Once upon a time, the Gazzetta Dello Sport would boast in the face of the Daily Mirror and Marca about the mighty, yet beautiful, 'Seven Sisters' who once resided in Italia and made the Calcio very much compelling and enjoyable.
However, out of those seven sisters only three seem to be able to survive the meager conditions that have rocked the world of football lately.
Fiorentina, once the nemesis of Juve, had a champion and hero in the form of Gabriele Omar Batistuta. Florence also thrived for Rui Costa's fancy moves that easily ridiculed opponents while Toldo saved their goal with immense braveness. However, the team fell from the Champions League to the fourth division after financial mismanagement from their 'sugar daddy', Vittorio Cecchi Gori The youngest sister 's abrupt fall have left the loyal fans dismayed with nothing but memories from the old days.
Parma, sixth in order between the sisters, also seem to be following Fiorentina's footsteps. The two times UEFA Cup winners have been sucked into Parmalat's black hole thanks to president, Stefano Tanzi. Even though the team has awakened on the harsh reality that it no longer has an owner to pay for expenses and take care of the club, but Parma has coped well and is sure of Serie A survival for next season at least. But will Parma earn the same respect it did from opponents when nearly all stars are offloaded to other teams in an 'open market' during the summer?
Then comes Lazio. After the trouble that Cragnotti brought to the club with his farfetched dreams and search for glory, Lazio seem to be finally a stable ship once again. However, the team is so financially stricken that no more 'stars' are expected to join the club. For those types of players there is only one way, Out. Eventually, stars of the team will be heading towards the end of their contracts and the club would have no choice but to either sell them or lose them for nothing a la Stankovic. That's why Lazio is getting weaker every year. Not a very good sign for the Biancocelesti fans.
There are still remnants in the streets of Rome from the famous and wild celebrations that continued for months after the 2001 Serie A triumph. However, the future looks bleak for this side of the Eternal City too. The Roman Gladiators haven't received their wages for months now and the club is expected to release one or two of its jewels (Emerson/Totti) in the summer to finance the club. In fact, Sensi is expected to step down and sell the club all together soon due to the dire conditions of his club. He even got away with providing forged bank guarantees at the start of the season.
That leaves us with the remaining three sisters.
Only fans of those teams can dream of the future with stability and optimism.
Admittedly, Inter haven't been successful lately but are still bankrolled by Moratti and would thus be signing world class players every year without fears of impoverishment.
The empire of Juve shows no signs of weakness either. The Old Lady follows a tight policy that ensures the club operates with a profit at the end of the financial year and still win some trophies here and there.
Fans of Milan must be Livin' La Vida Loca. After the famous European triumph in Manchester in an all-Italian final, the team is on course for more success this term. Thanks to Senior Berlusconi's millions, that is.
But what happens if the wealthy owner steps down and the cash runs away? Will the joy easily turn into pain as the other sisters discovered? And what will happen to the fallen giants, will they remain asleep until an Abramovich knocks their door?
Teams like Chievo and Atalanta have tried to save some face for Italy during the past seasons with some worthy efforts. However, everyone in Italy knows it: things will never be the same again in Serie A.
Post Edited
However, out of those seven sisters only three seem to be able to survive the meager conditions that have rocked the world of football lately.
Fiorentina, once the nemesis of Juve, had a champion and hero in the form of Gabriele Omar Batistuta. Florence also thrived for Rui Costa's fancy moves that easily ridiculed opponents while Toldo saved their goal with immense braveness. However, the team fell from the Champions League to the fourth division after financial mismanagement from their 'sugar daddy', Vittorio Cecchi Gori The youngest sister 's abrupt fall have left the loyal fans dismayed with nothing but memories from the old days.
Parma, sixth in order between the sisters, also seem to be following Fiorentina's footsteps. The two times UEFA Cup winners have been sucked into Parmalat's black hole thanks to president, Stefano Tanzi. Even though the team has awakened on the harsh reality that it no longer has an owner to pay for expenses and take care of the club, but Parma has coped well and is sure of Serie A survival for next season at least. But will Parma earn the same respect it did from opponents when nearly all stars are offloaded to other teams in an 'open market' during the summer?
Then comes Lazio. After the trouble that Cragnotti brought to the club with his farfetched dreams and search for glory, Lazio seem to be finally a stable ship once again. However, the team is so financially stricken that no more 'stars' are expected to join the club. For those types of players there is only one way, Out. Eventually, stars of the team will be heading towards the end of their contracts and the club would have no choice but to either sell them or lose them for nothing a la Stankovic. That's why Lazio is getting weaker every year. Not a very good sign for the Biancocelesti fans.
There are still remnants in the streets of Rome from the famous and wild celebrations that continued for months after the 2001 Serie A triumph. However, the future looks bleak for this side of the Eternal City too. The Roman Gladiators haven't received their wages for months now and the club is expected to release one or two of its jewels (Emerson/Totti) in the summer to finance the club. In fact, Sensi is expected to step down and sell the club all together soon due to the dire conditions of his club. He even got away with providing forged bank guarantees at the start of the season.
That leaves us with the remaining three sisters.
Only fans of those teams can dream of the future with stability and optimism.
Admittedly, Inter haven't been successful lately but are still bankrolled by Moratti and would thus be signing world class players every year without fears of impoverishment.
The empire of Juve shows no signs of weakness either. The Old Lady follows a tight policy that ensures the club operates with a profit at the end of the financial year and still win some trophies here and there.
Fans of Milan must be Livin' La Vida Loca. After the famous European triumph in Manchester in an all-Italian final, the team is on course for more success this term. Thanks to Senior Berlusconi's millions, that is.
But what happens if the wealthy owner steps down and the cash runs away? Will the joy easily turn into pain as the other sisters discovered? And what will happen to the fallen giants, will they remain asleep until an Abramovich knocks their door?
Teams like Chievo and Atalanta have tried to save some face for Italy during the past seasons with some worthy efforts. However, everyone in Italy knows it: things will never be the same again in Serie A.
Post Edited
