Yesterday, Italy's men's team didn't manage to qualify for the World Cup, and it was only the second time in history that it happened (the other one being 60 years ago). Now, wouldn't it be ironic if Italy's women's team, who currently has the exact opposite record (they did qualify for Women's World Cup just twice), managed to go to France 2019? Only time will tell!
Sorry for not updating this thread for a while, but I have been very busy in the last weeks... Anyway, no Serie A this week-end for the NT match vs. Portugal on Tuesday, so I'll recap last matchday and the table after 6 matches: Ravenna - Fiorentina 0-0 Chievo - Brescia 1-3 (Coppola / Girelli, Giacinti, Bergamaschi) Res Roma - Verona 3-0 (Martinovic, Simonetti, Greggi) Mozzanica - Pink Bari 4-0 (2Pirone, Mendes, Stracchi) Juventus - Sassuolo 2-0 (Rosucci, Franssi) Tavagnacco - Empoli 4-1 (3Brumana, Clelland / Orlandi) Juventus, Brescia 18 points Tavagnacco 13 Chievo 10 Mozzanica, Fiorentina, Res Roma 9 Ravenna 6 Verona 5 Empoli 4 Pink Bari 1 Sassuolo 0 Some highlights:
The fight for the title, this season seems an affair between Juventus and Brescia, more so now that Brescia was eliminated from Champions' League and can concentrate again completely on the domestic league. The duel is very interesting; we have a "new" and an "old" team: Juventus women is a newborn, while Brescia is an historical power of Italian women's football. The raising new has probably an additional advantage: Juventus is now fully backed up by the men's team, and this is finacially very important, but it's not just that. On the other hand, Brescia doesn't get any support from the men's team, to the point that they're denied the stadium for the Champions' League matches. On the long run, this disparate level of support could maybe make the difference?
here's a nice compilation video of Barbara Bonansea. In my book she's all ready one of the top twenty players in the world today. Will she ever make FIFA's official top ten? I think that depends if Italy can make it into the WC this time around
I don't know, Brescia, although with a team new at 90%, has a winning mentality (at least on national level) that Juventus could lack in the critical matches...there will be a first test in the next matchday, a Brescia-Juventus not to miss. The more striking fact of the these first 6 matchdays is the disappointing start of the ruling champions Fiorentina, lost into a crisis that not even the good performance vs. Wolfsburg in the return match has worked out. The news are that the team is going to sign 3 more foreign players, the Norwegian Spord and Schjelderup, and the Icelander Sigurdardottir....will be enough to catch - up the 9 points gap from the top of the table ? In the meantime Mozzanica signed the Portuguese NT forward Carolina Mendes, who already played a couple of seasons ago in the now disbanded Riviera di Romagna.
just make em watch Spaghetti westerns before the match, then they'll feel like shoot em up on the field!
naw, that scene would of made the players left cross eyed! After 50 years got you wonder if the real star of those westerns was Morricone's heavy handed music rather than Eastwood, lol............ but anyways, Italy won an important away game & once again it was Bonansea's swift drive/cross kick that set up their one goal. Weak defending on their left side should be a big concern though. Feel one way bad for Portugal since two goals were disallowed, but lack of fan support doesn't add too much sympathy. Portugal lost now two important home games, and so I do think that whoever wins looses between Italy & Belgium, will still be able to get the 2nd place wild card spot based on points. here's highlights,
The big match of the 7th matchday led to a new table leader: Juventus defeated Brescia 4-0 and now is the most tipped team to win the title. I watched the match on Tv and, although I don't have much attraction for the " bianconere" I must admit that played very well and fully deserved the win. Tavagnacco took full advantage of the Brescia defeat and shrinked the gap to only 2 points, making clear that, on certain conditions, that team too can have a say at least for the 2nd CL spot battle; Also Mozzanica and Fiorentina won, so advancing to the 4th place. In the relegation battle first important win for Pink Bari, meanwhile Sassuolo is still at 0 points. The results: Brescia - Juventus 0-4 (Boattin, Frannssi, Galli, Bonansea) Verona - Empoli 2-1 (2Tornsvaldottir / Bargi) Pink Bari - Res Roma 1-0 (Quazzico) Fiorentina - Chievo 4-0 (2Caccamo, Brazil, Mauro) Ravenna Women - Tavagnacco 1-5 (Tucceri Cimini / 2Polli, 2Catena, Brumana) Sassuolo - Mozzanica 1-2 (Oliviero / Alborghetti, Monterubbiano) The table: Juventus 21 Brescia 18 Tavagnacco 16 Fiorentina, Mozzanica 12 Chievo 10 Res Roma 9 Verona 8 Ravenna Women 6 Pink Bari, Empoli 4 Sassuolo 0 A few highlights:
The remaining highlights: http://it.violachannel.tv/fw-dettag...oker-viola-al-chievo-verona-gli-highligh.html
As a tasty appetizer of the 8th Serie A matchday, this evening will be played Juventus-Fiorentina, exceptionally broadcasted on TV by Rai Sport (8.45 pm) ! Unfortunately we won't be able to see playing the english starlet Ellie Brazil, currently in Florida with her U20NT in a top friendly tournament (by the way she scored in the 3-3 opening match vs. USA), but I think that Fiorentina will put on the pitch at least 1 of the 2 new Norwegian NT signings...on the Juventus side, italian players aside,have a look at the Finnish Frannssi, a player that gave me a very good impression in the last match vs. Brescia. Looking for some info about this match and its broadcasting, I stumbled on another interesting piece of news: our NT will play a friendly against France the 20th of January here in Italy ! The location is still unknown but I think/hope that will be in the north of the country and, if it's not far from my hometown I would think over going to watch it...
Martina Piemonte scored again (I guess it's her 6th goal) in a Sevilla's away win by 0-2 vs Madrid CFF.
And has been called in the upcoming U23NT camp that will train together with the senior NT from 17 to 21 of December. https://www.calciodonne.it/nazional...e-a-novarello-raduno-congiunto-con-l-under-23
Yes, she's good, but I think that now the NT has more problems to solve in the midfield than among the forwards, and Milena Bertolini should find a reliable replacement waiting for the recovery of Cernoia and Parisi...
Last Saturday has been played the 8th matchday: Juventus defeated a good Fiorentina too, now it's the 8th win in a row, and honestly I don't see any club able to contend the title to this team nowadays... Brescia didn't miss more points, grabbing a late away win in the derby vs. Atalanta-Mozzanica, Tavagnacco keeps winning and now is uncontended 3th. At the bottom of the table first win for Sassuolo, and now there are 6 teams fighting for the relegation battle, surprisingly Verona included. The results: Tavagnacco - Verona 2-0 (Clelland, Camporese) Mozzanica - Brescia 1-2 (Monterubbiano / Girelli, Giacinti) Juventus - Fiorentina 2-0 (2Rosucci) Empoli - Pink Bari 0-1 (Parascandolo) Chievo - Ravenna Women 2-1 (Solow, Mascanzoni / Errico) Res Roma - Sassuolo 0-1 (Tarenzi) The table: Juventus 24 Brescia 21 Tavagnacco 19 Chievo 13 Fiorentina, Mozzanica 12 Res Roma 9 Verona 8 Pink Bari 7 Ravenna Women 6 Empoli 4 Sassuolo 3 A few highlights:
Another matchday, the last one of the year, and another win for Juventus, the 9th in a row: also Brescia and Tavagnacco win, Fiorentina instead keeps losing points. In the relegation battle, 3th win a in a row for Pink Bari, this time vs. a Verona in a never-ending crisis... Brescia - Res Roma 4-1 (2Giacinti, Girelli, Giuliano / Palombi) Fiorentina - Mozzanica 0-0 Ravenna Women - Juventus 0-5 (2Bonansea, Glionna, Franssi, Zelem) Chievo - Tavagnacco 0-1 (Brumana) Sassuolo - Empoli Ladies 0-1 (Bargi) Pink Bari - Verona 3-1 (2Pinna, Serturini / Fishley) The table: Juventus 27 Brescia 24 Tavagnacco 22 Fiorentina, Mozzanica, Chievo 13 Pink Bari 10 Res Roma 9 Verona 8 Empoli Ladies 7 Ravenna Women 6 Sassuolo 3 The top scorers after 9 matches: Lana Clelland (Tavagnacco) 11 Cristiana Girelli (Brescia) 9 Paola Brumana (Tavagnacco) 7 Barbara Bonansea (Juventus), Valentina Giacinti (Brescia) 6
Buon Anno (Happy New Year) to everybody ! Some interesting news during this no-match stint (Serie A will resume on January the 13th), a few clubs are trying to strengthen to improve their disappointing season so far. Verona is keeping on with their foreign players politics (I missed the count of the players signed so far...) signing 4 new at once + other 2 who already trained with the club ! Dessi Dupuy, USA forward, from the french club ETG-Ambilly Liliana Kostova, Bulgarian Midfielder/Forward NT, from the polish club Medyk Konin Florin Wagner, German midfielder, from the finnish club Alan United Coline Bouby, French defender, from the club Nimes Robin Decker, Swedish defender, from the swedish club Kvarnsdeven Anna Molin, another Swedish defender, from the cyprus club Apollon Limassol Probably the club will let a couple of players go, now the roster is pretty overnumbered... The other team that needs to strengthen is the bottom -of -the-table Sassuolo, that signed the midfielder Giorgia Tudisco, from the serie B club Luserna, but mainly the evergreen Laura Rus, rumenian NT forward, who played in a lot of club throughout Europe and once was the top scorer of the CL with Apollon Limassol, if I remember rightly... Probably in January we'll see other clubs recruit new players, although I don't know when the mercato winter window will end... Last but not least, bad news for Blissett and me, hoping to go to watch live the friendly Italy-Francein January: the match will be played in ....Marseille ! Let's hope at least that it will be streamed/broadcasted somewhere....
Oh. It's not like Marseille is the farthest French town from Northern Italy, but a little trip to France could be a problem anyway...