As opposed to my previous match previews, I could find such little info on Serie B clubs...but Napoli...there was just too much info I didn't know where to start
I'm dividing it into two parts this time...or I might just keep it one part depending of if I can get a Napoli 2006/2007 intro done in time, coz I accidentally deleted it, and had to retype alot of this all over again
....anyway, this is what I've come up with. Pretty much focused around the downward spiral (no I'm not a fan of nine-inch-nails!) of Napoli football success. Hope you like it.
Ladies and Gentlemen - our opponents this Monday night need no introduction. This is a town rich in history and culture and is a popular tourist destination in Italy. Unfortunately the city is in the news these days due to its high crime rate. However, two monumental things stand out in Napoli (Naples), the first being Mount Vesuvius...
...and Diego Armando Maradona. They are the club which had the pleasure of having one of football's greatest ever Legends wear their colors. The man was not only a phenomenon at the club, but was (and still is) literally worshipped my millions of fans across the globle. This man's contribution to the club is also unique in the sense that they are the
only club South of Rome, to have won a Scudetto.
Twice I might add.
(Well Cagliari won a Scudetto in 1970, but correct me if I'm wrong, they don't count as "southeners", right?)
Napoli celebrate their first ever Scudetto.
Two legendary captains greet each other before kick off.
* Sede: Via Alcide De Gasperi, 33 - 80133 Napoli
* Indirizzo Postale: Via Jacopo De Gennaro, snc - 80125 Napoli FAX 081-5933417
* Telefono ed orari: 081-2395623 (9 - 13 / 15:30 - 19:30)
* Colori Sociali: maglia azzurra; calzoncini bianchi; calzettoni bianchi.
* Stadio: Stadio Comunale "San Paolo - Via Jacopo De Gennaro, snc tel. 081-622017 - Mappa
* Presidente: Aurelio De Laurentiis
* Vice Presidente: Jacqueline Baudit
* Consigliere: Valentina De Laurentiis
* Direttore Generale: Pierpaolo Marino
Staff tecnico:
* Allenatore: EDOARDO REJA
* Allenatore in seconda: FABIO VIVIANI
* Preparatore dei portieri: NICO FACCIOLO
* Preparatore atletico: LUIGI FEBBRARI
* Medico sociale: ALFONSO DE NICOLA
* Massaggiatore: SALVATORE CARMANDO
* Denominazioni storiche: NAPLES, PRO NAPOLI, INTERNAZIONALE NAPOLI, INTERNAPLES, NAPOLI SOCCER
* Sito Internet ufficiale:
http://www.napolisoccer-sitoufficiale.it
Napoli's Palmares:
* 2 Campionati d’Italia: 1987 - 1990
* 3 Coppa Italia: 1962 - 1976 - 1987
* 1 Supercoppa Italiana: 1990
* 1 Coppa Uefa: 1989
* 1 Coppa Italo Inglese: 1974
Napoli (Naples) is a province in Italy and is part of the region of Campania. Other teams from this region, which are direct rivals for fierce local derbies with Napoli include Avellino, and Salernitana. I think Benevento is also part of this region. It is also said that Campania is the birthplace of Pizza...(on a personal note, God bless them lol :toast: )
The locals are known as Napoletani. Azzurri World Champion captain, Fabio Cannavaro is a Napoletano, and that's why he gets cheered like crazy whenever Italy play in San Paolo and he touches the ball.
Another famous Napoletano that played with Juve is Ciro Ferrara.
Napoli is situated south of Rome, on the west cost of the peninsula.
Napoli play their football at the Stadio San Paolo.
Several other greats have donned the Napoli shirt thru-out the years...most of them, though, were during their "golden" era in the late 80s...till early 90s.
Of course none of this would've been possible without the great mastermind tactician Ottavio Bianchi, and his successor Albertino Bigon.
Napoli struggled to maintain their top-of-the-table status after Diego Maradona's ban from football.
They had some quality names in the squad that helped them to survive, however, Maradona's absence left a huge gap in the team. In addition to that, poor management and financial trouble led to the eventual demotion and collapse of Napoli Calcio (renamed Napoli Soccer when sent to C1, but I think they're re-re-named back to the original Napoli Calcio).
Life after Diego: Napoli's self destruction
Note - this part was translated by myself from a Napoli fansite...I hope there aren't any mistakes
Basically, Corrado Ferlaino's mismanagement and poor financial situation lead to the eventual demotions and "dissolving" of Napoli Calcio last year (Napoli Soccer).
Serie A: 1991/1992
Squad: Galli Giovanni, Ferrara Ciro, Francini Giovanni, Crippa Massimo,
Alemao Rogerio, Baroni Marco, Corradini Giancarlo, De Napoli Fernando,
Careca Antonio, Zola Gianfranco, Silenzi Andrea
Claudio Ranieri was in charge of bringing Napoli back to life, and he did have a "decent" group of players at his disposal, such as Laurent Blanc, Ciro Ferrara, Massimo Crippa, Gianfranco Zola, Michele Padovano, Andrea Silenzi (went on to FC Torino, doesnt deserve to be associated with the word "decent" - overrated shit, ugly striker who used to claim that he had a complex and could only score with his head) Alemao, and of course CARECA. Napoli had an ok season, finishing 4th, however, there were signs of poor things to come after their surprise 5-0 loss to AC Milan at the San Siro (surprise in the sense of the goal margin, not the outcome). The club had things to look forward to the following season, as they qualified for the UEFA Cup.
Serie A: 1992/1993
Squad: Galli Giovanni, Ferrara Ciro, Francini Giovanni, Crippa Massimo,
Alemao Rogerio, Baroni Marco, Pari Fausto, Thern Jonas,
Careca Antonio, Zola Gianfranco, Fonseca Daniel
Claudio Ranieri's side showed a sign of good things to come with his new acquisition hitting the back of the net 5 times in a 5-1 win over Valencia at the Mestalla. This player is familiar to Juventini - Daniel Fonseca, a rising Uruguayan star at the time. However, a repeat UEFA Cup success wasn't on the cards for Napoli this time, as they succumbed to defeat against Luis Fernandez's and George Weah's Paris St. Germain.
That season also witnessed another heavy defeat at the hands of AC Milan, 5-1! Ottavio Bianchi was reinstated, after Ranieri's axe, but the club couldn't do better and finished 11th place.
Serie A: 1993/1994
Squad: Taglialatela Giuseppe, Ferrara Ciro, Gambaro, Crippa Massimo, Pecchia Fabio, Bia Marco, Bordin, Thern Jonas, Fonseca Daniel, Altomare, Di Canio (Buso)
Corrado Ferlaino decided to promote Ottavio Bianchi to General Manager, while a certain Marcello Lippi had been appointed as head coach
Lippi had a pretty good squad at his disposal: Taglialatela in goal (an OK keeper), a young Cannavaro, Ciro Ferrara, Eugenio Corini (a Juventus reject, and current Palermo captain), Fabio Pecchia (then, an U-21 Italy prospect), and Paolo Di Canio.
Napoli had a stuttering start to the season, losing their first 2 games, drawing their 3rd. They finally managed to win their fourth game at the Olimpico vs. Roma 3-2. Napoli somewhat got over their Milan complex by beating them 1-0 with a spectacular goal by Di Canio. Their 1-0 win vs. Zeman's Foggia also earned them a 6th place finish to qualify for UEFA Cup.
Serie A: 1994/1995
Squad: Taglialatela Giuseppe, Tarantino Massimo, Baldini Francesco, Boghossian Alain, Cannavaro Fabio, Cruz Andrè, Pecchia Fabio, Bordin,
Rincon, Agostini Massimo, Carbone Benny, Buso Renato
As you all know, Lippi joined Juventus taking Ciro Ferrara along with him
...a decision the two I'm sure, would never regret
Vincenzo Guerini was Lippi's replacement, and he had a big resposibility in having a good UEFA Cup run and a top half finish to the season.
Gianfranco Zola had also joined Nevio Scala's Parma, who at the time were establishing themselves as a force to be reckoned with in the Serie A. Fonseca went to Roma.
Zola was replaced by Benito (Benny) Carbone. Andre Cruz was brought in to partner Cannavaro in defense, along with Frenchman Alain Boghossian. Another big name was one of Colombia's top strikers, Freddy Rincon to replace Fonseca.
Benito Carbone kicked off the season scoring in a 1-0 in a last minute win vs. Reggiana.
However, Guerini barely lasted a few games after a string of poor results, including a 5-1 loss to Lazio.
Vujadin Boskov was the replacement. He managed to pick up a record at the time by winning 5 Serie A games consecutively from Week 29-34. He managed to steer Napoli to 7th place.
Serie A: 1995/1996
Squad: Taglialatela Giuseppe, Tarantino Massimo, Baldini Francesco, Boghossian Alain, Cruz Andrè (Ayala Fabian), Pecchia Fabio, Bordin, (Pari Fausto) Rincon,
Agostini Massimo, Pizzi Fausto, Buso (Policano)
Cannavaro goes to Parma, Benny goes to Inter, Rincon to Real Madrid.
Some modest names in this year's roster - current Messina striker Arturo di Napoli (who's scored a few goals this season!), Pizzi, Baldini, Colonnese, Tarantino (he played for Bologna a few years ago and scored an INCRRREDIBLE own goal vs. Juve if you remember
)
It was no surprise that the team flirted with relegation thruout much of the season, but maintains salvezza in week 32 (2 weeks before the end) with a victory over Sampdoria. They ended up finishing 10th. Boskov, as a result, was fired.
Serie A: 1996/1997
Taglialatela Giuseppe, Milanese, Baldini Francesco, Boghossian Alain,
Cruz Andrè (Ayala Fabian), Turrini Francesco, Bordin, Beto,
Caccia (Aglietti), Pizzi Fausto, Esposito Massimiliano (Caio)
Corrado Ferlaino decided to bring in some more respectable names this time in order to avoid any relegation battles for this season. Gigi Simoni was in charge. Players such as Caccia (a decent forward), Aglietti, Milanese, Turrini, and Joubert Beto from Brazil's 1995 U-21 world cup winning squad. In addition to this, they had a player, who at the time was hailed as a big prospect - CAIO Ribeiro Decoussau, also part of the U-21 champs.
The two players proved to be an unsuccessful gamble, as both didn't settle well and the so-called golden boys were soon forgotten in Italy and...the world I guess, since World Soccer mag quit featuring them, since earlier issues kept on touting them as the next big things a-la-Diego and Robinho a couple years back!
*takes deep breath*
Napoli enjoyed a good first half of Serie A, but by April they were clearly struggling and Gigi Simoni was replaced by Montefusco.
They reached the Coppa Italia final, winning the first leg 1-0 by a Pecchia goal. But the second leg was lost 3-0 (see my Juve-Vicenza preview for that! oh how things are all related)........and Napoli ended up in 12th place, with their fans still wondering if the worst is yet to come.
Serie A: 1997/1998
Squad: Taglialatela Giuseppe, Sbrizzo, Baldini Francesco, Prunier,
Ayala Fabian, Turrini Francesco, Rossitto, Beto,
Protti, Bellucci Claudio, Esposito Massimiliano
(horrible lineup)
This season was one of Napoli's most turbulent seasons. They went through three managers, and got relegated.
Well, they signed Serie A top scorer Igor Protti from Bari for starters...but that didn't help at all.
Napoli not only got relegated that season, but finished BOTTOM of the Serie A table at JUST 14 points!! Lecce 17th, had 26 points.
Serie B: 1998/1999
Squad: Taglialatela Giuseppe, Daino, Nilsen (Mora), Baldini Francesco,
Pesaresi, Turrini Francesco, Shalimov (Scarlato Gennaro), Paradiso,
Murgita (Schwoch Stefan), Bellucci Claudio, Esposito Massimiliano (Scapolo)
These were the boys in charge of bringing Napoli back up to where they belong. Renzo Ulivieri was at the helm. However Napoli weren't able to achive promotion, and finished 9th. Ulivieri was sacked midway thru the season, and Montefusco brought in as coach.
Serie B: 1999/2000
Squad: Coppola Ferdinando, Oddo, Nilsen (Mora), Baldini Francesco,
Lopez Francesco, Turrini Francesco, Troise Emanuele, Lucenti,
Schwoch Stefan, Bellucci Claudio (Stellone Roberto), Asta Antonino
Guided by the well-respected Walter Novellino, Napoli looked to mount a serious Serie B challenge in order to obtain promotion. Stefan Schwoch's 22 goals, Stellone's 10 goals, and Bellucci's 6 guided the team in the right direction towards 2nd place in Serie B. Mission Accomplished?
Serie B: 2000/2001
Squad: Mancini Francesco, Saber Abdellah, Baccin (Magoni Oscar), Baldini Francesco, Quiroga Facundo (Fresi), Moriero Francesco (Sesa David), Pecchia Fabio (Troise Emanuele), Jankulovski Marek (Vidigal Luis), Amoruso Nicola, Bellucci Claudio (Edmundo), Stellone Roberto
Their first game agains't Juventus. Well the atmosphere in that match isn't going to be any different than Monday night. I still remember the fans unveiling a huge MARADONA 10 banner minutes before kick off. Of couse, another #10 was the party pooper and scored a lovely goal late in the match to seal a 2-1 win for the visitors...
...right, enough about Juve
Napoli struggled, and it took 9 rounds for them to win a game, 1-0 at home to Bari.
Their poor form continued thru-out the season, as they finished 2nd from bottom on 36 points.
Serie B
Napoli till this very day still languish in Serie B...
2001/2002 they finished in 5th place, six points less than Empoli...
2002/2003 they finished in 15th place, just one point above the relegated Catania!!
2003/2004 they finished 14th place in a massively restructured 24 team Serie B!
2004/2005 Okay I have no idea why I cannot find records for Napoli in this season...What I do know is that they were called Napoli Soccer at this time as they were bought about by someone called Aurelio De Laurentis (spelling?). They played in Serie C1/B, and I think they lost a play off against Sambenedettese (?)
2005/2006 Napoli Soccer win the Serie C1 Girone B.....now they're in Serie B.......
and their current roster is:
1 GK Gennaro Iezzo
2 DF Gianluca Grava
4 MF Francesco Montervino
5 MF Fabio Gatti
6 DF Rubén Maldonado
7 MF Ivano Trotta
8 FW Inácio Piá
9 FW Roberto Sosa
11 FW Emanuele Calaiò
14 DF György Garics
16 DF Andrea Cupi
17 MF Marco Capparella
18 MF Mariano Bogliacino
19 DF Mirko Savini
20 MF Roberto De Zerbi
21 MF Nicolás Amodio
22 GK Matteo Gianello
23 DF David Giubilato
24 MF Samuele Dalla Bona
25 MF Luigi Vitale
26 DF Maurizio Domizzi
28 DF Paolo Cannavaro
29 FW Cristian Bucchi
Coached by Edoardo Reja since 2005........He is responsible for managing the current Napoli which is on the rise from achieving first place in C1 to B.
Edoardo Reja's habit of promoting teams isn't a non-familiar site. His most notable achievements are promoting Brescia from Serie B to A in 1996/1997...then he left them for Torino.
He also promoted Vicenza from Serie B to A in 1999/2000, then relegating them in 2000/2001.
Will he be the man to bring glory to Napoli Calcio? Stay tuned.
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