Like Robert C. Stevens’s ‘Thunderbolt from a Clear Sky,’ Inter could be on the brink of engineering Joaquin Correa’s arrival from Lazio. Shocking claims from Radio Radio suggest the reigning Serie A holders could soon announce an unexpected signing of the Argentine forward.
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A month-long battle for the European crown came to an end on Sunday night as Italy beat England 3-2 in a dramatic penalty shootout to win their first European Championship title since 1968. To recap the European Championship for the last time, we took a look at the best XI from Euro 2020.
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After the Azzurri missed out on the last World Cup, Roberto Mancini has completely revamped the way Italy play, replacing the old-school catenaccio with an exciting brand of possession-based football. To find out the reasons behind Italy’s success at Euro 2020, we delved deeper into the tactical nuances of the Azzurri’s performances throughout the tournament.
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“It’s coming to Rome!!!” – Leonardo Bonucci’s wild shout into a TV camera as tension unfolded and celebration kicked off was the sum up of the Azzurri’s dream night. They did it. Italy beat England on penalties, conquering their Wembley fort at the end of an exhausting 120-minute battle to come out of Euro 2020 as winners.
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Euro 2020 has been described by many observers as one of the most exciting international tournaments ever held, and luckily for calcio fanatics, some of their favorite Serie A stars were at the center of the action. But before the competition closes its curtains, let’s look back at the Top 10 crazy moments which included players who ply their trade in the Italian league.
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Nicknamed “fantasisti”, these men are blessed with unusual flair that enables them to change the course of the match with one magical touch. Some like to play right behind the center forward, others start their runs from the flanks, but their extraordinary skills remains their common ground. So let’s take a look at the Top 10 Serie A supporting strikers in the last ten years.
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Although every playing positions has its own flavor, there’s something quite special about the center forward role. Even though Italian football had its difficulties throughout the last 15 years or so, Serie A was and still is blessed with some formidable center forwards. Thus, here are the Top 10 stars who played the number 9 role in Italy since 2010.
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New to the list of great Italian defenders in the making is Inter left-sided Federico Dimarco who did very well in the Nerazzurri’s first summer outing against Lugano on Saturday. Although a left-back by nature, the 23-year-old Italian has been an integral part of Verona’s back three system the past season.
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After the Azzurri missed out on the last World Cup, Roberto Mancini has completely revamped the way Italy play, replacing the old-school catenaccio with an exciting brand of possession-based football. To find out the reasons behind Italy’s success at Euro 2020, we delved deeper into the tactical nuances of the Azzurri’s performances throughout the tournament.
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Many would struggle to picture how such a gentle character as Javier Zanetti could turn into a ruthless defender – but what made him a true legend was the fact that he managed to do so without losing his composure and honesty. So clean was his style of play and so respectful his attitude that Zanetti has only ONE Serie A expulsion to his name.
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The Derby d’Italia between Juventus and Inter is generally a pretty balanced match. But by surfing through the Italian football almanacs, one may stumble into a bizarre occurrence when the Bianconeri demolished their fierce rivals, who were fielding their youth team in protest, by a record score of 9-1 to put their hands on the 1960-61 title.
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In the Spring of 2007, the yellow-and-red side of the Italian capital was breathing a refreshing Champions League air as Roma prepared to face Manchester United at Old Trafford in the second leg of a UCL Quarter Final. But things did not quite go as planned for Roma, whose trip to Manchester ended up in a shocking 1-7 hammering.
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On October 30, 2013, Giuseppe Rossi bagged a sensational hat-trick in the space of 20 minutes to lead Fiorentina to a stunning 4-2 win over a Juventus side whose grip on the Serie A seemed unshakable. It was “a day I will never forget,” as Rossi himself once recalled, and perhaps the climax of a career that didn’t fully live up to the hype.
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Gabriel Omar Batistuta graced Italian football from 1991 to 2003, becoming a Fiorentina legend and winning a Scudetto with Roma. Tactically gifted, industriously astute and strikingly prolific, Batistuta was a force to be reckoned with when in full flow. A once-in-a-lifetime player who relentlessly terrorized defenses without a second thought. He also remained Argentina’s top-scorer until Lionel Messi took over the record.
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First Name: George. Family Name: Weah. Those four letters attached to a number nine shirt will always make a pleasant shiver run up any Milan supporter’s spine. Weah was an atypical “number nine” with impressive physical and technical characteristics. He made the red-and-black side of the San Siro fall in love despite scoring less that one would expect considering his massive skills.
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Between the 1990s and the first decade of the 21st Century, the history of Juventus was enameled by the presence of a somewhat unique player. It was September 12, 1993 – 15 minutes before the end of a match against Foggia – when La Vecchia Signora fans got introduced to a Padua-born boy with the face of a nice guy and a sublime right foot. His name was Alessandro Del Piero.
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September 22, 1976, is a day that means a lot to Brazil, to Inter fans, and to the whole world of football: That’s the day when, in Rio de Janeiro, one of the best players ever was born – Ronaldo Luis Nazario de Lima, better known on the world football stage simply as Ronaldo. The first Ronaldo, and for many the only one. This is the story of a truly unique player.
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Gianluca Busio is set to join Venezia coming from Sporting Kansas City. At the tender age of 19, Busio has 61 senior appearances for Sporting KC thus far, and became the third youngest player to start a match in Major League Soccer.
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A European Champion and the Player of the Tournament at Euro 2020, Gianluigi Donnarumma has come a long way since being a prodigy at Milan. As he prepares to move to PSG, there is no doubt that he will be the man between the sticks for the long term in Paris.
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Three Feathers, Three Flowers, The Flowering One, The Walled One…The names of football clubs in San Marino are poetic and charming, drawing from Italian and from Latin to convey an image of calcio whose dimension is still genuine and down-to-earth. Here is a short history of the local league and its participating teams.
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Somewhere in the middle of Italy, surrounded by the Belpaese territory, lies a microstate with a strong identity and a long-lasting history, even when it comes to football. San Marino is a minuscule country perched atop the Appennine Mountains. Here is a short story of their passion for calcio, in partnership with the local Football Association.
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Football’s ultimate competition is upon us. The swashbuckling attacking style of 2019-20 Champions League semi-finalists RB Leipzig leaves spaces for the attacking full-backs and flying speed wingers of Liverpool. However, Liverpool will need to fine-tune their midfield and shore up their defensive weaknesses to progress in the Champions League.
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The exciting and unpredictable Premier League season is throwing us another crucial title showdown. The big games so far in this campaign have been disappointing. However, Liverpool’s match-up against Manchester City usually brings out the best in both sides. With the title on the line, Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp need to conjure an ultimate master plan.
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In our journey across the most famous Italian football stadiums, today we come back to Turin. Juventus are the most famous team in town, but Turin is also the cradle of Torino – a club with less international reputation but that truly exemplifies the passion for football in the city. Their current home is appropriately called Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino.
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The off-season is almost over folks, and the Cult of Calcio proudly announces the launch of the second season of your less-than-favorite series, the Calcio Parody. We’ll take you live to the club’s headquarters to see how the newly appointed Simone Inzaghi is faring at his new home, whilst he’s being welcomed by CEO Giuseppe Marotta, and of course the president himself.
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As part of The Cult of Calcio’s journey in the world of women’s football in Italy, our last chat of the year was with Chanté-Mary Dompig of Empoli Femminile. Chanté is a 19-year-old striker from the Netherlands who currently spearheads Empoli’s attack in the Serie A Femminile. She showed to have very clear ideas despite her young age and also gave us some nice sample of her Italian speaking skills!
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Sassuolo Femminile are one of the most interesting sensations in the Italian women’s football season and Swedish defender Sophie Brundin is playing no small part in it. Aged 23, Sophie is at her first season with Sassuolo after playing for four years at college level in the U.S. On top of being a professional footballer, Sophie is also a sports entrepreneur.
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Like Robert C. Stevens’s ‘Thunderbolt from a Clear Sky,’ Inter could be on the brink of engineering Joaquin Correa’s arrival from Lazio. Shocking claims from Radio Radio suggest the reigning Serie A holders could soon announce an unexpected signing of the Argentine forward.
Roma are reportedly weighing up a move for Zenit St Petersburg forward Sardar Azmoun to replace departing Edin Dzeko. According to CorSport journalist Jacopo Aliprandi, the Giallorossi are ready to launch a bid to sign the Iran international in the coming days.
Atalanta and Chelsea have reportedly scheduled a meeting to discuss the prospect of Tammy Abraham’s move to Bergamo. Per reputed journalist Fabrizio Romano, the parties are due to meet within 48 hours to explore the possibility of the Englishman’s permanent switch to Serie A.
After Inter agreed to sell Romelu Lukaku to Chelsea, another Serie A star could be on his way to the Premier League in the coming days. As per Football Insider, Tottenham Hotspur are confident of acquiring the services of Bologna defender Takehiro Tomiyasu.
Roma striker Edin Dzeko is reportedly on the cusp of joining Inter after agreeing on personal terms with the Serie A champions. As reported by Corriere dello Sport (via SempreInter), the Bosnia & Herzegovina international will replace Romelu Lukaku, who is departing for Chelsea.
Juventus and Sassuolo will reportedly resume talks over Manuel Locatelli’s long-awaited switch to Turin in the coming week. According to Gazzetta dello Sport via (TUTTOmercatoWEB), the parties will try to broker the midfielder’s move to the Allianz Arena despite last week’s breakdown.
Despite missing some key players and new additions, Paris Saint-Germain got off to a flying start to the new Ligue 1 campaign. Last season’s runners-up claimed a hard-fought 2-1 victory at newly-promoted Troyes on Saturday evening in their league curtain-raiser.
Talks between West Ham United and Fiorentina over Nikola Milenkovic’s long-awaited switch to the Premier League are reportedly well underway. According to Sky Sports journalist Kaveh Solhekol, both sides are ‘optimistic’ about completing the deal on short notice.
Lazio have reportedly made decisive progress towards agreeing Filip Kostic’s loan move with Eintracht Frankfurt. According to Il Messaggero (via LazioNews24), talks between the clubs are in an advanced stage, with the Biancocelesti confident of getting the deal over the line.
Everton star playmaker James Rodriguez has urged departing Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi to team up with his arch-nemesis Cristiano Ronaldo at Juventus. During his live stream on Twitch, the Colombian admitted he would like to see the two best players of our time sharing the pitch at the Allianz Stadium.
Inter will switch their attention towards Atalanta striker Duvan Zapata if Romelu Lukaku ends up joining Chelsea in the summer transfer window. According to TuttoSport (via SempreInter), the reigning Serie A champions have identified the ex-Napoli marksman as the perfect long-term replacement for the Belgium international.
A long-running transfer saga involving Christian Romero’s move from Atalanta to Tottenham Hotspur reached its conclusion yesterday. Spurs completed the centre-back’s season-long loan signing with an obligation to buy on Friday.
