i absolutely agree that life will go on after totti, and i assume there will be other great players in the future, but they can wear another number and still be great! if roma had retired #10 before totti and he became the player he was wearing the #69, then retire the #69! the next great player can pick another jersey # to immortalize! nobody else NEEDS to wear that number, and great players can come through the team with a different number! if peyton manning asked for #7 when he got to the broncos, i would tell him to take a hike! that's elway's number... like i said though, agree to disagree i guess...
@ShoelessMan I agree with you in principle, but sport culture in the US is just different than in Europe. They place existential value on certain numbers for what they represent and their roles on the pitch. American sports do not. In general, I think retiring someone's number is an amazing honor. It is truly a way to immortalize a player. But if people think that being #10 or a #9 is important for some reason, then I can understand not wanting to retire it. Baseball numbers used to be determined by your spot in the lineup - that is why Babe Ruth was #3 and Lou Gherig was #4. But eventually that just died out as a practice.
just as numbers corresponding to where you play on the pitch in soccer for the most part have died out as well, except in the hearts and minds of the most diehard fans... for the record, the nfl is one of the few sports i know of where player numbers are still directly tied to what position you play on the field... (it's actually against the rules for an offensive lineman to wear a quarterback number and vice versa, which is why when an offensive lineman moves into the tight end position, it's announced by the referee for everybody to hear that they are checking in as an eligible receiver) i totally get the attachment in europe (one would argue europe is not alone here) to the number 10. the greatest players in the history of the game have worn #10... (pele, maradona, totti, messi) at the end of the day though, for my money's worth, it's just a number, and totti's career has been once in a lifetime! oh well, to each his own!
@romanewsus: #ASRoma shareholders' meeting at #Trigoria on March 31, 2014 about € 100 million capital increase http://t.co/M61xZAJfvQ
Yeah that's what they do every year, they increase the capital to cover the losses and provide some cash for transfers. The question is are they going to keep doing that, or this 100M is supposed to keep the club afloat until the stadium is opened?
How come Pallotta and Co. have to inject capital every year? Don't Unicredit own half the club? I don't know a lot about business but I'm assuming this is because Pallotta is the majority shareholder. So what's Unicredit's role?
That's not allowed under FFP. Injecting equity is only allowed for infrastructure/youth development and to cover for losses (up to 45 mil over 3 years). I don't understand much in finance but I was told by increasing the capital, Pallotta and Co dilute Unicredit shares. Maybe not the main purpose but at least one of them.
Roma already owes UniCredit money for a series of loans. I believe an initial loan once the club was purchased which went to the transfer market and then a secondary load. A while back I posted an Italian article in this thread and I'm pretty sure it touched on that.
AS Roma @OfficialASRoma 14h AS Roma SPV LLC press release http://www.asroma.it/en/news/as_roma_spv_llc_press_release/… Was put out yesterday but i don't think anyone has talked about it yet.
Roma coming to Orlando at the end of May. Just got tickets to see them play Orlando again. With it just being the end of the season and so many players with WC commitments I can't imagine the team coming over is much more than the Primavera. Still it should be a fun night out.
10 may never be wore again at Roma and that's something that is understandable. The weight of the number may crush anyone who dares wear it here after and it may essentially never be wore again. I can imagine being a very old man the next time its wore if again and while I agree 10 has a special meaning even today kids here do want 10, at Roma we have a special situation and if any player deserves a number retired its TOTTI at Roma, he is essentially a totally unique player and situation. Whatever the decision the club make in this, it will be disrespectful to criticise that decision as Totti will be involved in the argument. To think when I joined here you had a certain section openly suggesting "it would be to much wishful thinking on our part for him to join an MLS side". Nobody has reinvented themselves more than Totti, showing class and genius to fit into any formation or system and be the main player for over 2 decades. The shit is unheard of and they can plant an Eiffel tower size statue outside the stadium, call the stadium after him and retire the 10 and that STILL won't fully pay him gratitude for his loyalty.
I'd say a lot of players still want/use the traditional numbers when they're available and many more who just add "1" or "2" before them like De Rossi, Pjanic, Gervinho etc. Just on our squad (off the top of my head) we have: Castan, Strootman, De Rossi, Taddei, Gervinho, Pjanic, Ljajic, Jedvaj, Lobont in addition to Totti I think that many is probably average for all clubs. Also 4, 7 and 9 were taken by Bradley, Marquinho, Osvaldo when most current players took their numbers.