1.
Terni
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Terni listen is a city in the southern portion of the Region of Umbria in central Italy. The city is the capital of the province of Terni, located in the plain of the Nera river and it is 104 kilometres northeast of Rome. It was founded as an Ancient Roman town, during the 19th century, steel mills were introduced and led the city to have a role in the second industrial revolution in Italy. Because of its importance, the city was heavily bombed during World War II by the Allies. It still remains a hub, and has been nicknamed The Steel City. Terni also advertises itself as a City of Lovers, as its patron saint, Saint Valentine, was born and became a bishop here, the city was founded around the 7th century BC by the Umbrians, in a territory inhabited as early as the Bronze Age. In the 3rd century BC it was conquered by the Romans, the Roman name was Interamna, meaning in between two rivers. During the Roman Empire the city was enriched with several buildings, including aqueducts, walls, an amphitheater, after the Lombard conquest in 755 Terni lost prominence when it was reduced to a secondary town in the Duchy of Spoleto. In 1174 it was sacked by Frederick Barbarossas general, Archbishop Christian of Mainz, in the following century Terni was one of sites visited frequently by St. Francis to give sermons. In the 14th century Terni issued its own constitution, and from 1353 the walls were enlarged, and new channels were opened. As with many of the Italian communes of the Late Middle Ages, later it joined the Papal States. In 1580 an ironwork, the Ferriera, was introduced to work the ore mined in Monteleone di Spoleto. In the 17th century, however, the population of Terni declined further due to plagues and famines, in the 19th century, Terni took advantage of the Industrial Revolution and of plentiful water sources in the area. New industries included a steelwork, a foundry, as well as weapons, jute, in 1927 Terni became capital of the province. The presence of important industries made it a target for the Allied bombardments in World War II. On August 11,1943, a massive bombardment devastated the city and it was the first of the 108 air strikes that destroyed 80% of Ternis buildings and buried under the rubble about 1000 civilians. Despite this, industrial environment increased quickly after the war, the city has three important industrial hubs, the first one is the Stainless Steel Area, called AST and is a wide area located in the east part of Terni. West of the town, there is an industrial hub, known as Area Polymer
2.
Luigi De Canio
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Luigi Gigi De Canio is an Italian football manager, last in charge of Udinese, and former player, who played as a Full-back. De Canio, a back, played mostly with Serie C1 and Serie C2 teams, his lone season in Serie B being 1979–80 with Matera. He retired in 1989 with amateur team Pisticci, of which he became head coach. De Canio started his career in 1989 with Promozione team Pisticci, immediately winning the league. He served as Pisticci boss for four seasons before joining Serie C2 team Savoia during the 1993–94 season. In 1995–96 he coached Siena of Serie C1, leading the Robur to an eighth place, in 1997–98 he moved to Serie B club Lucchese, hardly saving them from relegation with a final 16th place. Initially with no club for the season, De Canio was then signed by Pescara. De Canio took charge of a Pescara side that had slumped to 13th place in 1997–98, following his departure from Pescara, it finished 13th again the next season. His impressive coaching performance with Pescara caused interest by Serie A club Udinese and his first Serie A campaign ended in an eighth place for the bianconeri and a place in the UEFA Intertoto Cup, which they successively won, thus ensuring a place in the UEFA Cup 2000–01. He consequently left Napoli and was appointed at the helm of Reggina during the 2002–03 season and he was later sacked by Genoa only a handful days before their Serie B 2004–05 debut to appoint Serse Cosmi at his place. De Canio was announced as first team coach of English Championship team Queens Park Rangers on 29 October 2007 and he started his QPR experience with a 2–0 home win to Hull City on 3 November. Early in January QPR also managed to secure striker Rowan Vine in a permanent move following his loan spell which had ended in December. During his period in charge of the club, De Canio became a popular figure among the QPR faithful, due to the style. As a result he was, along with the owners, immortalised in the supporters song Gigi De Canio, Bernie. De Canio left the club by mutual consent after the end of the season in May 2008 and his record at the club comprised 12 wins,12 losses and 11 draws in 35 games. It has reported that his return to Italy was partly due to a bid to save his marriage and he was sacked on 22 May 2011 as Lecce finished 17th at the end of the 2010–11 season. On 22 April 2012 he was hired again as Genoa head coach, in a attempt to save the team from relegation. On 20 October 2013, De Canio returned into management as he accepted to take over from Rolando Maran at the head of endangered Serie A club Catania, on 15 March 2016, he was appointed manager of Udinese
3.
Serie B
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Serie B, currently named Serie B ConTe. it due to sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega Serie B since July 2010, common nicknames for the league are campionato cadetto and cadetteria, as cadetto is the Italian for junior or cadet. Serie B was composed of 20 teams until the 2002–03 season and it was enlarged to 24 teams for the 2003–04 season due to legal problems relating to Calcio Catania relegation. The league reverted to 22 teams for the 2004–05 season, while Serie A expanded from 18 to 20 teams, during the regular season, each team plays 42 games – two games against every opponent. In Italian football, a true round-robin format is used, in the first half of the season, called andata, each team plays once against all its opponents, a total of 21 games. Since the 2006–07 season, the Serie B champion is awarded the cup Ali della Vittoria, the trophy is 63 cm high and weighs 5 kg. Its structure represents the wings of the goddess Nike, the goddess of victory, Serie B matches are usually played on Saturday. After one year where all games were played on Saturday, the league is again scheduling one game that is played on Friday called anticipo, the league also plays on several Tuesdays to fit in all 42 games. The league also plays on Sunday if Serie A is off, at the end of the season, three teams are promoted to Serie A and four teams are relegated to the reformed Serie C. The top two teams are automatically promoted, under the new playoff format, up to three rounds may be required. The final two rounds are two-legged ties, while opening round matches are single legs hosted by the higher-ranked team, if a tie is drawn at the end of regular play, extra time is played. If the two teams are tied after thirty minutes, the higher classified team advances. In the relegation zone, the three last-placed teams are automatically demoted to Serie C, if the playout is necessary, the 18th and 19th-placed teams are paired in a two-legged series with home-field advantage in the 2nd leg going to the 18th-placed team. The team with the aggregate score remains in Serie B while the loser becomes the fourth team relegated to Serie C. If an aggregate tie exists at the end of play of the 2nd leg, the 18th-placed team is saved. Even if part of the league, differently from First Division. Only in 1928, the big reform was conceived by FIGCs President Leandro Arpinati, after a year, a new second division based on the same national format of the major tournament would be born. Serie B began in 1929 with 18 clubs and continued until World War II after whom it was divided again between the northern and the part of the country, due to the destructions of the war
4.
Kit (association football)
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In association football, kit is the standard equipment and attire worn by players. The sports Laws of the Game specify the minimum kit which a player must use, footballers generally wear identifying numbers on the backs of their shirts. Professional clubs also usually display players surnames or nicknames on their shirts, Football kit has evolved significantly since the early days of the sport when players typically wore thick cotton shirts, knickerbockers and heavy rigid leather boots. The Laws of the Game set out the equipment which must be worn by all players in Law 4. Five separate items are specified, shirt, shorts, socks, footwear, goalkeepers are allowed to wear tracksuit bottoms instead of shorts. While most players wear studded football boots, the Laws do not specify that these are required, shirts must have sleeves, and goalkeepers must wear shirts which are easily distinguishable from all other players and the match officials. Thermal undershorts may be worn, but must be the colour as the shorts themselves. Shin pads must be covered entirely by the stockings, be made of rubber, plastic or a similar material, and provide a reasonable degree of protection. The only other restriction on equipment defined in the Laws of the Game is the requirement that a player must not use equipment or wear anything that is dangerous to himself or another player. In the event of a match between teams who would wear identical or similar colours the away team must change to a different colour. The England national team plays in red shirts even when it is not required. Many professional clubs also have a kit, ostensibly to be used if both their first-choice and away colours are deemed too similar to those of an opponent. Most professional clubs have retained the basic colour scheme for several decades. Teams representing countries in international competition generally wear national colours in common with other sporting teams of the same nation, shirts are normally made of a polyester mesh, which does not trap the sweat and body heat in the same way as a shirt made of a natural fibre. Depending on local rules, there may be restrictions on how large these logos may be or on what logos may be displayed, competitions such as the Premier League may also require players to wear patches on their sleeves depicting the logo of the competition. The captain of team is usually required to wear an elasticated armband around the left sleeve to identify him as the captain to the referee. Most current players wear specialist football boots, which can be either of leather or a synthetic material. Modern boots are cut slightly below the ankles, as opposed to the high-ankled boots used in former times, studs may be either moulded directly to the sole or be detachable, normally by means of a screw thread
5.
Away colours
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Away colours are a choice of coloured clothing used in team sports. They are required to be worn by one team during a game between teams that would wear the same colours as each other, or similar colours. This change prevents confusion for officials, players, and spectators, in most sports it is the visiting team that must change – second-choice kits are commonly known as away kits or change kits in British English, and road uniforms in American English. Some sports leagues mandate that teams must always wear an alternative kit. In some sports, conventionally the home team has changed its kit, in most cases, a team wears its away kit only when its primary kit would clash with the colours of the home team. However, sometimes teams wear away colours by choice, occasionally even in a home game, at some clubs, the away kit has become more popular than the home version. Replica home and away kits are available for fans to buy. Some teams also have produced third-choice kits, or even old-fashioned throwback uniforms, in American sports, road teams usually wear a change uniform regardless of a potential colour clash. Further, almost all road uniforms are white in American football, in the National Basketball Association, home uniforms are white or yellow, and visiting teams wear a darker colour. In the United States, color vs. color games are a rarity, most teams choose to wear their color jerseys at home, with the road team changing to white in most cases. White road uniforms gained prominence with the rise of television in the 1950s, a white vs. color game was easier to follow in black-and-white. According to Phil Hecken, until the mid 1950′s, not only was color versus color common in the NFL, even long after the advent of color television, the use of white jerseys has remained in almost every game. The NFLs current rules require that a home jerseys must be either white or official team color throughout the season. If a team insists on wearing its home uniforms on the road, the road team might instead wear a third jersey, such as the Seattle Seahawks Wolf Grey alternate. According to the Gridiron Uniform Database, the Cleveland Browns wore white for home game of the 1955 season. The only times they wore brown was for games at Philadelphia and the New York Giants, in 1964 the Baltimore Colts, Browns, Vikings and Rams wore white regularly for their home games according to Tim Brulias research. The St. Louis Cardinals wore white for several of their home games, until 1964 Dallas had worn blue at home, but it was not an official rule that teams should wear their colored jerseys at home. The use of white jerseys was instigated by general manager Tex Schramm, the Cowboys still wear white at home today
6.
Third jersey
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Alternate jerseys are also a means for professional sports organizations to generate revenue, by sales to fans. Of North American sports leagues, the NFL generates $1.2 billion annually in jersey sales, another use of the alternate uniform is for identifying with causes, like the Central Coast Mariners wear an alternate pink kit on pink ribbon day. Extra alternate uniforms or fourth/fifth kits are not commonly used, but are required when teams other uniforms cause color clashes. In cases where teams have more than three kits in the same season, the extra kits were usually recycled from previous seasons. Third-choice jerseys or uniforms are used in all four North American major professional sports leagues, Third kits are commonplace in professional European association football and in some professional European rugby union clubs. Alternate guernseys or jerseys are common in Australias two biggest domestic leagues, the Australian Football League and National Rugby League, for home and away jerseys in North America, historical convention has often dictated the colors used by teams in a given league. Teams generally have one jersey which is primarily in a team color, white at home is the convention in baseball, basketball, minor league professional hockey, and college hockey. White while away is the convention in football, major professional hockey. Association football does not have a white at home or a white while away convention, the NBA and NHL both enforce the color/white rule strictly, any NHL team seeking to wear white at home must get express permission from the league office to do so. In American sports, throwback jerseys are generally used for special team games. In American football a third jersey may be a uniform based on designs the team used in the past. In association football, meanwhile, it is commonly a radically different design. Initially, the NFL rule stated that a team may wear their third only once a year. There are currently no rules on wearing alternate pants, teams are also permitted to wear alternate jerseys as often as desired in playoff games, the only team to do so was the 2008 San Diego Chargers. Some teams will use one of their third jersey allotments against a particular division opponent each year. The New York Giants were known to wear their red jerseys at home against the Dallas Cowboys until the red jerseys were retired in 2009. The Washington Redskins wear their uniform on home games to commemorate their annual homecoming game once a year since 2012. When wearing their jerseys, especially if the team is wearing a throwback uniform
7.
Football in Italy
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Football is the most popular sport in Italy. The Italian national football team is considered to be one of the best national teams in the world and they have won the FIFA World Cup four times, trailing only Brazil, runners-up in two finals and reaching a third place. They have also won one European championship, also appearing in two finals, one Olympic football tournament and two Central European International Cups. Italys top domestic league, the Serie A, is one of the most popular sports leagues in the world. Italys club sides have won 48 major European trophies, making them the second most successful nation in European football, Juventus, Milan and Inter, along with Roma, Fiorentina, Lazio and Napoli are known as the Seven Sisters of Italian football. Italian managers are the most successful in European Football, especially in such as the Champions League. More players have won the coveted Ballon dOr award while playing at a Serie A club than any other league in the world, other forms of football were played in Italy in ancient times, the earliest of which was Harpastum, played during the times of the Roman Empire. This game may have also been influential to other forms throughout Europe due to the expansion of the Empire, from the 16th century onwards, Calcio Fiorentino, another code of football distinct from the modern game, was played in the Piazza Santa Croce in Florence. Some famous Florentines were amongst players of the game, particularly the Medici family including Piero, Lorenzo, as well as Popes such as Clement VII, Leo XI and Urban VIII who played the game in the Vatican. The name calcio was later adopted for football in Italy, the modern variation of the game was brought to Italy during the 1880s. Three years later in 1896 a man named James Richardson Spensley arrived in Genoa introducing the football section of the club, however, evidence exists to suggest that the first club may have been from Turin. Edoardo Bosio, a merchant worker in the British textile industry had visited England and he returned to Turin in 1887 and was motivated to help spread football in his homeland. He founded Torino Football and Cricket Club that year while Nobili Torino soon followed, the second club bore the name of noble because it contained the Duke of the Abruzzi and Alfonso Ferrero di Ventimiglia. FIGC created the Italian Football Championship with the four founder clubs been, Genoa, FBC Torinese, Ginnastica Torino, the first competition of which was held at Velodromo Umberto I in Turin on 8 May 1898 and was won by Genoa. While it was common for clubs to compete in both FIGC and FNGI competitions early on, the won in the FIGC championship are the only ones officially recognised by the modern day league. In the following years, the tournament was structured into regional groups with the winners of each participating in a playoff with the eventual winners being declared champions. Until to 1904 the tournament was dominated by Genoa, who won 6 titles in 7 years, between 1905 and 1908 a Final Group among regional champions was contested to award the title and the Spensley Cup. Juventus won his first title and Spensley Cup in 1905, the former championship, where foreign players, too, were allowed to play, was renamed Federal Championship
8.
Umbria
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Umbria, is a region of historic and modern central Italy. It is the only Italian region having neither a coastline nor a border with other countries and it includes the Lake Trasimeno, Marmores Falls, and is crossed by the River Tiber. Umbria is known for its landscapes, traditions, history, culinary delights, artistic legacy, and influence on culture. Contained within Umbria is Cospaia, a republic created by accident that existed from 1440 to 1826 Umbria is bordered by Tuscany to the west, Marche to the east. It is the only Italian region having neither a coastline nor a border with other countries. The commune of Città di Castello has an exclave named Monte Ruperto within Marche. Umbria is crossed by two valleys, the Umbrian valley, stretching from Perugia to Spoleto, and the Tiber Valley, west of the first one, the Tiber River forms the approximate border with Lazio, although its source is just over the Tuscan border. The Tibers three principal tributaries flow southward through Umbria, the Chiascio basin is relatively uninhabited as far as Bastia Umbra. About 10 kilometres farther on, it joins the Tiber at Torgiano, the third river is the Nera, flowing into the Tiber further south, at Terni, its valley is called the Valnerina. The upper Nera cuts ravines in the mountains, the lower, in antiquity, the plain was covered by a pair of shallow, interlocking lakes, the Lacus Clitorius and the Lacus Umber. They were drained by the Romans over several hundred years, an earthquake in the 4th century and the political collapse of the Roman Empire resulted in the refilling of the basin. The eastern part of the region, being crossed by many faults, has often hit by earthquakes, the last ones have been that of 1997. In literature, Umbria is referred to as il cuore verde dItalia, the phrase is taken from a poem by Giosuè Carducci, the subject of which is the source of the Clitunno River in Umbria. The region is named for the Umbri people, an Italic people which was absorbed by the expansion of the Romans, the Umbris capital city was Gubbio, where today is housed the longest and most important document of any of the Osco-Umbrian group of languages, the Iguvine Tablets. In fact, they belonged to a family of neighbouring peoples with similar roots. Their language was Umbrian, one of the Italic languages, related to Latin, the Etruscans were the chief enemies of the Umbri. The Etruscan invasion went from the western seaboard towards the north and east, eventually driving the Umbrians towards the Apennine uplands, nevertheless, the Umbrian population does not seem to have been eradicated in the conquered districts. The border between Etruria and Umbria was the Tiber river, the ancient name of Todi, Tular, after the downfall of the Etruscans, Umbrians aided the Samnites in their struggle against Rome
9.
Serie A
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It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new league, the Lega Serie A, was created for the 2010–11 season. Serie A is regarded as one of the best football leagues in the world, Serie A led the UEFA ranking from 1986 to 1988 and from 1990 to 1999. In its current format, the Italian Football Championship was revised from having regional and interregional rounds, the championship titles won prior to 1929 are officially recognised by FIGC with the same weighting as titles that were subsequently awarded. However, the 1945–46 season, when the league was played over two groups due to the ravages of WWII, is not statistically considered, even if its title is fully official. All the winning teams are recognised with the title of Campione dItalia, Juventus, Italys most successful club of the 20th century and the most successful Italian team, is tied for fourth in Europe and eighth in the world with the most official international titles. The club is also the one in the world to have won all possible official continental competitions. Milan is joint third club for international titles won in the world. Internazionale, following their achievements in the 2009–10 season, became the first Italian team to have achieved a treble, Juventus, Milan and Inter, along with Roma, Fiorentina, Lazio and Napoli, are known as the Seven Sisters of Italian football. For most of Serie As history, there were 16 or 18 clubs competing at the top level, since 2004–05, however, there have been 20 clubs altogether. One season was played with 21 teams for political reasons, thus, in Italian football a true round-robin format is used. In the first half of the season, called the andata, each team plays once against each league opponent, since the 1994–95 season, teams are awarded three points for a win, one point for a draw and no points for a loss. Since Italy is currently rated fourth in Europe in terms of club football ratings, teams finishing fourth and fifth qualify for the UEFA Europa League tournament. A third UEFA Europa League spot is reserved for the winner of the Coppa Italia, if both Coppa Italia finalists finish among the top five teams in Serie A, the sixth-ranked team in Serie A is awarded the UEFA Europa League spot. The three lowest-placed teams are relegated to Serie B, any play-off was held after the end of regular season. The last championship playoff occurred in the 1963-64 season when Bologna, below is a list of Serie A clubs who have competed in the competition when it has been a league format. There are 66 teams that have taken part in 85 Serie A championships in a round that was played from the 1929–30 season until the 2016–17 season. The teams in bold compete in Serie A currently, Internazionale is the only team that has played Serie A football in every season. Serie A, as it is structured today, began during the 1929–1930 season, from 1898 to 1922, the competition was organised into regional groups
10.
A.C. Perugia Calcio
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Associazione Calcistica Perugia Calcio, previously A. C. Perugia, Perugia Calcio and commonly referred to as simply Perugia, is an Italian association football club based in Perugia, Umbria. Founded in 1905 has amongst its best records a runners-up season in Serie A 1978-79, in which they finished unbeaten, the team currently plays in Serie B after promotion from Lega Pro Prima Divisione in 2013–14 season. A. C. Perugia were founded on 9 June 1905, after the merger of U. S. Fortebraccio, promotion to Serie B in 1966 would mark the beginning of one of the clubs most successful periods. Perugia spent the eight years in Serie B before promotion to Serie A for the first time in 1975. In the clubs first Serie A season, Perugia finished eighth with 31 points- just short of a European place, star players in the side included defender Pierluigi Frosio and midfielders Renato Curi and Franco Vannini. The side remained in the top half of the table for the rest of the decade, finishing runners-up in 1979 with 11 wins and 19 draws, however, tragedy and scandal marred this period. In 1977, Curi died of an attack during a league match with Juventus. The Totonero scandal in 1980 led to a 5-point penalty and relegation in 1981, ilario Castagner was coach during this period. The club spent the first half of the 1980s trying to get back to Serie A, another scandal in 1986 forced Perugia down to Serie C2. It was during this time that Fabrizio Ravanelli would be discovered, he would go on to a career with Reggiana, Juventus, Middlesbrough. The controversial and eccentric Luciano Gaucci took control of the club, the side returned to Serie B in 1994 and under the guidance of Giovanni Galeone reached Serie A in 1996. Perugia started well before Gauccis decision to replace Galeone with Nevio Scala, the sides form subsequently declined before a late rally gave them a chance of survival- a 2–1 defeat at Piacenza in the final round sealed their fate. With Castagner back in charge, Perugia won a play-off with Torino to secure a return to the top flight, the next six seasons saw Perugia hold their own in Serie A with foreign imports including the Japanese international Hidetoshi Nakata in 1998. Ahns national manager Guus Hiddink spoke out against the sacking, following the outcry, Ahns sacking was reversed, but by then the player himself expressed no desire to return to the club anymore. In the Summer of 2003, Perugia signed English striker Jay Bothroyd, soon after, the club were one of three winners of the 2003 UEFA Intertoto Cup after beating VfL Wolfsburg of Germany 3–0 on aggregate. This qualified the team to the 2003-04 UEFA Cup, in which they were eliminated in the round by PSV Eindhoven. The new chairman Vincenzo Silvestrini had re-established the club in 2005 as Perugia Calcio, after a takeover, in 2009 Perugia Calcio property passed to Perugian entrepreneur and former Pisa owner and chairman Leonardo Covarelli. On 21 May 2010 the Court of Perugia declared the bankruptcy of Perugia Calcio srl, nobody decided to take over the society at the subsequent auction and on 30 June 2010 the club was unable to join the Italian third level championship 2010–2011
11.
Baconin Borzacchini
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Baconin Borzacchini was an Italian Grand Prix motor racing driver often referred to as Mario Umberto Borzacchini. Born Baconino Francesco Domenico Borzacchini in Terni in the Umbria region of Italy, at age 14 he began working in a garage, after service in the army during World War I, he began racing motorcycles before turning to automobile competitions in 1926. During the next two years he won six Italian hillclimbing events driving a Salmson and he earned victories at three significant Italian races including the Etna Cup at Catania and the 1100cc class at the 1926 and 1927 Targa Florio where he beat fellow up-and-comer Luigi Fagioli. Borzacchinis success ultimately led to an offer to join the Maserati racing team and driving for them, he won the 1927 Terni-Passo della Somma, in 1928 he drove a Maserati to first place in the Coppa Gallenga hillclimb at Rocca di Papa. On 28 September 1929, Baconin Borzacchini set a new flying 10-kilometre land speed record of 246.069 km/h in a Maserati V4 and that same year, he finished second in the Circuito di Alessandria and in the Tripoli Grand Prix. Maserati entered the 1930 Indianapolis 500, unfortunately, magneto problems forced him out of the race after just three laps. However, Borzacchini and his Maserati claimed victory at the 1930 Tripoli Grand Prix and won another hillclimbing event, in 1931 he signed to drive Alfa Romeos for Scuderia Ferrari where he became a great friend of team-mate Tazio Nuvolari. Although he won the Circuito di Avellino, Baconin Borzacchinis season was dogged by bad luck and the brilliance of Nuvolari. He finished second at the Targa Florio, the Grand Prix of Monza, at the 1932 French Grand Prix and the Coppa Ciano, driving the new Alfa Romeo P3 Borzacchini finished second behind team mate Nuvolari and third at Germanys Großer Preis von Deutschland. However, with co-driver Amadeo Bignami, he won the gruelling Mille Miglia, when Alfa Romeo decided to withdraw from racing after the 1932 season and sold its cars to Enzo Ferrari, Borzacchini rejoined the Maserati team. United with Luigi Fagioli and Giuseppe Campari, in March 1933 he picked up where he had left off the previous year, finishing second to Nuvolari at the Grand Prix of Tunisia. In April he took second at the Monaco Grand Prix. At the 1933 Targa Florio, held at the Circuito Piccolo delle Madonie, Borzacchini set the pace with the fastest lap,10 September 1933 at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza was one of the blackest days in racing history. The Italian Grand Prix was held in the morning without serious incident, in an effort by the organizers to attract the largest possible crowd, another event called the Monza Grand Prix, using only the banked oval circuit, was staged in the afternoon. Borzacchini tried unsuccessfully to avoid the oil, and his car spun down to the infield, Borzacchini was taken to the hospital, where he died later that day. During his years of racing, Baconin Borzacchini participated in more than one hundred events, although his number of victories is considerably less than some of the other Italian racing notables, he was much loved and respected by his countrymen. In his honor, the circuit in Magione in the Province of Perugia in Umbria, Baconin Borzacchini is interred in the local cemetery in his native Terni. Camaiore Circuit 1926 Targa Florio 1926,1927 Etna Cup 1928 Tripoli Grand Prix 1930 Coppa Principe di Piemonte 1931 Mille Miglia 1932 Official site
12.
Serie D
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Serie D is the top level of the Italian non-professional football association called Lega Nazionale Dilettanti. The association represents over twelve thousand football players and four hundred football teams across Italy, Serie D ranks just below Lega Pro, and is thus considered the 4th ranked league in the country. It is organized by the Roman Comitato Interregionale, a league in the league inside the LND and it chose the winners and a few runners-up from the 36 Serie C championships to be added to the new third division set up into 4 groups. The rest of the attended the new Promozione which changed name in 1952 into Quarta Serie. From 1959 each player attending the Serie D championships had to opt for semi-professional status by signing a specially issued status attribution form, the championship was so included in the Lega Nazionale Semiprofessionisti, today known as Lega Pro. The championship consequently passed into the Lega Nazionale Dilettanti, from 1992 to 1999 had the name changed into Campionato Nazionale Dilettanti before eventually returning to the current Serie D name. Since the early 1990s, Serie D has consisted of 162 teams split into 9 regional divisions, usually formed of 18 teams each divided geographically. For the 2012–13 season, the teams were 166 and two groups were formed of 20 teams, in the 2013–14 season the number was 161, for 2014–15 their distribution by region is as follows, Girone A - teams from Aosta Valley, Piedmont, Liguria & Lombardy. Girone B - teams from Lombardy & Veneto, Girone C - teams from Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol & Veneto. Girone D - teams from Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany & Veneto, Girone E - teams from Lazio, Tuscany & Umbria. Girone F - teams from Abruzzo, Lazio, Marche & Molise, Girone G - teams from Lazio & Sardinia. Girone H - teams from Apulia, Basilicata & Campania, Girone I - teams from Calabria, Campania & Sicily. The first-placed team from each division is promoted to Lega Pro each year, if a newly promoted Serie D team fails to meet the requirements, Lega Pro asks the second-placed team in that Serie D teams division to fill the vacancy. Failing that, even the team may fill the vacancy. In recent years, one or more teams from the senior leagues from Serie A down to Lega Pro Seconda Divisione failed to meet the regulatory or financial requirements to remain there and these vacancies were usually announced in the summer rest period as the new season was being organized. As teams moved up to fill the void created by these failed teams, for example, in the 2007-08 season there were nine such failures, and thus, nine Lega Pro Seconda Divisione spaces were created. Four of those spaces were filled by calling back teams that had played in Seconda Divisione but were relegated to Serie D for the next season, the other five vacancies were filled by Serie D teams that had participated in the Serie D playoffs. Playoffs are held after the season is over and involve teams placed second through fifth in each division
13.
Cesare Maldini
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Cesare Maldini was an Italian professional football manager and player, who played as a defender. He retired in 1967, after a season with Torino, internationally, he played for the Italian national team, earning 14 caps and participating in the 1962 World Cup. He served as captain for both Milan and Italy. As a manager, he coached his former club Milan on two occasions, as well as Italian sides Foggia, Ternana and Parma. The son of Albino Maldini, a sailor, and Maria, Cesare Maldini was born in Trieste, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Cesare Maldinis mother may have been an ethnic Slovenian but reference to this is not very reliable. His fathers roots were from Padova, however, as a lineage of Maldinis originated from there. Cesare Maldini never referenced any origins other than his Italian ones and he married Maria Luisa in 1962, together they had six children, three sons and three daughters. One of his sons, Paolo, also had a football career as a defender with Milan. The younger Maldini captained Milan to the UEFA Champions League title in 2003 and 2007, Maldinis grandsons Christian and Daniel play football in the Milan youth teams. Maldini began his career with local side Triestina, in 1952. In total, he made 347 appearances for Milan in Serie A, scoring 3 goals, and made 412 appearances for the club in all competitions. Maldini won four titles with Milan, and also later became the teams captain in 1961, a role which he held for several years, until he left the club. He made his appearance for Milan on 22 May 1966, in a 6–1 home win over Catania. In 1966 he moved to Torino for a season, before retiring in 1967, he made his final Serie A appearance on 28 May, the team suffered a disappointing and controversial first-round elimination, although he was named to the team of the tournament for his performances. He made his appearance for Italy in a European championship qualifier in Moscow, in 1963. He was sacked by the club in 1974, following a disappointing 2–1 defeat to Verona on 6 April, and was replaced by Giovanni Trapattoni for the final few games of the season. Between 1980 and 1986, he was one of Enzo Bearzots assistants for the Italian national team, and even served as his assistant manager during the 1982 FIFA World Cup in Spain and he also coached the Italian Olympic teams that took part at the 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympics. Following his successes with the Under-21 side, Maldini took charge of the team in December 1996
14.
A.S. Roma
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Associazione Sportiva Roma, commonly referred to as simply Roma, is a professional Italian football club based in Rome. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma have participated in the top-tier of Italian football for all of their existence except for 1951–52, for their 65th season in a row, Roma are competing in Serie A for the 2016–17 season. Roma have won Serie A three times, first in 1941–42 then in 1982–83 and again in 2000–01, as well as winning nine Coppa Italia titles and two Supercoppa Italiana titles. On the European stage Roma won an Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in 1960–61, coming close to European Cup victory in 1983–84, therefore, Roma is the fourth Italian club by major honours won, behind Juventus, Milan and Inter. Home games are played at the Stadio Olimpico, a venue they share with city rivals Lazio. With a capacity of over 72,000, it is the second largest of its kind in Italy, in September 2009 the club unveiled plans to build a Stadio della Roma in the western suburbs of Rome. Its design was modelled after English football stadiums with the objective being to give fans a view of the pitch. In September 2011, it was announced that the new president, Thomas R. DiBenedetto, had reached an agreement with the mayor of Rome, Gianni Alemanno, to have the new stadium completed by 2016. The purpose of the merger was to give the Italian capital a strong club to rival that of the more dominant Northern Italian clubs of the time. The only major Roman club to resist the merger was S. S. Lazio because of the intervention of the army General Vaccaro, member of the club and executive of Italian Football Federation. An early season in which Roma made a mark was the 1930–31 championship. Captain Attilio Ferraris along with Guido Masetti, Fulvio Bernardini and Rodolfo Volk were highly important players during this period, after a slump in league form and the departure of high key players, Roma eventually rebuilt their squad adding goalscorers such as the Argentine Enrique Guaita. Under the management of Luigi Barbesino, the Roman club came close to their first title in 1935–36, Roma returned to form after being inconsistent for much of the late 1930s, Roma recorded an unexpected title triumph in the 1941–42 season by winning their first ever scudetto title. The eighteen goals scored by local player Amedeo Amadei were essential to the Alfréd Schaffer coached Roma side winning the title, at the time Italy was involved in World War II and Roma were playing at the Stadio del Partito Nazionale Fascista. In the years just after the war, Roma were unable to recapture their league stature from the early 1940s, under future national team manager Giuseppe Viani, promotion straight back up was achieved. After returning to the Serie A, Roma managed to stabilise themselves as a top half club again with such as Egisto Pandolfini, Dino Da Costa. Although Roma were unable to break into the top four during the following decade and their first honour outside of Italy was recorded in 1960–61 when Roma won the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup by beating Birmingham City 4–2 in the finals. A few years later Roma won their first Coppa Italia trophy in 1963–64, supporters kept the club going with a fundraiser at the Sistine Theatre and bankruptcy was avoided with the election of a new club president Franco Evangelisti
15.
S.S. Chieti Calcio
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Società Sportiva Chieti Calcio is an Italian association football club, based in Chieti, Abruzzo. Currently it plays in Serie D. Chieti was founded in 1922 as Calcio Chieti with a capital of 50 cents. The First World War had just ended, the football came from the distant echo of the successes of Pro Vercelli, Novese, Milan, Inter, Juventus, Genoa and so on. One day in the Villa Comunale, Nicola De Cesare tossed with some friends and it joined other people with the sum of £0.50 was paid the dues and was born RISS. The RISS played in the first few games against teams in the central Civitella military, the enthusiasm for sport was rising huge. Existed in the year the Sport Club Chieti, who for many years not doing any sport. There was a meeting between the RISS, Novell and Sport Cub Chieti and Chieti was formed with the U. S, Chieti played 2005/2006 in Serie C1/B, ending last-placed and being therefore relegated to Serie C2 for the next season. The team was cancelled by the federation because of financial troubles. Chieti, asked to be admitted to play Promozione, claiming Article 52 of N. O. I. F, Chieti gained promotion to Serie D in 2008. Since 2010–11 season, S. S. Chieti Calcio plays in Lega Pro Seconda Divisione, in 2012–13, the team was playing at the fourth tier of Italian football, managing to get to the promotion playoffs, after securing a draw in the last matchday against Arzanese. The goalscorer that sealed the qualification of the team to the playoffs was Massimiliano Barbone, the teams colours are green and black. The pennant team has undergone various tweaks over the years, in 2006, following the failure of the pennant ASD Chieti rudimentary style has been reinvented AS Roma. The last change was made in the summer of 2008 when the emblem was added to one side the Achilles horse, symbol of the city of Chieti and just, therefore. In the first 9 years of the stadium has been named Marrucino, Italian internationals Enrico Chiesa Fabio Grosso Fabio Quagliarella Official Club Website
16.
S.S. Teramo Calcio
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Società Sportiva Teramo Calcio is an Italian association football club based in Teramo, Abruzzo. Since the 2015–16 season, the club has played in Lega Pro, after several seasons in Serie C1, Teramo had a difficult 2006–07 season, finishing in 15th place, a position that forced them to play in the relegation playoffs. The club lost by a margin, 4–2 on aggregate to the 16th-place team, Ancona. In the 2007–08 campaign, the team finished 8th in Serie C2/B, the team was refounded for the 2008–09 season, and won the league of Promozione Abruzzo A, the seventh level of Italian football. The following year Teramo also won the Eccellenza Abruzzo, obtaining promotion to Serie D, in its first Serie D season Teramo Calcio lost the final to Lega Pro Seconda Divisione against Rimini Calcio and won the league the following year acceding directly to Lega Pro Seconda Divisione. In its first season in Lega Pro Seconda Divisione, Teramo Calcio achieved the final to Lega Pro Prima Divisione where it lost in a 2-game showdown against LAquila Calcio. In 2013–14 season then Teramo played again in Lega Pro Seconda Divisione and secured the promotion on 6 April 2014, the following season the white and reds won a historic Lega Pro division acceding to Serie B for the first time in their 102 years of history. Since the new society has been refounded 7 years ago, Teramo Calcio has been promoted 5 times and has lost 2 finals, in the 2014–15 it won promotion to Serie B, but it was revoked and was stripped of its title for sporting fraud. As of 22 January 2017 Note, Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules, players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality. For a full list of players, see Teramo Calcio players Official site
17.
A.S.D. Narnese Calcio
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Associazione Sportiva Dilettantistica Narnese Calcio is an Italian association football club located in Narni, Umbria. It currently plays in Serie D, in the 2012–2013 season, winning the Eccellenza Umbria, the team returns in Serie D after 6 years. Its colors are red and blue and its symbol is a griffin rampant left
18.
A.S. Viterbese Castrense
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Associazione Sportiva Viterbese Calcio is an Italian association football club, based in Viterbo, Lazio. Viterbese currently plays in Lega Pro, the club was founded in 1908 and refounded in 2004 as A. S. Viterbo Calcio, but returned to the name during the summer 2006. The teams colors are yellow and blue, as of 29 January,2017 Note, Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality
19.
Luigi Delneri
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Luigi Gigi Delneri, often incorrectly written as Del Neri is an Italian football manager, who is currently in charge of Udinese. Born at Aquileia, Udine, Delneri made his debut as player at the age of 16 for SPAL, Ferraras football team. After playing for Foggia and Novara, he moved to Udinese, with whom he gained promotion to Serie A, Italys top division. He was later traded to Sampdoria and then to Vicenza, Siena, Pro Gorizia and Opitergina, a team from Oderzo. After his retirement as a player, Delneri stayed at Oderzo, in 1986, he signed for Serie D team Pro Gorizia. He then coached Partinicaudace, a minor Sicilian Serie D team, in 1989, Teramo, Ravenna, Novara and Nocerina of Serie C2, with this last team he won the league and promotion to Serie C1. He then moved to Ternana of Serie C2, guiding it to Serie B after two consecutive promotions, in 2000, Delneri signed with Chievo of Serie B, a team representing a small quarter of the city of Verona. In the summer of 2004, Delneri was signed by Champions League holders Porto and he maintained that he wanted to return to Italy for personal reasons. Signed in October 2004 by Roma to replace Rudi Völler, he in turn left this position in March 2005 after a series of defeats. In mid-2005, Delneri accepted the offer of Palermo to coach the Sicilian team, after a 3–1 defeat at home against Siena, Delneri was fired on 28 January 2006. On 16 October 2006, Delneri returned to coach Chievo, replacing Giuseppe Pillon, despite a strong start, he did not manage to save his side from relegation, losing a spot in the following seasons Serie A with a 2–0 loss to Catania on the final matchday. Following the relegation, Delneri announced he was leaving Chievo and he was announced as new Atalanta boss in June 2007. After two seasons in Bergamo, he left to take over at Sampdoria on 1 June 2009 and he guided Sampdoria to a surprising fourth-place finish in which they beat Internazionale, Milan, Juventus and Roma. As a result of Sampdorias league position, the received a spot to the third qualifying round of the 2010–11 UEFA Champions League. Delneri left the blucerchiati the day after his team secured fourth place, on 19 May 2010, Delneri was appointed as coach of Juventus after he quit as coach of Sampdoria on 17 May 2010. On the day of his appointment, Delneri stated, I want to build a team with a definite identity and we want to return to the level that Juventus has always played throughout its century and recreate a winning mentality. Ive won some hard challenges and it isnt easy, but it has allowed me to be considered by a big club, I know full well that we need a lot of quality to achieve our aims. But we need continuity and if we achieve that we might be able to reach our goals earlier, after a slow start to the new season, the Turin-based side kept their first clean sheet since October in a 4–0 win over Udinese
20.
ACF Fiorentina
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ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as simply Fiorentina, is a professional Italian football club from Florence, Tuscany. Fiorentina has won two Italian Championships, in 1955–56 and again in 1968–69, as well as six Coppa Italia trophies, on the European stage, Fiorentina won the UEFA Cup Winners Cup in 1960–61 and lost the final one year later. Since 1931, the club have played at the Stadio Artemio Franchi, the stadium has used several names over the years and has undergone several renovations. Fiorentina are known widely by the nickname Viola, a reference to their distinctive purple colours, the aim of the merger was to give Florence a strong club to rival those of the more dominant Italian Football Championship sides of the time from Northwest Italy. Also influential was the revival and rediscovery of Calcio Fiorentino. After a rough start and three seasons in lower leagues, Fiorentina reached the Serie A in 1931 and that same year saw the opening of the new stadium, originally named after Giovanni Berta, after a prominent fascist, but now known as Stadio Artemio Franchi. At the time, the stadium was a masterpiece of engineering, to be able to compete with the best teams in Italy, Fiorentina strengthened their team with some new players, notably the Uruguayan Pedro Petrone, nicknamed el Artillero. Despite enjoying a season and finishing in fourth place, Fiorentina were relegated the following year. In 1941, they won their first Coppa Italia, but the team were unable to build on their success during the 1940s because of World War II, in 1950, Fiorentina started to achieve consistent top-five finishes in the domestic league. This team won Fiorentinas first scudetto in 1955–56,12 points ahead of second-place Milan, Fiorentina were runners-up again in the three subsequent seasons. In the 1960–61 season, the won the Coppa Italia again and was also successful in Europe. After several years of runner-up finishes, Fiorentina dropped away slightly in the 1960s, bouncing from fourth to sixth place, although the club won the Coppa Italia and the Mitropa Cup in 1966. While the 1960s did result in some trophies and good Serie A finishes for Fiorentina, the 1968–69 season started with Milan as frontrunners, but on matchday 7, they lost to Bologna and were overtaken by Gigi Rivas Cagliari. Fiorentina, after a start, then moved to the top of the Serie A. The second half of the season was a battle between the three contending teams, Milan, Cagliari and Fiorentina. Milan fell away, instead focusing their efforts on the European Cup, after Cagliari lost against Juventus, however, Fiorentina took over at the top. The team then won all of their matches, beating rivals Juve in Turin on the penultimate matchday to seal their second. Viola players began the 1970s decade with Scudetto sewed on their breast, after a fifth-place finish in 1971, they finished in mid-table almost every year, even flirting with relegation in 1972 and 1978
21.
FIFA eligibility rules
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In the 20th century, FIFA allowed a player to represent any national team, as long as the player held citizenship of that country. FIFA has used its authority to overturn results of competitive matches that feature ineligible players. FIFAs eligibility rules also demand that in mens competitions, only men are eligible to play, historically, it was possible for players to play for different national teams. For example, Alfredo di Stefano played for Argentina and Spain, di Stefanos Real Madrid team-mate Ferenc Puskás also played for Spain after amassing 85 caps for Hungary earlier in his career. Other 20th century examples of players officially representing more than one country – excluding those resulting from changes to geopolitical borders e. g. e, fixtures not recognised by FIFA as full internationals. These caps are not officially recognised due to a dispute between FIFA and the Colombian Football Federation at the time, the first player to do so was Antar Yahia, who played for the France under-18s before representing Algeria in qualifiers for the 2004 Olympic Games. In March 2004, FIFA amended its policy on international eligibility. An emergency FIFA committee ruling judged that players must be able to demonstrate a connection to a country that they had not been born in. Defender Nikola Vujadinović, for example, would be eligible to play for the teams of Serbia or Montenegro. In June 2009, FIFA Congress passed a motion that removed the age limit for players who had played for a countrys national team at youth level to change national associations. This ruling features in Article 18 of the Regulations Governing the Application of the FIFA Statutes, thiago Motta has three caps for Brazil in matches deemed friendlies for Brazil and now represents Italy. Mehdi Carcela-González was born and raised in Belgium, and won two caps for Belgium in official friendly matches before switching to his nation of Morocco in 2011. Diego Costa represented Brazil in 2 friendlies before switching his allegiances to Spain in 2013, apostolos Giannou represented Greece in a friendly in 2015, before switching his allegiances to Australia, making his debut for the latter in March 2016. A FIFA Players Status Committee is responsible for making such judgements, FIFA takes punitive action against teams that field ineligible players. In August 2011, FIFA expelled Syria from the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification process following the appearance of George Mourad in a qualification match against Tajikistan. Mourad had made friendly match appearances for Sweden earlier in his career, after the game, a protest was lodged by their opponents Vanuatu, on the basis that Wynne was not an eligible player. As Wynne was 20 years old, it was impossible for him to have lived in New Zealand for five years after the age of 18. This protest was upheld by the Oceania Football Confederation, resulting in New Zealand being disqualified, there are 25 FIFA member associations that share a common nationality with at least one other FIFA member association
22.
Italy
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Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe. Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino, Italy covers an area of 301,338 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate and Mediterranean climate. Due to its shape, it is referred to in Italy as lo Stivale. With 61 million inhabitants, it is the fourth most populous EU member state, the Italic tribe known as the Latins formed the Roman Kingdom, which eventually became a republic that conquered and assimilated other nearby civilisations. The legacy of the Roman Empire is widespread and can be observed in the distribution of civilian law, republican governments, Christianity. The Renaissance began in Italy and spread to the rest of Europe, bringing a renewed interest in humanism, science, exploration, Italian culture flourished at this time, producing famous scholars, artists and polymaths such as Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. The weakened sovereigns soon fell victim to conquest by European powers such as France, Spain and Austria. Despite being one of the victors in World War I, Italy entered a period of economic crisis and social turmoil. The subsequent participation in World War II on the Axis side ended in defeat, economic destruction. Today, Italy has the third largest economy in the Eurozone and it has a very high level of human development and is ranked sixth in the world for life expectancy. The country plays a prominent role in regional and global economic, military, cultural and diplomatic affairs, as a reflection of its cultural wealth, Italy is home to 51 World Heritage Sites, the most in the world, and is the fifth most visited country. The assumptions on the etymology of the name Italia are very numerous, according to one of the more common explanations, the term Italia, from Latin, Italia, was borrowed through Greek from the Oscan Víteliú, meaning land of young cattle. The bull was a symbol of the southern Italic tribes and was often depicted goring the Roman wolf as a defiant symbol of free Italy during the Social War. Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus states this account together with the legend that Italy was named after Italus, mentioned also by Aristotle and Thucydides. The name Italia originally applied only to a part of what is now Southern Italy – according to Antiochus of Syracuse, but by his time Oenotria and Italy had become synonymous, and the name also applied to most of Lucania as well. The Greeks gradually came to apply the name Italia to a larger region, excavations throughout Italy revealed a Neanderthal presence dating back to the Palaeolithic period, some 200,000 years ago, modern Humans arrived about 40,000 years ago. Other ancient Italian peoples of undetermined language families but of possible origins include the Rhaetian people and Cammuni. Also the Phoenicians established colonies on the coasts of Sardinia and Sicily, the Roman legacy has deeply influenced the Western civilisation, shaping most of the modern world
23.
Goalkeeper (association football)
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Goalkeeper, often shortened to keeper or goalie, is one of the major positions of association football. It is the most specialised position in the sport, the goalkeepers primary role is to prevent the opposing team from successfully moving the ball over the defended goal-line. This is accomplished by the moving into the path of the ball. Within the penalty area goalkeepers are able to use their hands, goalkeepers usually perform goal kicks, and also give commands to their defence during corner kicks, direct and indirect free kicks, and marking. Goalkeepers play an important role in directing on field strategy as they have a view of the entire pitch. If an attacker on the opposing team obstructs the keeper from catching or saving the ball, for example, in a corner, it will normally be a free kick. If a goalkeeper is injured or sent off, a goalkeeper has to take their place. In order to replace a goalkeeper who is sent off, a team usually substitutes an outfield player for the backup keeper and they then play the remainder of the match with nine outfield players. Goalkeepers often have longer playing careers than players, many not retiring until their late thirties or early forties. This can be explained by noting that goalkeepers play a physically demanding position that requires significantly less running. For example, Peter Shilton played for 31 years between 1966 and 1997 before retiring at the age of 47. Because only one player can play in goal and the position is so specialised many professional teams on average especially at the highest level have one player as first-choice for many years, for example Gianlugi Buffon has played as first choice keeper for Juventus for more than 15 years. Petr Cech prior to his move to Aresnal was first choice keeper for Chelsea between 2004 and 2015, the squad number for a first choice goalkeeper is generally number 1. Although this is common, some goalkeepers now wear other numbers when in goal, association football, like many sports, has experienced many changes in tactics resulting in the generation and elimination of different positions. Goalkeeper is the position that is certain to have existed since the codification of the sport. The earliest account of football teams with player positions comes from Richard Mulcaster in 1581, the earliest specific reference to keeping goal comes from Cornish Hurling in 1602. One of these is appointed by lots, to the one side, there is assigned for their guard, a couple of their best stopping Hurlers. Other references to scoring goals begin in English literature in the early 16th century, for example, in John Days play The Blind Beggar of Bethnal Green, Ill play a gole at camp-ball
24.
Defender (association football)
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In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposing team from scoring goals. There are four types of defenders, centre-back, sweeper, full-back, the centre-back and full-back positions are essential in most modern formations. The sweeper and wing-back roles are more specialised for certain formations, a centre-back defends in the area directly in front of the goal, and tries to prevent opposing players, particularly centre-forwards, from scoring. Centre-backs accomplish this by blocking shots, tackling, intercepting passes, contesting headers, with the ball, centre-backs are generally expected to make long and pinpoint passes to their teammates, or to kick unaimed long balls down the field. For example, a clearance is a long unaimed kick intended to move the ball as far as possible from the defenders goal, during normal play, centre-backs are unlikely to score goals. In this case, other defenders or midfielders will temporarily move into the centre-back positions, in the modern game, most teams employ two or three centre-backs in front of the goalkeeper. The 4–2–3–1, 4–3–3, and 4–4–2 formations all use two centre-backs, the sweeper is a more versatile centre-back who sweeps up the ball if an opponent manages to breach the defensive line. This position is more fluid than that of other defenders who man-mark their designated opponents. Because of this, it is referred to as libero. For example, the system of play, used in Italian football in the 1960s. The more modern libero possesses the qualities of the typical libero while being able to expose the opposition during counterattacks. The Fundell-libero has become popular in recent time with the sweeper transitioning to the most advanced forward in an attack. This variation on the position requires great pace and fitness, while rarely seen in professional football, the position has been extensively used in lower leagues. Modern libero sit behind centre-backs as a sweeper before charging through the team to join in the attack, some sweepers move forward and distribute the ball up-field, while others intercept passes and get the ball off the opposition without needing to hurl themselves into tackles. If the sweeper does move up the field to distribute the ball, they will need to make a speedy recovery, in modern football, its usage has been fairly restricted, with few clubs in the biggest leagues using the position. Though it is used in modern football, it remains a highly respected. A recent and successful use of the sweeper was made by Otto Rehhagel, Greeces manager, Rehhagel utilized Traianos Dellas as Greeces sweeper to great success, as Greece surprisingly became European champions. The full-backs take up the wide positions and traditionally stayed in defence at all times
25.
Midfielder
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A midfielder is an association football position. Midfielders are generally positioned on the field between their teams defenders and forwards, some midfielders play a disciplined defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are otherwise known as defensive midfielders. Others blur the boundaries, being mobile and efficient in passing, they are commonly referred to as deep-lying midfielders, play-makers, box-to-box. The number of midfielders on a team and their assigned roles depends on the teams formation, most managers assign at least one midfielder to disrupt the opposing teams attacks, while others may be tasked with creating goals, or have equal responsibilities between attack and defence. Midfielders are the players who typically travel the greatest distance during a match, central or centre midfielders are players whose role is divided roughly equally between attack and defence. When the opposing team has the ball, a midfielder may drop back to protect the goal or move forward. The 4–3–3 and 4–5–1 formations each use three central midfielders, the 4−4−2 formation may use two central midfielders, and in the 4–2–3–1 formation one of the two deeper midfielders may be a central midfielder. The term box-to-box midfielder refers to central midfielders who have abilities and are skilled at both defending and attacking. These players can track back to their own box to make tackles and block shots. A good box-to-box midfielder needs good passing, vision, control, stamina, tackling and marking in defence, left and right midfielders have a role balanced between attack and defence, similar to that of central midfielders, but they are positioned closer to the touchlines of the pitch. They may be asked to cross the ball into the penalty area to make scoring chances for their teammates. Common modern formations that include left and right midfielders are the 4−4−2, the 4−4−1−1, the 4–2–3–1, a notable example of a right midfielder is David Beckham. Defensive midfielders are players who focus on protecting their teams goal. These players may defend a zone in front of their teams defence, defensive midfielders may also move to the full-back or centre-back positions if those players move forward to join in an attack. Sergio Busquets described his attitude, The coach knows that I am an obedient player who likes to help out and if I have to run to the wing to cover someones position, great. A good defensive midfielder needs good positional awareness, anticipation of play, marking, tackling, interceptions, passing and great stamina. A holding or deep-lying midfielder stays close to their teams defence, a player in this role will try to protect their goal by disrupting the opponents attacking moves and stopping long shots on the goal. The holding midfielder may also have responsibilities when their team has the ball and this player will make mostly short and simple passes to more attacking members of their team but may try some more difficult passes depending on the teams strategy
26.
Giuseppe Vives
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Giuseppe Vives is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Pro Vercelli. In 2000–2001 he played for Juve Stabia in Serie C2 and the year after for Nardò, in 2001–2002, he was acquired for 800,000 lire by Ancona, coached by Luciano Spalletti. In the 2002–2003, he collected a mere appearance for Taranto in Serie C1 and at the end of the returns to Ancona. In the 2003–2004 season he was acquired by Giugliano of Serie C2, finally being able to play with continuity, after 3 seasons with the Campania side, he collects 101 appearances and scores 6 goals, attracting the attention of many Serie A and Serie B clubs. In the summer of 2006, after rumours of him joining Salernitana, Avellino, Cavese and even Napoli. In the 2006–2007 Serie B season, he became a cornerstone of the Salento midfield, able to play in a cover. He scored his first goal in the cadets against Triestina and repeated himself on the last day of the season against Pescara. On 31 August 2008 he made his debut in Serie A in Torino-Lecce 3-0 and 28 January 2009 scored his first goal in the top flight by scoring the momentary advantage in Verona against Chievo Verona. His first season in the top flight concluded with 18 appearances and a goal, the following season Lecce won their eighth promotion to Serie A. The coach Luigi De Canio showed great confidence in Vives and his quality of play, Vives was instated as vice-captain of the side and at the end of the season was voted by the newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport as the best midfielder in Serie B. On 3 October 2010, the sixth matchday of the 2010–2011 Serie A, the Lecce formation coached by De Canio, achieved salvation on the penultimate day of the season. On 14 July 2011, he was sold to Torino in Serie B for €500,000 and he made his competitive debut on 13 August 2011 in Coppa Italia, won 1–0 against Lumezzane. On 10 December he scored his first goal for Torino in a 4–2 win against Pescara, at the end of the season Torino were promoted to Serie A, with Vives contributing 29 appearances and two goals. On 22 December 2013, he scored his first goal for Torino in Serie A during a 4–1 win against Chievo, on 1 August 2014, he made his debut in UEFA competitions in a 3–0 defeat of Brommapojkarna. On 25 November 2015 he renewed his contract with the club until 2017, in the summer of 2016, following the transfer of teammate Kamil Glik to Monaco, he was assigned the captains armband. Having lost his position in the lineup to Mirko Valdifiori. At the end of the match he was given a standing ovation under the Curva Maratona and he concluded his experience in Turin after five-and-a-half seasons,164 appearances and five goals. On 30 January 2017 he moved to Pro Vercelli in Serie B, Serie B Lecce, Serie B 2009–2010 LECCE Vives profile at Tuttocalciatori. com Giuseppe Vives at Soccerway
27.
Uruguay
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Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in the southeastern region of South America. It borders Argentina to its west and Brazil to its north and east, with the Río de la Plata to the south and the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast. Uruguay is home to an estimated 3.42 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the area of its capital and largest city. With an area of approximately 176,000 square kilometres, Uruguay is geographically the second-smallest nation in South America, only larger in size than Suriname. Uruguay was inhabited by the Charrúa people for approximately 4000 years before the Portuguese established Colonia del Sacramento, one of the oldest European settlements in the region, in 1680. Montevideo was founded as a stronghold by the Spanish in the early 18th century. Uruguay won its independence between 1811 and 1828, following a struggle between Spain, Portugal, Argentina and Brazil. It remained subject to influence and intervention throughout the 19th century. Modern Uruguay is a constitutional republic, with a president who serves as both head of state and head of government. Uruguay is ranked first in Latin America in democracy, peace, lack of corruption, e-government, on a per-capita basis, Uruguay contributes more troops to United Nations peace-keeping missions than any other country. It ranks second in the region on economic freedom, income equality, per-capita income, Uruguay is the third-best country on the continent in terms of HDI, GDP growth, innovation and infrastructure. It is regarded as a country by the UN. Uruguay is also the third-best ranked in the world in e-Participation, Uruguay is an important global exporter of combed wool, rice, soybeans, frozen beef, malt and milk. Nearly 95% of Uruguays electricity comes from energy, mostly hydroelectric facilities. The Economist named Uruguay country of the year in 2013, acknowledging the innovative policy of legalizing the production, sale, the name of the namesake river comes from the Spanish pronunciation of the regional Guarani word for it. There are several interpretations, including bird-river, the name could also refer to a river snail called uruguá that was plentiful in the water. The only documented inhabitants of Uruguay before European colonization of the area were the Charrúa, the Portuguese discovered the region of present-day Uruguay in 1512. The Spanish arrived in present-day Uruguay in 1516, the indigenous peoples fierce resistance to conquest, combined with the absence of gold and silver, limited their settlement in the region during the 16th and 17th centuries
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Forward (association football)
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Forwards are the players on an association football team who play nearest to the opposing teams goal, and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals. Their advanced position and limited defensive responsibilities mean forwards normally score more goals on behalf of their team than other players, modern team formations generally include one to three forwards, for example, the common 4–2–3–1 formation includes one forward. Unconventional formations may include more than three forwards, or none, the centre-forward is often a tall player, typically known as a target man, whose main function is to score the majority of goals on behalf of the team. Most modern centre-forwards operate in front of the strikers or central attacking midfielders. The present role of centre-forward is sometimes interchangeable with that of an attacking midfielder, a centre-forward usually must be strong, to win key headers and outmuscle defenders. The term centre-forward is taken from the football playing formation in which there were five forward players. The number would become synonymous with the centre-forward position. Strikers are known for their ability to peel off defenders and to run into space via the side of the defender and to receive the ball in a good goalscoring position. They are typically fast players with ball control and dribbling abilities. More agile strikers like Michael Owen have an advantage over taller defenders due to their short burst speed, a good striker should be able to shoot confidently with either foot, possess great power and accuracy, and have the ability to pass the ball under pressure in breakaway situations. Deep-lying forwards have a history in the game, but the terminology to describe their playing activity has varied over the years. Originally such players were termed inside forwards, creative or deep-lying centre-forwards, in fact, a coined term, the nine-and-a-half, has been an attempt to become a standard in defining the position. In Italy, this role is known as a rifinitore or seconda punta, whereas in Brazil, it is known as segundo atacante. An outside forward plays as the forward on the right or left wing – as an outside right or outside left. As football tactics have largely developed, and wingers have dropped back to become midfielders, many commentators and football analysts still refer to the wing positions as outside right and outside left. However, in the British game they are counted as part of the midfield. It is a duty to beat opposing full-backs, deliver cut-backs or crosses from wide positions and, to a lesser extent, to beat defenders. They are usually some of the quickest players in the team, in their Dutch, Spanish and Portuguese usage, the defensive duties of the winger have been usually confined to pressing the opposition fullbacks when they have the ball
