The Great Italian Player Thread [Post-1990]

[Duck Manson]

Wow. I think you just suggested a whole year's worth :) . Rampulla is not the only goalie to score a Serie A goal. Massimo Taibi scored one, and last year I remember Toldo put one in...ooh i meant the first, not the only. :cool: hehe.. how about albertini maybe? him and corini were just magic for the under 21s back in the early 1990s.

[Cassano]

Here's the updated list:

1) Ciccio Baiano
2) Marco Simone
3) Demetrio Albertini
4) Alberigo Evani

[SueB]

Heh. Maybe we should start The Pretty Good Italian Player Thread. :)

[phillips10]

Heh. Maybe we should start The Pretty Good Italian Player Thread. :)

yeah no kidding, this thread took a dive at Ravanelli ;)

I'm impressed by the speed, all are good reads...

[Cassano]

I consider all Italian players "Great"... :D

[Duck Manson]

if the criteria was actually being great, then you could stop after doing Baggio, baresi and maldini.. thats no fun :cool:

what is the criteria for being great though??? tough one indeed.

[Socrplyr]

roberto baggio is the best!

[Duck Manson]

roberto baggio is the best!was the best ;)

[Cassano]

Francesco "Ciccio" Baiano
http://manetti.homelinux.com/~maurizio/images/baiano_francesco.jpg
Ciccio Baiano was born in Napoli on February 24, 1968. He grew up playing in the streets of Napoli and was spotted by a scout and joined the Napoli youth team. His first season on Napoli's first team was the 1985-86 season, but spent most of the time on the bench and only made a handful of appearances. He was loaned out to Empoli the following season to gain experience and played pretty well. He was called back to Napoli for the following season but could not really find a place in the first team. That summer, he kind of became a nomad. He was sold to Parma, at the time in Serie B, and then the next season sold to Empoli in Serie B, and then was sold to Avellino in Serie B. He played a season there, and he played well and was spotted by promising Serie B club Foggia. He was sold to Foggia and the next year in Serie B scored 22 goals, leading Foggia to promotion. This was the suprising Foggia side coached by Zeman in 1991-92. He formed a exciting and superb trident with Signori and Rambaudi, and the fans nicknamed him "Ciccio", which is the traditional nickname for Francesco in Southern Italy. The trident, along with the inspiring play of a young Luigi Di Biagio, led Foggia to 8th in Serie A. That summer, Foggia sold Ciccio Baiano to Fiorentina. He and Gabriel Batistuta were Fiorentina's main striking pair, but the club finished in the relegation zone and were dropped to Serie B. Batistuta decided to stay, as did Baiano, and they led La Viola to Serie A. He played with Fiorentina in Serie A until the 1996-97 season. That summer, he received an offer from Derby County in England and accepted. He was no longer known as "Ciccio" but just as plain old Francesco. He immediately became a fan favorite at Derby, and won the 97-98 Derby Player of the Year award. He played just two seasons, before going to Serie B club Ternana. He spent one year there but then moved to fellow Seire B club Pistoiese, from the Tuscan city Pistoia. He played there until 2001-02, and then moved to Serie C2 club Sangiovannese, where he is still playing. He only made a few appearances for the Azzurri, and most were spent on the bench.

[Cassano]

Here's the "Goal Apostle" Marco Simone:
http://digilander.libero.it/marcosimone2001/album/Milan/images/26092001140416simone.jpg
Marco Simone was born on January 7, 1969 in a small town called Castellanza.
Ever since a little boy, he went to see games with his dad at the San Siro (mainly Inter though). At 14 years of age, he entered into the youth system of Northern club Como, at 17 he was a regular at Como, and at 19 was sold to Sacchi's AC Milan. Simone was also a superstar with the Under-21. He debuted with a goal in 1988 and Malta in an 8-0 win. He was a key member of the squad that reached the semi-finals of the U-21 Euro 1990. His record is 16 appearances and 7 goals.
The others of that U-21 squad were future stars Ravanelli, Di Canio, Corini, Rizzitelli, Peruzzi, Fuser, Casiraghi, Lentini, Costacurta and coach Cesare Maldini; and lost the Euro semi-final to Yugoslavia(who had Savicevic, Mijatovic, Boban, Suker and Boksic). At Milan, he had 9 great years full of goals and victories: 73 goals, 4 scudetti, 2 Champions League, 2 Intercontinental Cups, 3 Euro Supercups, 2 Italian Supercups. He played alongside some legends: Gullit, Van Basten, Weah, Roberto Baggio. In 94/95 he was named Italian player of the year and made his debut for Arrigo Sacchi's national team, but was not called for Euro '96. He was always liked by everyone. He always was friendly to foreign players and even taught them Italian: he taught Gullit and Van Basten, Savicevic, Boban and George Weah, with who he became best freinds with. They were so close and were nicknamed "Ebony and Ivory" because of the colors of their skin. Le loro magnifiche giocate rimarranno per sempre nella storia del Milan. In 96/97 he was not liked by Fabio Capello and decided not to go to another Italian club out of respect to Milan. He wound up at Paris Saint Germain, and in his first season was named the French League's best player. He was then transferred to Monaco and formed a great partnership with David Trezeguet. In 99/2000, Simone and Trezeguet led Monaco to a French title and Marco Simone scored a whopping 28 goals. He was nicknamed the "Goal Apostle". He really deserved to be called to the Italian national team throughout the year and to Euro 2000, but Dino Zoff ignored any Italian playing outside of Italy. Then, Didier Deschamps was named coach of Monaco and did not like Simone. Simone had to find somewhere else to go and for the 2001-2002 season was loaned back to AC Milan. In his first game back, when he stepped onto the field, the Milan supporters gave Simone a standing ovation and a huge banner read "Quando c'e Marco Simone c'e gol" (When there's Marco Simone, there's a goal). But, during the season, the favored pair was Inzaghi-Shevcenko, and he spent most of the season on the bench. He only collected one goal. He was given back to Monaco for 2002-2003 but still did not play. He was then sold to French club Nice for 2003-2004. He got married in May 2004 and retired at the end of the season.

[romanista31]

One word... TOTTI

[phillips10]

I liked the Simone piece...and I'd rather Cassano keeps going with features on players from the 80s and 90s rather than current guys. Much more interesting with a chance to learn something/look back...

[Cassano]

Exactly. I want to start out with the older, retired/almost-retired players first, then start doing the modern players like Totti, Del Piero, Vieri, and the rest of 'em...

BTW, here are the "Coming Attractions":
Looks like I'm doing a Milan quartet:

1) Demetrio Albertini
2) Alberigo Evani
3) Daniele Massaro
4) Alessandro Costacurta

[Cassano]

Demetrio Albertini
http://sports.tom.com/images/pic/albertini/d/59.jpg

Demetrio Albertini was a constant presence in the AC Milan midfield for over a decade, and is a player who makes his team tick with intuitive passing from the center of the field. Albertini was born on August 23, 1971 in Brianza, a small town in the Lombardy region. A product of Milan's youth system, he spent 14 highly successful years with the club after debuting as a 17-year-old in 1989. Albertini spent part of the 1990/91 season on loan at Padova Calcio, and impressed his employers.
He established himself in the Milan side in 1991/92 and went on to make almost 300 appearances for the club, claiming three successive Serie A titles between 1992 and 1994 and further league championships in 1996 and 1999. In addition, he made 41 Champions League appearances, helping the Rossoneri reach three consecutive finals between 1993 and 1995, lifting the trophy in 1994. He also won three UEFA Super Cups. In his Milan years he was nicknamed "The Metronome", because like a Metronome controls the rhythym and beat of music, he controlled the pace of the game. Albertini first represented his country in December 1991 against Cyprus. He was part of the Italy side beaten on penalties by Brazil in the 1994 FIFA World Cup final but scored a penalty. He also featured at the finals in France four years later, but this time missing a penalty. He was also a losing finalist at UEFA EURO 2000, but missed out on the 2002 World Cup after rupturing his achilles tendon shortly before the tournament. He said that the Euro 2000 team was the strongest Italy team he ever played on, and the success of the team was because they all developed a bond with each other and were almost like a club side. After the 2001-2002 season, he was surplus to Milan's requirements. He spent the 2002-2003 season on loan at Club Atlético de Madrid, and after that Albertini finally ended his long association with Milan, agreeing a two-year contract with Lazio where he would win the Coppa Italia. He started off well and scored the first goal of the 2003-2004 Serie A campaign, but Mancini did not utilize him as much towards the end of the season. He opted for a move to newly promoted Atalanta in July and played 14 Serie A games before FC Barcelona came calling in January and offered him, at the age of 33, a "dream" move. He is now at Barca and who knows if he will stay at the end of the season...

[Cassano]

Here is Alberigo "Chicco" Evani:
http://www.channel4.com/sport/football_italia/imgs/evaninews.jpg
Alberigo Evani was born in the Tuscan town of Massa on New Year's Day, January 1st, 1963. He also has a strange name, which is very close to the Italian word for hotel, 'Albergo'. His record in Serie A is 353 appearances and 16 goals. Alberigo Evani, called "chicco", and by supporters "bubu". They called him so because his slightly rounded face and his hair in a bob recalled Hanna & Barbera’s bear cub that was Yogi Bear's sidekick.
Alberigo Evani had some left foot. It wasn't one that was tailor-made for shooting, but it was one that made sure he would be a Milan regular for over a decade in the club's most successful spell.
Evani was taken in by the Milan youth academy who developed him into a left-sided midfielder of real quality. He wasn't gifted with great pace or the ability to wizard his way past defenders, but his dependable qualities proved vital to Milan, especially during the Arrigo Sacchi reign.
He was handed his debut at just 18 in 1981 and he went on to wear the Rossoneri shirt with distinction for the next 13 years. His honours while at Milan included two promotions from Serie B, three Serie A titles, two European Cups, two Italian Super Cups, two European Super Cups and two World Club Championships, and he scored the winner against Nacional Medellin in the 1989 triumph.
When Sacchi became Italy coach Evani became an Italy regular. He played in World Cup 1994, and scored a penalty kick in the loss to Brazil. He joined Sampdoria in 1993 and stayed there for four years until ending his career at Reggiana. Today, Evani has returned to his footballing home. He was hired by Franco Baresi, who is Milan Primavera coach, at Milan to take charge of one of the youth teams and is undertaking his coaching qualifications which he hopes will lead to a Serie A bench.
Alberigo has said "I’m in no rush to take charge of a full side yet, for the moment I just want to do as well as possible with these youngsters. Only after that would I like to take a job to see exactly what I have learnt. To date I have a licence which allows me to Coach in Serie C. From next season (2001-2002) I will take the master course which will allow me to work in Serie A." He hasn't been hired as a coach yet, but maybe very soon we will Alberigo sitting on the bench coaching a team...

[Cassano]

Daniele Massaro's bio will be done over the course of the next few days. Feel free to suggest any players you had in mind...

[Leto]

Casiraghi, Corini, Di Canio, Dino Baggio..?

[Leto]

Oh, I got one - Antonio Conte. Now that I've thought of him I'm really curious about his early career.

[Cassano]

Interesting Leto. All your requests shall be fulfilled...

[Cassano]

Daniele Massaro
http://sunsite.tus.ac.jp/wc94/images/photos/ITAvsMEX.4.0628.gif
Daniele Massaro was born on May 23, 1961 in Monza. Monza is usually famous for Formula 1 racing, but Daniele was interested in soccer since he was a little boy. He started out with Monza in Serie B in 1979-80 and made 24 appearances and 5 goals. The next year he made 36 appearances and 5 goals. That summer, Fiorentina bought the youngster. At Fiorentina he recieved the nickname "Beep Beep", which is the Italian name for the cartoon character Roadrunner. He was fast and agile, and had a good finishing touch. He was also very versatile, he could play forward, midfield, or even become a defender. At Fiorentina that year, he made 29 appearances, scoring 1 goal. He also made his Azzurri debut in a friendly in April. Many never realize this, but Daniele Massaro was called to the Azzurri squad for World Cup 1982. He won the World Cup but never played a game. He spent the next four seasons at Fiorentina, and in the summer of 1986 was sold to Milan. In 2 years at Milan, he made 48 appearances and 6 goals. His highlight of the 2 seasons was scoring the goal that sent Milan into European competition in the play-off vs. Sampdoria. For the 1988-89 season, Milan sent him on loan to AS Roma, where he scored 5 goals in 30 games. Milan took him back the following year because Sacchi liked him. He put faith in Massaro and he had a great year scoring 10 goals in 30 games. Despite his efforts, he was not called to World Cup 1990. Over the next 2 years he became a major part of the Milan team that won Scudetti, Champion's Leagues, and Supercups. He was also re-introduced into the National team setup after Arrigo Sacchi, the man who believed in him at Milan, became Azzurri coach. For the 1993-94 season, he scored 11 goals in 29 games and was called up to WC 1994. Also, he scored 2 goals in the Champion's League final against Barcelona where Milan cruised to a 4-0 victory. He scored a goal against Mexico in the group stage of USA '94, but missed a penalty for Italy in the loss to Brazil in the final. The goal against Mexico was the only goal he ever scored for the Azzurri, making 15 appearances. The next season was his last as Milan player. He left in the summer of 1995 for Japan. He played with the Shimizu
S-Pulse, and then retired as a player. After a few years, he became a regular on Italy's beach soccer team. He was made captain and captained Italy's beach soccer team before retiring completely 2 years ago.