Toro stars begin exodus
Wednesday 10 August, 2005
Just days after the final appeals were rejected, players from Torino, Perugia and Salernitana are flooding towards other clubs on free transfers.
The bankruptcy of these three sides means that they must start again through the Lodo Petrucci – allowing a club to begin with new owners one Division down – but this effectively frees all their existing players from their contracts.
It’s reported that Lazio have pounced on the situation to sign both Perugia central defender Guglielmo Stendardo and Torino’s promising 24-year-old midfielder Gaby Mudingayi.
“We took the news of our exclusion from Serie B very badly, but now everyone has to take their own path,” said Perugia goalkeeper Zeljko Kalac.
“I heard reports that Milan wanted me and that would be a dream come true. I wouldn’t mind being Dida’s understudy, as he has extraordinary class, but in football anything can happen. Roma also want an experienced ‘keeper and I fit the bill, while that would also be an extraordinary experience.”
Some of the other stars affected by this situation include Toro’s Brazilian youngster Andre Pinga, who is tracked by Reggina, Livorno and Messina, Under-21 international Antonio Floro Flores is interested in Udinese, while Perugia duo Marco Di Loreto and Do Prado are close to Fiorentina. Salernitana winger Davide Bombardini is a target for Bologna, so he would remain in Serie B this season.
Meanwhile, the Turin council has taken the first steps towards a future for the Granata, as Mayor Sergio Chiamparini has set himself up as the guarantor for the new owners. So far, the potential patrons of a ‘new’ Torino are local lawyer Pierluigi Marengo, businessmen Sergio Rodda and Luca Giovannone.
These are the teams that will be in Serie A and B next season, pending the result of Genoa’s civil court action:
SERIE A
Ascoli, Cagliari, Chievo, Empoli, Fiorentina, Inter, Juventus, Lazio, Lecce, Livorno, Messina, Milan, Palermo, Parma, Reggina, Roma, Sampdoria, Siena, Treviso, Udinese
SERIE B:
Albinoleffe, Arezzo, Atalanta, Avellino, Bari, Bologna, Brescia, Catania, Catanzaro, Cesena, Cremonese, Crotone, Mantova, Modena, Pescara, Piacenza, Rimini, Ternana, Torino, Triestina, Verona, Vicenza
Cannel4.com
Treviso and Ascoli in serie A??? interesting...