue is slightly darker than it is on the shoulders and chest, while the SAIWA sponsor is perfectly slick.
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A reminder that if you spot a classic shirt while you're at the game or out and about, get in touch on our socials or via email and let us know why we should feature it!
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What we are reading this week
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Jamie Vardy knows a thing or two about taking the scenic route to superstar status after working his way up from non-league to Premier League champion and England international. And if there is a man who can understand him then it's his team-mate Jari Vandeputte, who played for five clubs in three different countries before finally making his Serie A debut. In this lovely piece for Cultured Football, Paul Grech charts the Belgian's rise.
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Where to watch calcio this weekend
Serie A (times BST/EST)
- AC Milan vs Pisa, 19:45/14:45, DAZN (UK and US), Paramount + (US)
- Napoli vs Inter Milan, 17:00/12:00, TNT Sports 1 (UK), DAZN (UK and US), Paramount + (US)
- Cremonese vs Atalanta, 19:45/14:45, DAZN (UK and US), Paramount + (US)
- Torino vs Genoa, 11:30/06:30, DAZN (UK and US), Paramount + (US)
- Sassuolo vs Roma, 14:00/09:00, DAZN (UK and US), Paramount + (US)
- Verona vs Cagliari, 14:00/09:00, DAZN (UK and US), Paramount + (US)
- Fiorentina vs Bologna, 17:00/12:00, DAZN (UK and US), Paramount + (US)
- Lazio vs Juventus, 19:45/14:45, TNT Sports 1 (UK), DAZN (UK and US), Paramount + (US)
Serie B
- Sampdoria vs Frosinone, 14:00/09:00, Destination Calcio
- Carrarese vs Venezia, 16:15/11:15, Destination Calcio
- Padova vs Juve Stabia, 14:00/09:00, Destination Calcio
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Random former Serie A/Serie B footballer of the week
These days Udinese may happy to just exist in Serie A but in the 1990s and early 2000s they were a force to be reckoned with, featuring a formidable front three of Oliver Bierhoff, Marcio Amoroso and Paolo Poggi.
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The trio were ably supported by midfielders who blended hard running and creativity, which is where Jonathan Bachini (pictured below) enters the chat. A winger who could beat defenders by dribbling past them or by simply accelerating away, he scored six goals and registered seven assists in 65 games for Udinese, earning himself an Italy call-up in 1998 and a move to Juventus the following year. He recorded seven assists in 32 games in Turin but swiftly moved on to Brescia, where he flourished under Carlo Mazzone and alongside Roberto Baggio, scoring seven goals and setting up six in 78 games in all competitions across three spells.
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That was as good as it got for Bachini, who was suspended for nine months in November 2004 for testing positive for cocaine. Having moved to Siena he was banned for life just over a year later after testing positive for cocaine again, before being pardoned two years ago.
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"I went from the fame of being a Serie A footballer to being known as a player banished because of cocaine," he said two years ago.
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"I messed up, I served my punishment but I never caused harm to a single person. Yet, nearly everyone abandoned me."
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That is all for this week folks. We hope you enjoyed this latest issue of Calcio FC Weekly, make sure you hit the subscribe button to have it landing in your inbox every Tuesday and don't forget to get in touch at newsletter@destinationcalcio.com or on our socials!
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