retired_nela

July, season 2004/2005

Our only senior match of this month was the first leg of our 3rd round Inter-Toto Cup match with OFI Crete, a Greek side. I went with the side I listed as the “likely side”, though unfortunately I did not have one player near full fitness. Despite this, we managed to put together a great move in the 10th minute. Milan Rapaic looked for a pass to Bucchi as usual, but he hit it a bit too hard for Bucchi to fire in a shot directly. Instead, he centred the ball for Scarchilli to slam it into the net with a great strike. Bucchi went with a great chip twenty minutes later that just barely went over, and we finished a dominant half 1-0 up. Chadwick in particular had been impressive on debut. OFI put up a bit more of a fight in the second half, but Chadwick and Rapaic teamed up well down the left to keep them busy defensively. An OFI handball in the area from a Chadwick cross gave Bucchi his first with a 56th minute penalty, pretty much sealing the game given OFI’s limited attacks. Bucchi wasted a chance to set up a third late in the game with a wild pass to substitute Salvatore Bruno, but a 2-0 win is good enough to leave us firm favourites to progress. Pagliuca kept a clean sheet on debut while Chadwick, Torrisi, Bruno and Cirkovic also looked pretty good in their first game for the club. Unfortunately, it was not all good news. Scorer Scarchilli suffered a torn hamstring during the game, sidelining him for two months. Francesco Montervino may have to take over in the middle unless I can sign a replacement.

retired_nela

August, season 2004/2005

Our second leg encounter with OFI came with the knowledge that the winner would face Kaiserslautern in the semi final. Having played against the likes of Inter and Juventus, that isn’t too intimidating, though it is a bit tougher than I’d expected. Nonetheless, we did have a game to take care of beforehand. I’d found no midfielders I really wanted to sign as short-term replacements for the injured Scarchilli, so Francesco Montervino took his spot. An early injury to Milan Rapaic saw Corrado Grabbi on (he may as well do something for his excessive wage), but it was midfielder Vincenzo Sommese who hit the game’s opener with a fabulous 25-yard curling strike into the corner of the net. A 3-0 overall lead in the 33rd minute of the season leg pretty much assured our progression to meet Kaiserslautern, and a scoreless second half confirmed it. Montervino did well in the centre of midfield, as did his second-half substitute Davide Carrus.

That left us just three days before the semi final game away to Kaiserslautern. I had to rest a number of key players including Rapaic, Sommese and Luigi Sartor, which was not what I wanted against a reasonably strong side. Cirkovic moved to the right wing and Manuel Belleri debuted at right back. An 8th minute goal from a free kick to Kaiserslautern was also not what I wanted and a second in the 40th was very worrying. Christian Bucchi had the chance to respond almost immediately, but after getting one-on-one with the keeper, he put his shot over the bar. He made amends in the 52nd after Salvatore Bruno ran onto a long pass from Carrus and crossed it in for Bucchi to head home. We could only manage that one goal in response, but at least we put through an away goal and now have seven days to recover from the game.

The second leg did not start too well for Ancona, with Milan Rapaic missing two gettable shots in a scoreless first half. The second half started off much better, with a ball finding Rapaic up forward and unopposed only seconds after the kick-off. He headed the ball to Bucchi, who fired the ball at the goal with the keeper unable to get to the shot in time…and hit the post. A goal out of nowhere to Kaiserslautern in the 62nd pretty much ended out chances of a win, and a goal to Rapaic from a 94th minute free kick was just too late. We didn’t even have time for the resulting kick-off. A 2-3 aggregate loss to a side like Kaiserslautern isn’t bad, but I had really hoped for a bit better.

Ah well, at least the players managed to get some fitness from that competition. With almost 20 days still to go before the first Serie A games, I had a quick look around for some late signings. I managed to get a loan offer for promising young Serbian international striker Andrija Delibasic accepted, but the player rejected the move. I did, however, grab coach Giacomo Tafuro and scout Julian Carrera.

Thanks to the Inter-Toto Cup, I only needed the one friendly. We took on new Serie A side Fiorentina and defeated them 4-0 with goals to Chadwick, Bucchi, Rapaic and Bruno. Curiously, we did not have any Italian Cup games, so it will be straight into Serie A next month.

That ended the pre-season, and aside from loaning out a bunch of players (most notably defender Dario Baccin) I had no more impact on the transfer market. I received a few bids for midfielder Davide Carrus, but nobody reached my asking price of £500K so I rejected them. Since I have more than enough money in the bank anyway, I see no need to let him go for less than his true value.

retired_nela

September, season 2004/2005

Interestingly, our odds went from 2000-1 last season to 150-1 this season. At least somebody took note of our good performance.

Our first Serie A game of the season was against Piacenza. Though it was not the toughest opening to the season, it was made harder when key midfielder Vincenzo Sommese joined Alessio Scarchilli on the sidelines with a training injury. As such, Milivoje Cirkovic actually played on the right wing in his Serie A debut, with Manuel Belleri at right back. A very weak clearance from new defender Stefano Torrisi almost handed Piacenza a 4th minute goal, but Gianluca Pagliuca did well to keep it out. Milan Rapaic and Christian Bucchi went forward in the 22nd minute, but while Rapaic managed to get around the keeper for a simple shot on goal, he tried to go for a more fancy move by passing off to unmarked partner Bucchi. While Bucchi was able to put it into the net, he was offside, and the goal didn’t count. What a waste. Fortunately, Rapaic performed the move much more effectively eleven minutes later, leaving Bucchi with an easy finish for our first Serie A goal of the season. A great run from Luke Chadwick almost gave Rapaic a goal of his own just after the break, but it was tipped over. Rapaic did get one in the 67th thanks to a nice header from substitute Francesco Montervino and he returned the favour six minutes later with a beautiful centring ball for Montervino to slam home. A comfortable 3-0 win is certainly a nice way to start the league season.

Thanks to a few international games, we had a quite significant break between that match and our next one against Brescia. Vincenzo Sommese returned from injury but started on the bench, as he lacked match fitness. Disturbingly, we lost goalkeeper Gianluca Pagliuca only half an hour in, but thankfully I at least had backup Sergio Marcon on the bench. He managed to come away with a clean sheet, but our forwards lacked penetration and the game finished in a scoreless draw. Thankfully, Pagliuca’s injury was only minor, and he won’t miss a single game.

I brought young Serbian international forward Goran Pandev up to the senior side after some exceptional performances in the Under-20s and he started on the bench against Udinese. A great pass from Cirkovic gave defender Belleri a great chance to score in the first half, but with only seven goals in 193 matches, it was no surprise to see him put it over. A great exchange of passes between the midfielders gave Bucchi the first of the game in the 52nd minute but Udinese hit back quickly after a forward beat our defenders to a loose ball in their area. Goran Pandev came on and managed to bet the goalkeeper to a ball at the edge of the area in the dying minutes, but his shot went well wide. Not only did we only come away with one point, Vincenzo Sommese (who only came onto the pitch in the second half) suffered a groin strain, putting him out for three weeks. I guess Cirkovic will have to hold onto right wing for a bit longer…

He did indeed do so in our final match of the month, away to Juventus. Not the sort of game you’d want to be missing two key midfielders in. Juventus managed a shot in just the first twenty seconds after Luciano Zavagno gave the ball up at the back shortly after the kick-off. It went over the bar, but it was a worrying start. Only good goalkeeping and sloppy finishing kept Juventus from scoring in a 25-minute onslaught at the start of the game, but three goals in quick succession just after the break put an end to any hopes we might have had of stealing a win. Pagliuca actually did a pretty good job in goal, or the scoreline could have been much worse. Christian Bucchi actually managed a quite remarkable final rating of ‘2’ in the 0-3 belting, though Juventus probably deserved at least another two goals. Despite the two players we had missing and the obvious gap in class between the sides, there’s no excusing such a weak performance. Only Pagliuca could be remotely pleased with his efforts, and even then he let through three goals.

Not the best month for Ancona, though it really isn’t that far away from the performance bookmakers and even the board seem to expect. Cirkovic is doing very well on the right wing, but I’d like to see Sommese and Scarchilli back as soon as possible.

retired_nela

October, season 2004/2005

I made a number of changes to the side that took on Lecce in our first match of October as a result of fatigue from our previous game against Juventus. Damiano Moscardi was among the players to come in, making his senior debut for Ancona. I did retain my usual striking team, and when Rapaic was fouled in the area, Christian Bucchi took the 15th minute penalty. Unfortunately, he blasted it straight over, and worse yet Lecce took the lead four minutes later. Bilica, in his first league game of the season, headed home a 30th minute equaliser from a Cirkovic corner and just minutes later Chadwick intercepted a Lecce throw-in and ran all the way to the goal for a finish from close range. Our lead lasted just two minutes with a second to Lecce, but Rapaic was unlucky not to regain it from the kick-off, hitting the post with a nice strike. Bucchi put a free kick just wide minutes later, but it was a case of third time lucky in the 42nd with a classic move – a Rapaic pass across goal for a Bucchi tap-in. 3-2 at half time and we were looking good. Unfortunately, after being our best player against Juventus, goalkeeper Pagliuca was actually looking like the weak link against Lecce. However, it was a magnificent pass from Pagliuca that sealed the game in the 69th. The ball travelled 3/4 of the pitch and landed perfectly for Milan Rapaic to run onto. He charged at the keeper and chipped it perfectly over his head, making it a fine 4-2 victory for Ancona.

Next was an away game against Chievo. Alessio Scarchilli finally returned from his torn hamstring and started on the bench. Bucchi sent in a few shots early, but they were easily handled by the Chievo keeper. At the other end, Pagliuca was not able to save a shot fired past him, but thankfully it hit the post. At least, thankfully until it bounced back, hit Pagliuca and rebounded into the net to give Chievo a lead in the 25th. Milan Rapaic hit back shortly after that with a 25-yard strike and a scramble in the area three minutes later after Bucchi tackled the ball away from a defender saw a Chievo player knock the ball in for an own goal. The 64th minute saw a great Ancona break, with Bucchi running at the keeper with two defenders chasing after him and Rapaic well clear by himself. Unlike his partner, Bucchi decided to go with the shot himself rather than pass, and though it trickled towards the goal after the keeper got a hand to it, he was able to get there before Rapaic. A wasted chance thanks to some selfish play. We were very lucky it wasn’t more costly, as Chievo actually scored minutes later only to have the move ruled offside. Rapaic showed no bitterness by giving Bucchi yet another simple tap-in late in the game, which thankfully meant that a second to Chievo with a couple of minutes to go meant nothing in the end. 3-2 was a fair result, but it could have gone either way.

Pagliuca is conceding a few too many goals for my liking, and I may have to look for a replacement during the transfer window. Speaking of which, I managed to get 21-year-old striker Marco Vianello of Milan to agree to join on a free transfer. Thankfully he was actually listed for free, or it would have cost £1.2M in compensation to sign him. It may seem a bit odd to be picking up yet another forward, but my current senior forwards are getting on a bit in years and many (including both Rapaic and Bucchi) have contracts expiring this season. Vianello was a goal machine in Serie B last season, so hopefully he has a good future ahead of him.

Vincenzo Sommese was available for the next game against Inter after his injury, but despite the strength of our opponents, the fact that he suffered injuries in his last two senior games ensured he started on the bench alongside Scarchilli. A 12th minute penalty to Inter was the last thing we needed, gifting our opponents an early lead. A good exchange of passes just before the break between Montervino, Cirkovic and Maini resulted in our only chance of the first half, but Maini’s shot was comfortably saved. Inter scored a second minutes into the second half and 2-0 was the final score. The only positive was that Sommese and Scarchilli managed to come away unscathed after 20 minutes on the pitch. Pagliuca is genuinely struggling and we may be in a lot of trouble if he doesn’t start showing some good form in the next few weeks.

Sergio Marcon took over in goal against Roma, but while we managed to get through the first half without conceding any goals, it was purely due to poor shooting from Roma. They eventually headed one in from a corner in the final twenty minutes of the match to leave us with a 0-1 loss, and just to make the day worse we lost Milivoje Cirkovic to a broken wrist, putting him out for three weeks.

Vincenzo Sommese replaced him on the right wing against Perugia. Marcon actually pulled off a few good saves in the first half, which ended scoreless. Maini barely missed a free kick just into the second half and that turned out to be our last chance of the game. A pretty dull 0-0 draw, but at least Marcon got a clean sheet and the side grabbed a point.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Holders - Inter| Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D.| Pts | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | | Inter | | 8 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 | +14 | 20 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Lazio | | 9 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 2 | +9 | 20 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Roma | | 8 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 5 | +10 | 16 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Udinese | | 9 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 3 | +3 | 15 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Parma | | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | +4 | 14 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Milan | | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 7 | +4 | 13 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Juventus | | 8 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 4 | +3 | 12 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Sampdoria | | 8 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 7 | +2 | 12 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Ancona | | 9 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 12 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th| | Verona | | 9 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 8 | -7 | 12 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 11th| | Brescia | | 9 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 11 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 12th| | Perugia | | 9 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 11 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 13th| | Bologna | | 9 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 11 | -2 | 11 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 14th| | Fiorentina | | 9 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 12 | -5 | 11 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 15th| | Reggina | | 8 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | -1 | 10 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 16th| | Atalanta | | 9 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 5 | -3 | 10 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 17th| | Lecce | | 9 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 12 | -6 | 10 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 18th| | Napoli | | 9 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 11 | -8 | 7 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 19th| | Chievo | | 9 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | -5 | 6 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 20th| | Piacenza | | 8 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 11 | -12 | 3 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>

retired_nela

November, season 2004/2005

Sergio Marcon retained his place in goal against Atlanta, while Christian Bucchi took a rare break, replaced by Salvatore Bruno. Surprisingly, Atlanta dominated the first half, and Ancona’s cause wasn’t helped with the loss of both Milan Rapaic and Luke Chadwick to knocks. Giampero Maini drilled through a free kick just before half time to give us an unlikely lead. Marcon played pretty well, but weak defending allowed Atlanta to get players one-on-one with him in the second half twice in three minutes, scoring on both occasions. A great ball from Vincenzo Sommese gave substitute Christian Bucchi a chance to equalise with three minutes remaining, but his shot went well over the bar. A magnificent run from young forward Goran Pandev saw him take the ball from mid-pitch to the area, but while his angled shot beat the keeper, it hit the post and rebounded out. That was all for Ancona, with sloppy defence and weak finishing costing us a game we should have won.

Chadwick recovered in time for the next game, at home to Reggina, but Rapaic was not yet over his stubbed toe. Come to think of it, that injury has always been overpowered in CM. With Cirkovic and Zavagno also out injured and Pagliuca still on the bench due to his form slump, we were some way away from being at full strength. Having Marcon knock a cross into his own net late in the first half was not the ideal start in these circumstances. However, while we were missing Milan Rapaic, we did have our leading scorer Christian Bucchi on the pitch. In trademark fashion, he headed a Scarchilli corner neatly into the net for our first with 20 minutes left in the game. The scores were still level in the 84th minute, leaving us looking at our fifth straight game without a win. A ripper of a pass from Montervino, however, put Bucchi past the defence and through on goal for a simple finish. 2-1, but could we hold it for six minutes? In the end, we did better than that. Just minutes later, a wonderful pass from Bucchi after he intercepted a defensive clearance found substitute Corrado Grabbi in space. He charged at goal and launched the ball into the net from 20 yards for his first of the season. A nice 3-1 win to get back on track, though we were still far from convincing.

I brought back both Rapaic and Pagliuca for our game against Parma. Pagliuca repaid my faith with three excellent early saves but Vincenzo Sommese was the only player to provide any fight at the other end. Parma snuck through a goal in the 43rd and scored another just into the second half. Not even a nice late Carrus cross met with a Bucchi header was enough to get a goal on the board for Ancona as we went down 0-2. At least Pagliuca put up a pretty decent performance.

Both Zavagno and Cirkovic returned to the side that faced Sampdoria. A neat series of passes between the strikers gave Rapaic a goal in the first 15 minutes and Bucchi caught the goalkeeper out of position for a second another 15 minutes later. It was still 2-0 at half time and despite several chances to each striker, they only finished the game with one apiece. However, both sides scored late in the game (Ancona through a cross from Chadwick which was headed in by Sommese) to finish with a 3-1 result. Both Zavagno and Cirkovic got through their returns okay. At this point, I might note that Manuel Belleri has done an excellent job at right back this season. I only expected him to play a minor role, but with Cirkovic playing on the wing in place of the injured Sommese and then injured himself, Belleri has played at right back all season and has done well.

The next game, against Napoli, was only a few days later, so both Zavagno and Rapaic were rested. Napoli scored through a direct free kick mid-way through the first half and we lost defender Stefano Torrisi to an injury (which turned out to be minor) shortly after that. We were still down at the break and the best we could manage in the second half was a curling long-range effort from Scarchilli which went wide. Goran Pandev fired in a shot in literally the last minute of the game, but it skimmed the bar as it went over. Yet another loss on the board.

Our final match of the month was not an easy one – at home to Lazio. It was all about holding on for the first half, and we managed to do that well. Our only chance came when Bucchi somehow managed to sneak behind the defence for a shot on goal, but it was a poor effort that went well over. Lazio got one through after a corner in the 50th and we did not get a single shot on goal in the second half. The rather spiteful match (six players received yellow cards) ended in a 0-1 defeat for Ancona.

Being November, I had plenty of contracts to worry about before the Bosman period. I decided against re-signing first team squad members Paolo Poggi, Giampero Maini, Salvatore Bruno, Stefano Torrisi and Mauro Milanese. Torrisi and Maini are the only ones to have played reasonably well in the senior side, and they’re just getting a bit too old to be re-signed when many other regular players will be demanding increased wages.

I did manage to re-sign Milan Rapaic until 2006 and Freddie Adu for another year on a youth contract but both Davide Carrus and, disturbingly, leading scorer Christian Bucchi rejected their offers. I have offered both new, improved deals, but we shall have to wait until next month to see if they accept. I gave 23-year-old Finnish defender Tuomas Aho a trial at Ancona, and while my coaches were very impressed with him, his wage demands of £4.6K were a bit too much for me. He rejected a lesser offer and soon left the club.

It occurs to me the league table is probably a bit easier to read with just overall results rather than home and away, so unless anybody has any objections, that’s what I’ll use from now on.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Holders - Inter| Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | | Roma | | 15 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 35 | 10 | +25 | 35 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Inter | | 14 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 23 | 8 | +15 | 30 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Parma | | 15 | 9 | 2 | 4 | 19 | 10 | +9 | 29 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Lazio | | 15 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 21 | 13 | +8 | 28 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Juventus | | 15 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 22 | 10 | +12 | 27 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Milan | | 14 | 7 | 2 | 5 | 21 | 15 | +6 | 23 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Sampdoria | | 15 | 7 | 1 | 7 | 27 | 21 | +6 | 22 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Brescia | | 15 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 22 | 20 | +2 | 22 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Lecce | | 15 | 6 | 3 | 6 | 21 | 24 | -3 | 21 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | | Udinese | | 15 | 4 | 8 | 3 | 17 | 18 | -1 | 20 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 11th | | Ancona | | 15 | 5 | 3 | 7 | 18 | 19 | -1 | 18 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 12th | | Atalanta | | 15 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 15 | 17 | -2 | 18 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 13th | | Reggina | | 14 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 17 | 20 | -3 | 17 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 14th | | Verona | | 15 | 5 | 2 | 8 | 18 | 28 | -10 | 17 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 15th | | Napoli | | 15 | 5 | 2 | 8 | 11 | 21 | -10 | 17 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 16th | | Perugia | | 15 | 2 | 8 | 5 | 11 | 14 | -3 | 14 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 17th | | Bologna | | 15 | 4 | 2 | 9 | 17 | 27 | -10 | 14 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 18th | | Chievo | | 15 | 3 | 4 | 8 | 17 | 24 | -7 | 13 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 19th | | Fiorentina | | 15 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 13 | 32 | -19 | 12 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 20th | | Piacenza | | 14 | 3 | 2 | 9 | 15 | 29 | -14 | 11 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>

retired_nela

December, season 2004/2005

December started off well with Davide Carrus and Christian Bucchi both re-signing with Ancona until 2007. Better yet, I also secured two more players to join in January – 21-year-old Milan striker Marco Vianello for free and Portsmouth’s 16-year-old Thai striker Supat Rungratsamee for £210K compensation. The latter represents the first time I have spent money on a transfer, and believe me, it’s worth it. The kid is something special, and though he will only come over on a youth contract, I can’t wait to sign him to something long-term. Thankfully, he also has an English nationality, so I don’t have to worry about Carlos Henrique’s arrival next month screwing up the deal.

Somewhere amidst all the contract issues we managed to sneak in a game against Verona. We really struggled to score, especially with Rapaic forced off with a knock. When a second-half header from Bucchi hit the outside of the post and Verona took the lead with 18 minutes to go, it looked like we were headed for another loss. However, Bucchi managed to set up Rapaic’s replacement, Corrado Grabbi, for a tap-in five minutes later to level the scores. They remained level until the 85th minute, when Verona scored from a 35-yard curling strike out of nowhere. We couldn’t hit back and finished with the 1-2 loss. It was probably a fair result considering the balance of play, but it is always frustrating to have freak goals like that (the Goal of the Month, in fact) go against you. With Ancona now sitting in 12th place, this season is shaping as much more of a challenge than the last.

I added another player to my imports, this one for the end of the season, agreeing terms with lightening quick Dinamo Kiev winger Badr El Kadouri. Unfortuantely, the 23-year-old is Moroccan, and I’m not sure if he will be unable to join due to the signing of Carlos Henrique. Guess we’ll have to wait and see…

We finally played our first match of the Italian Cup (the second round) at home against Bologna. I rested several players and Freddie Adu came up from the Under-20s after some excellent performances there. Bucchi scored a 15th minute penalty (his 10th goal of the season), but Bologna hit back in the 64th. It was still 1-1 at full time, with Pandev having a very good chance late in the game saved by the keeper. Time to work on his finishing, methinks… Not a great effort against a pretty mediocre opposition, but acceptable considering we had a number of regular senior players rested.

The major reason for resting those players was that our next match was against Milan. We were dominated, but did well to hold them out until the 71st minute, when Seedorf slid one through from an impossible angle. A creditable 0-1 loss.

Next came a Serie A game against Fiorentina. Bucchi had a close-range shot saved in the opening 30 seconds and we dominated the first half. However, Fiorentina took the lead in the 52nd minute thanks to a penalty. A loose Zavagno header almost gave them a second moments later, but thankfully Pagliuca saved from the one-on-one battle. Fiorentina continued to attack strongly after that and we did not get another chance until the very final seconds of injury time when Zavagno played Bucchi through. The striker ran at the goal as the seconds ticked away, but his shot from just outside the area went wide and the final whistle blew. 0-1, which was a far from creditable result this time.

The return leg of our Italian Cup tie with Bologna followed these two losses. Having conceded an away goal in the 1-1 draw last time, we had to score here. A long pass from Pagliuca in the opening minute drifted over a defender’s head, giving Rapaic an open run at the goal. The Croatian made no mistake for a dream start to the game. Rapaic was very busy in the first half, but while his shots were kept out, Bologna managed to scramble one in late in the half to level both the game and the aggregate. Rapaic hit the side netting with a free kick in the final minute of the half, and scores were still tied at the break. Rapaic was playing an excellent game, but he had to be substituted mid-way through the second half due to fatigue. Unfortunately, that was just minutes before Bologna scored from an excellent move, leaving us a goal down with 17 minutes to go. I brought on Scarchilli and went with an all-out attack. It was Scarchilli who found Freddie Adu with a short pass in the 84th minute. The youngster flicked it straight on to fellow young forward Goran Pandev, who came on for Rapaic earlier. He charged into the box and finally made a crucial shot count, putting us ahead on away goals with five minutes to go. Straight from the kick-off Bologna charged forward, and eventually a high ball was sent into their crowded area. It looked like Stefano Torrisi headed the ball clear, but apparently he was holding onto an opponent as well, and a penalty was awarded. It was put through with ease, taking us in one minute from an away goal lead to an aggregate deficit. With only two minutes to go, the players attempted to replicate a successful move from earlier. Freddie Adu took the ball in our half and found Scarchilli, who in turn came forward and passed to the running Pandev. The Serbian came forward into the box again, sent in a shot…and this time put it yards wide. A terrible finish, seemingly ending our hopes of a win. Cirkovic sent a free kick into the box in the dying seconds, but it was headed clear and the final whistle blew. The 3-4 aggregate defeat knocked us out of the Italian Cup, but at least some of the young up-and-comers put up a fight.

The month was not a total write-off, despite the poor results on the pitch. I re-signed everybody I wanted to and got a couple of good players to agree to join Ancona. I added to that group 20-year-old Italian Under-21 defender Alessandro Potenza, who will come over in March, and have a few more players I am in negotiations with at the moment. Under-21 caps don’t seem to mean too much in this game, but Potenza does look useful and together with Carlos Henrique, the future looks quite bright for our defence. However, the short-term future of the club is a bit of a worry, with Ancona now precariously placed in 16th spot.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Holders - Inter| Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | | Roma | | 18 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 42 | 12 | +30 | 42 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Inter | | 18 | 11 | 5 | 2 | 31 | 12 | +19 | 38 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Lazio | | 18 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 28 | 14 | +14 | 37 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Juventus | | 18 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 27 | 13 | +14 | 33 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Milan | | 18 | 10 | 3 | 5 | 25 | 15 | +10 | 33 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Parma | | 18 | 10 | 3 | 5 | 23 | 14 | +9 | 33 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Sampdoria | | 18 | 8 | 2 | 8 | 32 | 27 | +5 | 26 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Brescia | | 18 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 23 | 23 | 0 | 24 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Lecce | | 18 | 7 | 3 | 8 | 25 | 29 | -4 | 24 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | | Udinese | | 18 | 4 | 9 | 5 | 19 | 27 | -8 | 21 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 11th | | Verona | | 18 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 23 | 34 | -11 | 21 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 12th | | Fiorentina | | 18 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 19 | 35 | -16 | 21 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 13th | | Atalanta | | 18 | 4 | 8 | 6 | 17 | 20 | -3 | 20 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 14th | | Perugia | | 18 | 3 | 10 | 5 | 14 | 15 | -1 | 19 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 15th | | Chievo | | 18 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 22 | 25 | -3 | 19 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 16th | | Ancona | | 18 | 5 | 3 | 10 | 19 | 23 | -4 | 18 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 17th | | Reggina | | 18 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 21 | 27 | -6 | 18 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 18th | | Napoli | | 18 | 5 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 26 | -13 | 18 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 19th | | Bologna | | 18 | 4 | 4 | 10 | 17 | 30 | -13 | 16 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 20th | | Piacenza | | 18 | 3 | 4 | 11 | 17 | 36 | -19 | 13 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>

The senior stats at the end of December 2004 also follow:

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">16th in Italian Serie ASquad Screen| Pkd | Inf | Name | Apps | Gls | Asts | MoM | Pass | Tck | Drb | Sh Tar | Av R | Value| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | ML | | Chadwick, L | 24 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 68 % | 3.39 | 2.69 | 42 % | 7.21 | £2.8M| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | FC | | Bucchi, C* | 23 (1) | 10 | 4 | 6 | 61 % | 1.24 | 0.87 | 72 % | 7.29 | £4.6M| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | FC | | Rapaic, M* | 20 (1) | 6 | 4 | 2 | 69 % | 0.94 | 0.99 | 59 % | 6.76 | £875K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | GK | | Pagliuca, G | 20 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 43 % | - | - | - | 6.30 | £18K | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | | Sartor, L | 20 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 71 % | 2.16 | 0.21 | - | 6.45 | £625K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | DC | | Torrisi, S | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 73 % | 2.22 | 0.06 | 50 % | 6.26 | £26K | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | SB6 | Inj | Belleri, M | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 65 % | 3.76 | 1.01 | - | 6.82 | £500K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | SB7 | | Maini, G | 16 (3) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 74 % | 2.25 | 0.06 | 72 % | 6.84 | £140K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | DR | | Cirkovic, M | 15 (3) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 67 % | 4.29 | 0.32 | 100 % | 6.61 | £1.8M| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | MR | Yel | Sommese, V* | 13 (5) | 2 | 0 | 1 | 59 % | 3.84 | 2.10 | 27 % | 6.89 | £3.6M| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | SB2 | | Montervino, F | 13 (3) | 1 | 4 | 0 | 69 % | 2.24 | 0.33 | 77 % | 6.50 | £600K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | SB4 | | Milanese, M | 11 (3) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 69 % | 1.91 | 0.18 | - | 6.43 | £35K | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | SB5 | | Scarchilli, A | 10 (5) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 67 % | 2.15 | 0.75 | 33 % | 6.67 | £120K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | MC | | Carrus, D | 8 (7) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 77 % | 3.49 | 0.45 | 37 % | 6.87 | £775K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | | Esposito, M | 8 (2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 71 % | 1.49 | 0.37 | - | 6.30 | £220K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | DL | | Zavagno, L | 8 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 66 % | 2.20 | 0.61 | 100 % | 6.56 | £400K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | DC | Unh | Bilica | 7 (6) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 69 % | 2.40 | - | 100 % | 6.69 | £375K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | SB1 | | Marcon, S | 4 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 46 % | - | - | - | 6.00 | £90K | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | Loa | Bruno, S | 3 (3) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 63 % | 0.58 | 0.29 | - | 5.33 | £230K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | SB3 | | Pandev, G | 2 (4) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 72 % | 0.54 | 0.54 | 37 % | 6.50 | £600K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | Req | Moscardi, D | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 73 % | 3.15 | - | - | 7.00 | £130K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | MC | | Adu, F | 1 (2) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 66 % | 0.65 | 1.30 | - | 7.00 | £1M | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | Loa | Grabbi, C | 0 (7) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 89 % | 0.91 | 0.91 | 80 % | 6.71 | £550K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | Loa | Poggi, P | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | 7.00 | £18K | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | Lst | Castaldo, L | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ---- | £14K | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | Lst | Gentili, F | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ---- | £65K | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | Lst | Peccarisi, M | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ---- | £275K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | Lst | Sogliano, S | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ---- | £28K | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | Loa | Triuzzi, G | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ---- | £425K| | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | Inj | Vadacca, M | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ---- | £6K | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | Lst | Vives, G | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ---- | £7K | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>

retired_nela

January, season 2004/2005

We welcomed three new signings to Ancona at the start of the month, who are all profiled below:

Supat Rungratsamee [16, S C, THA]
The first player to be deemed worthy of a transfer fee by yours truly, Rungratsamee is an exceptionally talented young player. He is lightening quick and possesses stunning ball control. Some great runs are a given. He scored three goals in eight games (seven of those off the bench) at Portsmouth in the English First Division, and better yet put through 14 in 12 in the reserves. He is 17 in April, and I hope to sign him to a long-term contract. He may well play senior football before then, though.

Carlos Henrique [21, D LC, BRA – 6 U21/0]
More of a long-term prospect, Carlos Henrique played a few games at Vitoria in Brazil but neither his performances nor his attributes are particularly impressive. One of my scouts suggested he had a hot future and he does have Under-21 caps for Brazil, but it may take him a while to develop.

Marco Vianello [21, S C, ITA]
Vianello played five games off the bench and scored two goals with Milan this season, so there’s no denying his promise. He also put through 17 on loan in Serie B last season. Vianello is a similar player to Rapaic in that he’s reasonably well-rounded, and should get a go in the senior side this season.

I immediately sent Carlos Henrique and Vianello to the Under-20 side, but kept Rungratsamee in the seniors. I dropped Paolo Poggi and Salvatore Bruno to the reserves to clear up the squad a bit, since they aren’t likely to play any more senior games. Corrado Grabbi is also unlikely to play with the good form of Goran Pandev and Freddie Adu and arrival of Rungratsamee, but I kept him around just to keep the numbers in the squad even. It looks so wrong with an odd number somehow…

If those three young signings weren’t enough, I added three potential immediate senior players set to join at the end of the season. Milan’s 24-year-old forward (yes, another one) Andrea Rabito, Serbian Under-21 forward (!) Mirko Vucinic from Leece and Brescia’s Italian Under-21 goalkeeper Federico Agliardi all agreed terms for moderate wages. I think I’m going to have to play a 3-2-5 formation next season to fit all those forwards in… Speaking of which, Vianello debuted for the Under-20 side against Lazio and hit two goals with a perfect ‘10’ rating. Wow.

None of the new players were in the senior side that hosted Bologna. It was a critical match considering our dangerously low league position, and considering our opponents were in 19th place, I was looking for three points. Bucchi almost scored a fluke goal with a wild cross, but it was hurriedly saved. He did manage to put through a more conventional goal just before the break, albeit in a bit of a mad scramble in a crowded area. Nonetheless, it was a welcome lead. It didn’t last long, though – a defensive header from Vincenzo Sommese from a free kick trickled into the net for an own goal moments into the second half. A late Bucchi header from close range was held by the goalkeeper and a chance for three points went begging with the 1-1 draw.

Having fallen to 18th after that draw, our game against bottom-placed Piacenza assumed even more importance. We threw away two points in the last game, and couldn’t afford to here. Sergio Marcon took over in goal, and his job was made easier with Milan Rapaic squeezing the ball between the post and keeper for a goal in the first ninety seconds. He actually added a second six minutes later, but was ruled offside. Luke Chadwick’s long-range curling shot in the 29th went wide and Piacenza had a great chance to take advantage of the single-goal difference with a 34th minute penalty. However, Marcon – in just his sixth senior game of the season – saved both the penalty and the follow-up for Ancona to retain the lead at half time. We dominated the second half, but a Piacenza shot out of nowhere with twenty minutes to go beat Marcon. Thankfully, it came back off the crossbar and was cleared, but it was a scary moment. Somehow we held on for the final minutes, finishing 1-0 winners with Marcon Man of the Match.

I signed yet another player on a free transfer to join at the end of the season – 29-year-old Spanish international Pedro Munitis, an attacking midfielder at Deportivo. His wages of £6.5K were a bit excessive for me, but since he’s currently on £15K, that’s a pretty good deal. It will be a vastly different Ancona senior side next season, but which division will we be in? I also signed unattached Norwegian Under-21 left winger Michael Bertensen, who is a long-term prospect.

Marco Vianello slammed through a hat-trick against Brescia for the Under-20s, making it five goals in three games. Wow again. Luciano Zavagno suffered broken ribs in training, putting him out for three weeks, so Mauro Milanese started at left back for the senior game against Brescia. Supat Rungratsamee started on the bench. The first half was dull aside from a number of yellow cards, and the best we managed in the second half was a painfully slow Rapaic lob. Marcon did well to block a powerful shot from close range as the game headed for a scoreless draw. The final twenty minutes saw both Rapaic and Bucchi forced off with minor injuries, leaving Ancona with surely one of the youngest striking teams in Serie A history – 15-year-old Freddie Adu and 16-year-old Supat Rungratsamee on debut. Marcon managed another top save from close range in the 77th after the ball slipped past a couple of Ancona defender, but an injury to Freddie Adu with all three subs used left us a man down with six minutes to go. Somehow we managed to come forward moments later, and after a great exchange of passes Chadwick took a shot, beat the keeper…and hit the bar. All the injuries were thankfully minor, but the 0-0 draw was a disappointing result.

I swapped Freddie Adu and Marco Vianello after the game, in order to give Freddie a bit of a break from senior football and reward Vianello for his great Under-20s performances. Adu has looked very good in his couple of senior games this season, playing mostly in the midfield, but there’s no point burning him out this early. I received an interesting bid for Davide Carrus from Perugia - £600K plus Fabio Filippi. Filippi, a 32-year-old midfielder, wasn’t of much interest, but the £600K wasn't bad. I decided to reject it though, as Carrus has played well in his 18 senior games and is making quite a challenge for a regular role in the midfield.

Though we’d climbed to 14th spot after the last few games, it didn’t make our home match against Juventus at the end of January any easier. A penalty to Ancona in the 5th minute, however, did. Bucchi put it straight in for a very useful lead. Marcon held on against several Juventus attacks, keeping us in front for the first 45. Unfortunately, as so often happens, our opponents scored just after the break. A forward easily outpaced our defenders to get in a shot, and while Marcon saved that, the rebound went straight to another Juventus player for a simple finish. Rapaic and Sommese, as happens all too often, were forced off with minor injuries. Vianello debuted in Rapaic’s place and should have received a pass from Bucchi when they were two-on-one with the keeper in the 71st. Unfortunately, Bucchi went for it himself and it was easily saved. Just as it looked like we could still come away with a point, Juventus went into their area with 30 seconds to go in injury time. Davide Carrus made a good tackle on the player in possession, but Luigi Sartor was apparently spotted shoving another Juventus player. The penalty was awarded and scored from, and we didn’t even have time for a kick-off. 1-2, with a crucial point taken away in literally the final seconds.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> Holders - Inter| Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | | Roma | | 22 | 15 | 4 | 3 | 51 | 17 | +34 | 49 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Inter | | 22 | 14 | 6 | 2 | 37 | 12 | +25 | 48 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Lazio | | 22 | 14 | 5 | 3 | 40 | 15 | +25 | 47 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Parma | | 22 | 13 | 4 | 5 | 33 | 17 | +16 | 43 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Juventus | | 22 | 11 | 8 | 3 | 32 | 16 | +16 | 41 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Milan | | 23 | 12 | 5 | 6 | 31 | 17 | +14 | 41 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Sampdoria | | 22 | 10 | 4 | 8 | 40 | 30 | +10 | 34 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Atalanta | | 22 | 6 | 10 | 6 | 23 | 21 | +2 | 28 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Reggina | | 22 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 33 | 32 | +1 | 27 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | | Perugia | | 23 | 5 | 12 | 6 | 20 | 19 | +1 | 27 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 11th | | Brescia | | 22 | 6 | 9 | 7 | 27 | 30 | -3 | 27 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 12th | | Chievo | | 22 | 7 | 4 | 11 | 31 | 35 | -4 | 25 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 13th | | Lecce | | 22 | 7 | 3 | 12 | 28 | 41 | -13 | 24 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 14th | | Ancona | | 22 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 22 | 26 | -4 | 23 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 15th | | Napoli | | 22 | 6 | 4 | 12 | 17 | 33 | -16 | 22 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 16th | | Verona | | 22 | 6 | 4 | 12 | 25 | 42 | -17 | 22 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 17th | | Fiorentina | | 22 | 6 | 4 | 12 | 21 | 47 | -26 | 22 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 18th | | Bologna | | 22 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 21 | 35 | -14 | 21 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 19th | | Udinese | | 22 | 4 | 9 | 9 | 19 | 37 | -18 | 21 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 20th | | Piacenza | | 22 | 3 | 4 | 15 | 19 | 48 | -29 | 13 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>

retired_tonytranbg79

oh dear you dont want a relegation battle on your hands

retired_bbcarr

yeah, you do. it'll be fun :p

retired_nela

It's only fun if you finish *above* the drop.


February, season 2004/2005

Luigi Sartor was dropped from the senior side that faced Udinese after weeks of poor performances, capped off by costing us the game against Juventus by conceding a penalty. Speaking of penalties, we again conceded one, this time through a push from Cirkovic in the 42nd minute. Thankfully, this time the ball hit the post and went out. Just one minute after the resumption of play, though, Udinese scored after Sergio Marcon wasn’t sure whether to go out to an oncoming striker or stay back, and wound up just hovering there as the ball was put past him. Bucchi seemed to equalise in the final 10 minutes, but Marco Vianello was ruled offside and the goal was disallowed. I went for an all-out attack, but that only opened up numerous chances for Udinese, forcing Ancona to spend most of the final minutes on the back foot. However, a defensive header from Stefano Torrisi (replacing Sartor) set veteran midfielder Giampero Maini off on a run in the 90th minute. He passed well to Vincenzo Sommese and the winger took the ball all the way into the area, hitting an angled ball straight into the net. The three minutes of injury time went back and forth, but the end result was that the game finished in a 1-1 draw. Bilica and Man of the Match Sommese picked up one-match bans as a result of reaching the yellow card limit in this game.

This was not good timing, with a game against top-placed Roma next. They both missed, but Alessio Scarchilli and Luciano Zavagno returned from injury to fill their spots on the bench. Manuel Belleri started the game off with an audacious shot from mid-pitch went over the bar, but it was Marcon with two early saves who was the hero for Ancona. Roma simply dominated the half, finally putting through a header in the 23rd and a second moments later. Sartor (replacing Bilica) conceded a penalty (again) right on half time for a third to Roma, leaving us set for another hammering. We did at least hold them scoreless in that half, but were still hugely outplayed in the 0-3 loss.

Scarchilli didn’t actually play in that match, but at training just a few days later he tore his groin muscle, putting him out for three months. Just what I needed… At least there was some positive news, with Marco Vionello called up to the Italian Under-21 side.

I again dropped Sartor for the game against Leece. The first half was uneventful, but Sommese was tripped in the area immediately after the break for a penalty to Ancona. Luciano Zavagno put it through and amazingly received another chance five minutes later after Bucchi was knocked over in the same place as Sommese. This one was saved, which proved all too costly in the second minute of injury time when Leece scored out of nowhere to equalise without any time for a response. Yet again we lost points in the final seconds of a match, finishing with a 1-1 draw in a game we should have won.

When in the lower portion of a league, games against similarly positioned sides assume additional importance. Thus, our match against Chievo, one spot above us in 14th, was pretty close to a “must win” game. Gianluca Pagliuca returned in goal, more to give him match fitness than through poor form from Marcon, and was beaten after only nine minutes. Luckily the ball came back off the post, but it wasn’t a promising sign. The first half was scoreless, but Chievo hit the opener in the 54th minute. We hadn’t had a shot all day to this point, so our chances of coming back were pretty slim. Luke Chadwick sent a magnificent headed pass forward to Christian Bucchi in the 79th, and while he was able to run onto it and get clear of the defence, his shot went well wide. He made amends in the best possible way, curling in a 25-yard free kick with literally 10 seconds of injury time to go. Considering that we’ve lost points in those final seconds recently, that finish to steal a 1-1 draw was more than welcome. We still haven’t won in six games and I would have preferred a win against a side just above us on the table, but every point counts.

We finished the month in 15th place, but are only two points clear of the relegation zone.