retired_amyslack

Cheers vic

If You Can’t Stand The Heat…

December began with an Italian Cup tie at Parma and Sandy made the decision to go with the same basic lineup that performed so well in the 1st round. He decided to give youngster Luca Anaclerio a run out in midfield to see how he handled life in the first team.

Sandy’s Journal
Wednesday December 2nd 2009
Italian Cup 2nd Round 1st Leg
Parma 2 Fano 0
I know that I was playing my second string but I really can’t explain how they managed to put in such a dismal performance. When I was looking at making substitutions I just didn’t know where to start! No one did themselves any favours in this display and the first eleven won’t be under threat from any of this lot.

Team Selection
McGregor (6), Fernandez Perez (6), Herrero (5), Hagen (8), Ame (7, sub 63), L Ferri (4, sub 45), Andorno (7), Rosales (4), Anaclerio (6), Foldi (4, sub 63), Pazzi (7)
Subs – Amadio (7), Tchangai (7), Dall’Acqua (7)


Still bemused by his team’s inept midweek performance, Sandy was quick to revert to his favoured eleven for the visit of Milan. It would be a hard game and now that the team had tasted defeat in the league he was anxious to get back to winning ways. Michele Ferri was fit enough to return at right back, allowing Collacchioni to move into midfield. Sandy also selected Palacios rather than Ochs to offer more of an attacking threat.

Sandy’s Journal
Saturday December 5th 2009
Serie A Game 15
Fano 2 Milan 2
We were robbed of a great win by an equaliser scored with virtually the last kick of the game in stoppage time. The visitors scored on the half hour but we were able to strike back quickly, Ricardo Costa getting his first of the season from an Odair corner. Visentin took advantage of a terrible howler from the visiting keeper who came rushing out of his goal to collect a long ball, only to misjudge it completely and give Matteo an empty goal to aim at.

Team Selection
Luzi (6), Tchangai (6), M Ferri (7), Santos (8), Ricardo Costa (8), L Ferri (7), Odair (7), Palacios (7), Collacchioni (8), Alberti (8), Visentin (8)

Goals
Ricardo Costa 32, Visentin 78


For the trip to Palermo, Sandy went with the same eleven that had performed so well against Milan. Their opponents were struggling near the foot of the table and Sandy was confident of gaining maximum points.

Sandy’s Journal
Sunday December 13th 2009
Serie A Game 16
Palermo 0 Fano 2
With the game still scoreless at half time I was hoping that the penalty miss by Palacios wouldn’t come back to haunt us and thankfully two good goals from Visentin, the second brilliantly set up by substitute Pazzi, saw us turn our dominance into three points. Alberti was very disappointing and I am wondering if the 18-year-old needs a break as it’s a lot to ask for a teenager to play week in and week out at this level.

Team Selection
Luzi (8), Tchangai (7), M Ferri (8), Santos (8), Ricardo Costa (8), L Ferri (8), Odair (7, sub 80), Palacios (8), Collacchioni (8), Alberti (4, sub 45), Visentin (9*)
Subs – Pazzi (7), Riccio (7)

Goals
Visentin 46, 77


The 2nd leg of Fano’s cup tie against Parma saw Sandy switch his team around again. With Herrero and Hagen both suspended he called up Tomasetti and Faccini from the reserves to replace them.

Sandy’s Journal
Wednesday December 16th 2009
Italian Cup 2nd Round 2nd Leg
Fano 1 Parma 0 (Parma win 2-1 on aggregate)
At least we regained a modicum of respect with a slightly better performance than the first leg, but in truth we never looked like turning the tie around. Foldi had another stinker and he isn’t working out as well as I had hoped. McGregor put in one of his better performances for us but the Scotsman is still very unsettled and I’m not sure how long he will stay with the club.

Team Selection
McGregor (8*), Fernandez Perez (7), Tomasetti (7), Faccini (6), Ame (7, sub 77), Amadio (6), Andorno (8, sub 77), Riccio (7), Rosales (7), Foldi (4, sub 45), Dall’Acqua (7)
Subs – Machado (7), Santos (7), Collacchioni (7)

Goals
Machado 83


If Allan McGregor was finding it hard to adapt to his new surroundings at least Spanish defender Fernandez Perez was at last feeling more at home. He had knuckled down and decided to make the most of his new home, his Italian was improving rapidly and he seemed a much happier man. The final game of the year before the Christmas break featured a visit from Atalanta and Sandy decided to rest Alberti and start Pazzi instead.


Sandy’s Journal
Sunday December 20th 2009
Serie A Game 17
Fano 1 Atalanta 0
We were a bit fortunate to get out of this game with a win as Luzi made a fine penalty save with ten minutes remaining to keep our noses in front. We were competent without being outstanding and I think the boys are looking forward to a little time off over the Christmas period.

Team Selection
Luzi (8), Tchangai (7), M Ferri (7), Santos (7), Ricardo Costa (6), L Ferri (7), Odair (7, sub 62), Palacios (7), Collacchioni (8), Visentin (7), Pazzi (8*)
Subs – Ochs (7)

Goals
Pazzi 62


With no competitive fixtures until early January, it gave the players a chance to recharge their batteries a little and prepare for the second half of the season. As Sandy perused the Serie A table he was very happy to see his team in second position, two points behind leaders Roma. So far his switch to the sweeper system was working out very well and with just 13 goals conceded in 17 games Fano had the best defensive record in the division. January would also bring some reinforcements into the squad as several pre-arranged transfers would take place when the window opened in January.

retired_sweetpea1214

another great read bo b

retired_sweetpea1214

*bob

retired_n_S_R

fantastic, just read the entire thing while at work surely inter will come calling again soon!

retired_amyslack

Thanks chaps

Some New Faces

A new year brought several new players to the Stadio Mancini, players that Sandy hoped would add depth and who would develop into solid performers for him. He was becoming more and more convinced that his sweeper system was the way forward so his first acquisition was a young defender who looked like a natural in the position. 23-year-old Daniele Magliocchetti was a product of the Roma youth programme but had never established himself as a senior player. A fee of €775K was enough to bring him to the club and Sandy was very pleased with the deal as the lad was versatile and could play anywhere at the back if pushed. Englishman Ryan Garry was another versatile defender who came from Arsenal for €750K. Another academy graduate he had never been a regular starter but had played well enough when given the opportunity. The final arrival was a young midfielder in the shape of Alex Tiesse of the Ivory Coast and Sandy felt the €150K paid to Millwall was a bargain. The 24-year-old had racked up over 180 appearances for the London club over 6 seasons and his record showed that he could both score and create goals. All three new boys featured in the squad for the visit of 5th place Cagliari with Garry starting at left back and the other two amongst the substitutes.

Sandy’s Journal
Wednesday January 6th 2010
Serie A Game 18
Fano 1 Cagliari 0
This was a pretty even affair and it turned out that Odair’s goal midway through the first half was enough to settle it. We played well if not outstandingly so and Ryan Garry had a decent debut but I can’t expect too much too soon as we have to give the new lads time to settle in.

Team Selection
Luzi (8), Tchangai (6), M Ferri (7), Santos (7), Ricardo Costa (6, sub 83), Garry (7), Odair (8), Palacios (7), Collacchioni (8), Alberti (7), Pazzi (8*)
Subs – Magliocchetti (6)

Goals
Odair 22


Fano’s next game involved a trip to Bari, a team marooned at the bottom of Serie A and who had also just recently sacked their manager. On paper it should represent an easy three points but Sandy was quick to remind his players that football matches aren’t played on paper and they should take nothing for granted. Midfielder Palacios was struggling with a training injury so Sandy gave Alex Tiesse his debut in the centre of the pitch.

Sandy’s Journal
Sunday January 10th 2010
Serie A Game 19
Bari 2 Fano 1
After warning the players about being too complacent it was infuriating to watch them ignore my words and play like they were taking a win for granted. Their early goal should have been a warning and we did improve for a spell, leading to the equaliser from Visentin. Their winning penalty was a bit dubious but by that time we should have had the game well sewn up.

Team Selection
Luzi (5), Tchangai (7), M Ferri (6), Santos (7), Ricardo Costa (5, sub 55), Garry (7), Odair (8, sub 90), Tiesse (7), Collacchioni (7), Visentin (7), Pazzi (7)
Subs – Ame (7), Machado (6)

Goals
Visentin 32


Sandy decided against making any team changes for the visit of Como, trusting that a hard week of training and some regular reminders that any success that the club achieved would only come through hard work and dedication would serve to re-focus his players.

Sandy’s Journal
Sunday January 17th 2010
Serie A Game 20
Fano 0 Como 1
Despite the result this was a better performance and but for some fine saves by the visiting keeper we would probably have won the game. A moment’s lack of concentration at the back cost us a goal but we had enough chances to get the win.

Team Selection
Luzi (7), Tchangai (7), M Ferri (8), Santos (8), Ricardo Costa (6, sub 68), Garry (8), Odair (7), Tiesse (7), Collacchioni (7), Pazzi (7, Visentin (7)
Subs – Ame (6), Alberti (7)


Two successive defeats against teams that he expected to beat was not what Sandy wanted to see from his team. They were fortunate that their own loss of form had been matched by leaders Roma and his team still held second place in the table when they travelled to Sampdoria. With Tchangai away on international duty Magliocchetti would get his first start since his arrival.

Sandy’s Journal
Sunday January 24th 2010
Serie A Game 21
Sampdoria 3 Fano 1
A poor performance and a poor result, with two late goals condemning us to defeat after we had fought our way back into the game. Magliocchetti and Tiesse both played poorly and the introduction of Ochs at half time improved things slightly. He did well with his goal, showing speed and control to outpace the defence.

Team Selection
Luzi (5), Magliocchetti (5, sub 71), M Ferri (7), Santos (7), Ricardo Costa (7), Garry (6), Odair (7), Tiesse (5, sub 45), Collacchioni (7), Pazzi (7, Visentin (8)
Subs – Ochs (7), Fernandez Perez (7)

Goals
Ochs 71


Three defeats on the spin was not the sort of form that Sandy wanted to see continue and his team had now slipped to 4th place in the league. The only consolation was that some other results had been favourable and they were still only two points off the pace. A midweek visit by struggling Reggina offered as good a chance as any of breaking the losing sequence. Sandy made a couple of changes to his team selection for the match. Michele Ferri had picked up a training injury so he switched Garry to right back and brought in Amadio on the left with Roberto Palacios coming into midfield.

Sandy’s Journal
Wednesday January 27th 2010
Serie A Game 22
Fano 0 Reggina 0
The scoreline says it all really – neither side created much going forward and there was precious little to keep the fans entertained. We spurned a golden opportunity to win the game when Palacios missed from the penalty spot after some trickery from Visentin had drawn a rash challenge in the area.

Team Selection
Luzi (7), Magliocchetti (7), Garry (7), Santos (7), Ricardo Costa (5, sub 45), Amadio (7), Odair (7), Palacios (7), Collacchioni (7), Pazzi (7, Visentin (7)
Subs – Fernandez Perez (6)


For the visit to Lazio for the final game of the month, Sandy decided to include young Alberti in the starting eleven to replace Pazzi in the hope of pepping up his team’s goalscoring threat.

Sandy’s Journal
Sunday January 31st 2010
Serie A Game 23
Lazio 0 Fano 2
This was a much more satisfactory performance as we dominated play and created a lot of scoring opportunities. After missing a penalty a few days earlier, Palacios showed character when he took responsibility for another spot kick. This time he made no mistake as he slotted the ball home to give us the lead. I am always nervous when we are defending a narrow advantage so I was very pleased when the second goal went in late on in the game.

Team Selection
Luzi (8), Magliocchetti (8), Garry (7), Santos (8), Ricardo Costa (6, sub 64), Amadio (7), Odair (10*), Palacios (7, sub 64), Collacchioni (8), Alberti (7), Visentin (8)
Subs – Fernandez Perez (7), Ochs (7)

Goals
Palacios 36, Fernandez Perez 85


Despite a rocky month, Fano still sat in 3rd place in Serie A, three points behind leaders Roma. On reflection, it had probably been too much to expect his team not to have the odd blip, as they were not used to holding such an exalted league position. Sandy also suspected that some of their early success might have been related to the surprise factor that a radical switch of tactics provided and as they moved into the second half of the season their opponents were a little more used to the team’s style of play. He only hoped that their loss of form would prove to be transient and that they could put another run of victories together.

retired_jgirl87

Great work by Fano in the new season, Bob. Glad to see the team up in the top few places. Fingers crossed for a finish that will ensure European football next season. :cool:

retired_hamawandi

More More More More!!

retired_n_S_R

+1 :thup:

retired_amyslack

Well seeing as you asked so nicely

Starting To Struggle

February would begin with a visit from Juventus, the team just above Fano in the league. Sandy’s team had a pretty good record against the Turin giants, having lost just once in 5 contests, and he hoped that trend would continue. He made a couple of changes to the starting eleven, bringing Komi Tchangai back in as sweeper and dropping Collacchioni back to the left of defence with Andorno coming in to midfield.

Sandy’s Journal
Sunday February 7th 2010
Serie A Game 24
Fano 1 Juventus 1
We had to withstand some determined attacks in the first half and Patrice Luzi made several fine saves to keep the scoreline blank before he was deceived by a deflection off Collacchioni just before half time. We offered more threat up front after the break and looked more solid at the back after I replaced Tchangai and Santos. We were rewarded ten minutes from time when Palacios scored his second goal in consecutive games to grab a useful point.

Team Selection
Luzi (7), Tchangai (5, sub 63), Garry (8), Santos (5, sub 63), Ricardo Costa (7), Collacchioni (7), Odair (8), Palacios (8), Andorno (7), Alberti (8), Visentin (8)
Subs – Fernandez Perez (7), Ame (7)

Goals
Palacios 81


Fano would travel to struggling Ternana looking for a win and Sandy continued tinkering with his defence, still not happy that he had found the ideal candidate to fill the role of sweeper. This time it would be Dorian Ame who would play there, with Tchangai replacing Ricardo Costa in the back four.

Sandy’s Journal
Sunday February 14th 2010
Serie A Game 25
Ternana 1 Fano 0
There will be no Valentine cards for any of my lads after today’s dismal display – poor in defence, mediocre in midfield and offering no threat going forward, this was as passive as performance as I have seen for some time.

Team Selection
Luzi (7), Ame (5), Garry (7), Santos (5, sub 45), Tchangai (6), Collacchioni (7), Odair (7), Palacios (7), Andorno (7), Alberti (7), Visentin (7)
Subs – Magliocchetti (7)


Sandy made his feelings known to his players in no uncertain terms during the next few days, making it crystal clear that he expected a much better effort in midweek at Inter.

Sandy’s Journal
Wednesday February 17th 2010
Serie A Game 26
Inter 1 Fano 1
Apart from giving away a sloppy goal after quarter of an hour we didn’t do too much wrong this evening but we still didn’t look up to scratch going forward. Young Alberti’s equaliser was well taken but we should have gone on and won the game – especially in light of centre back Cordoba getting a second yellow card ten minutes before half time. So another frustrating display overall and a disappointing result in the circumstances.

Team Selection
Luzi (5), Ame (6), Garry (7), Santos (7), Tchangai (6), Collacchioni (7), Odair (8), Palacios (7), Andorno (7), Alberti (7), Visentin (7)

Goals
Alberti 22


Sandy made some further team changes for the visit of Parma, recalling McGregor in goal and bringing Michele Ferri in at left back so that Collacchioni could move back into midfield.

Sandy’s Journal
Saturday February 21st 2010
Serie A Game 27
Fano 0 Parma 1
Another flat and lifeless performance with not a shot on target for the entire 90 minutes. We are slowly undoing all of the good work that we put in during the first half of the season and blowing a golden opportunity of our best ever Serie A finish.

Team Selection
McGregor (7), Ame (7), Garry (7), Santos (7), Tchangai (7), M Ferri (7), Odair (7), Palacios (7), Collacchioni (6), Alberti (7), Visentin (7)


The month would close with a trip to Perugia and now that Fano had slipped to 6th place their opponents sat just above them in the table. Sandy’s foul mood had improved little in the days leading up to the match and his players were under no illusion that getting back to winning ways was the only way that they would placate their manager. Alberti was serving a one-match suspension so Luca Foldi was brought in to see if he could add some punch up front.

Sandy’s Journal
Saturday February 28th 2010
Serie A Game 28
Perugia 0 Fano 3
A win at last! With the midfield firing on all cylinders we looked like a different team. We even survived the sending off of Santos in the second half. Foldi was involved in our first two goals, gaining the early penalty converted by Palacios and then setting up Visentin just after the restart. He had to be sacrificed when we went down to ten men though, coming off to allow Magliocchetti to come on.

Team Selection
McGregor (9), Ame (6), Garry (7), Santos (6), Tchangai (8), M Ferri (6), Odair (8), Palacios (8), Collacchioni (9), Foldi (6, sub 58), Visentin (9*)

Goals
Palacios 8, Visentin 47, Collacchioni 90

retired_steph0688

Love the story. Cant wait for more.