Rugani set to benefit from Sarri appointment

Recently, it’s been heavily reported that Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri is nearing an exit, and is close to signing a contract with Italian champions Juventus. This comes following a successful season in London, that saw the Italian tactician steer the English giants back into the Champions League after a solid third-place finish, and claim the Europa League in emphatic fashion.

Despite his success, Sarri intends on leaving, and is likely returning to Italy with the bianconeri as front-runners for his signature. According to Italian media outlets, the former Napoli boss feels his work at Chelsea went under-appreciated, and is leaving as a result of this. While Juventus’ offensive players will be licking their lips at the prospect of Sarriball, including a certain Cristiano Ronaldo and Paulo Dybala, one player to keep an eye on is Daniele Rugani.

The defender had a torrid season under Massimiliano Allegri, and failed to take his game to the next level, as many expected him to. Every time he featured, Juventus’ rearguard looked shaky, and never had any sense of cohesion. However, Rugani is a player Sarri has valued for a long time now, and even pushed for his signing when he was at Napoli. Even if it never materialized, it shows Sarri holds the defender in high regard.

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When the pair were together at Empoli, the young defender was a crucial part in the tactician’s setup, and played an integral part to his possession-based buildup out of the back. Outside of his confidence on the ball, Rugani was a lockdown defender in Tuscany, something that he has since failed to translate to Juventus.

At Juventus, it’s been a complete different story for the centre-back. Often playing second fiddle to Leonardo Bonucci, Mehdi Benatia or Giorgio Chiellini, Rugani has struggled for consistency, and has looked a shade of his former self when called upon. This season, the former Empoli man was regularly bested by physical opposition, and often looked timid in possession. With Bonucci and Chiellini on the wrong side of thirty, it’s time Rugani steps up and delivers on the hype.

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While question marks remain over his ability due to his recent exploits, Rugani was fantastic at Empoli under Sarri, and proved to be one of the league’s top defenders. Should Sarri join the bianconeri, as it’s largely being reported by the ever reliable Romeo Agresti, expect Rugani to have a bigger role at the club. In addition to the added responsibility, the 24-year-old will have the complete faith of his manager, something that might have been lacking under Allegri.

With his newfound confidence, Rugani will experience a resurgence of sorts, and could potentially develop into the defender many expected him to be. Under Sarri, much like it was the case at Empoli, Rugani could continue his progression as a ball-playing defender. In recent times, this aspect to Rugani’s game has stagnated, as he has focused solely on defending.

With his risk-averse mentality holding him back, Rugani hasn’t been able to demonstrate his complete ability, and has since been labelled a flop. That being said, expect the tune to change under Sarri’s guidance and witness Rugani reborn. After all, it may just be his last shot at redemption in Turin.

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Roma’s Hot Seat: The Contenders

With Roma on the prowl for a new manager following a disappointing season in the nation’s capital, many of Italy’s tacticians have been linked with a move to the giallorossi. After missing out on the Champions League, the Roma brass are looking for fresh ideas, and start anew once more. Here are the current contenders for the job, including the favourites, a couple long-shots, and everyone in between.

1) Sinisa Mihajlovic (Bologna) 

The Bologna manager is arguably the likeliest to become Roma’s boss next season, and has demonstrated he has the personality to coach one of the league’s top clubs in the future. After replacing Pippo Inzaghi half-way through the season, the Serbian tactician steered Bologna to safety with ease, and made the most of their limited roster.

Instilling an offensive 4-2-3-1, Mihajlovic took Bologna to another level, and inevitably catapulted them from the relegation zone to a respectable tenth place finish. Prior to his arrival, Bologna looked a side devoid of an identity, and appeared set to go down to Italy’s second division.

Under his guidance, offensive talent Riccardo Orsolini stepped up, scoring four goals and registering one assist in his last six appearances, and gave a glimpse of what’s to come to the rest of the calcio world. Following his strong finish, Bologna exercised their option to purchase him completely from Juventus.

Other than getting Bologna firing on all cylinders in the final third, Mihajlovic, much like it has been the case his entire managerial career, introduced new-found solidity in the midfield with his double pivot, and laid the foundations at the club for next season. Should he join Roma, as it’s largely being reported, expect the Serb to do the same and continue his progression as a young manager.

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2) Marco Giampaolo (Sampdoria) 

The Sampdoria boss has long been regarded as one of the peninsula’s up and coming tacticians, and has continued his development at Sampdoria this past year. While this season ended in disappointing fashion for the blucerchiati finishing outside the European places, Giampaolo made strides forward, and continued to implement his possession-based game in Genoa.

Bringing his trademark 4-3-1-2 no matter the club he’s at, he may prove to be a good fit for a stuttering giallorossi side. This season, Roma lacked invention in the final third, and played much of the season looking lethargic in possession. However, just like Mihajlovic, Giampaolo is relatively untested at the highest level, and is yet to prove himself in the upper echelon of Italian football. With Roma looking to get back into the Champions League as early as next season, hiring Giampaolo is a risk they may not be able to afford.

It’s also important to note that Milan are also in the running for the tactician, and are arguably the front-runners for his signature. In any case, don’t expect Giampaolo to be the man to restore Roma to their former heights.

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3) The outsiders

Outside of Mihajlovic and Giampaolo, a host of other names have been linked to the Roma hot-seat, albeit less seriously. If recent reports are to be believed, Shaktar’s Paulo Fonseca has been coveted by the Roma management, and could be brought in this coming summer. Like Giampaolo, Fonseca values possession-based football, and has done wonders with his Ukrainian outfit in recent years, especially in the Champions League. Despite being a long shot for the time being, he’d be an impressive appointment, all things considered.

Another name linked to the side is Sassuolo’s Roberto De Zerbi. After impressing at Benevento in his first season in Serie A, De Zerbi was appointed as Sassuolo’s manager. Despite the neroverdi’s limited roster, the Italian tactician guided them comfortably to a 12th place finish, all-while playing progressive football with a strong Italian base. Much like the other candidates, De Zerbi is unproven but has demonstrated he’s one of the nation’s most forward-thinking managers.

Other names that have been vaguely linked to Roma are former Milan boss Gennaro Gattuso, who Francesco Totti is reportedly pushing for, and Jose Mourinho. However, these links should be taken with a heavy grain of salt, and are arguably meant more to sell papers than anything else.

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Which players are leaving Manchester United as a free agent?

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Without a doubt, Manchester United will be one of the main clubs that will be going all out within the summer transfer window, when compared to the other sides in the Premier League and in the whole of Europe. Following the embarrassing season they have experienced through both Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, they will now look to make a huge statement off the pitch.

However, the full attention happens to be just on the hopeful incomings, rather than the players that may leave on a free transfer and those individuals whose services are no longer needed. With a lot of deadwood still remaining at the club along with the team’s squad depth being really thin, a lot of planning and top recruitment is badly required in order to have a successful summer window.

Here are the three United players that will potentially be leaving on a free transfer…

Antonio Valencia

After spending ten long years at Old Trafford, Antonio Valencia will be leaving the club at the end of June with the full appreciation of the Manchester United supporters. From playing consistently as a winger to being utilised as a makeshift right-back over the last couple of years, the Ecuadorian never failed to wear his heart and passion on his sleeves despite being regarded as a very limited player.

Majority of people will be content with the displays he has produced but some will be unsatisfied with how he failed to reach his true potential as a dominant and effective winger. The 33-year-old went on to make just fewer than 350 appearances in all competition, whilst winning the league on two occasions, the EFL Cup on two occasions, the FA Cup as well as the Europa League in 2017.

Juan Mata

Whether he stays or leaves, Juan Mata’s time at both Manchester United and Chelsea will be seen as quite underrated as a whole, purely because of how he played out of his natural position and how it prevented him from being at the heart of each attack. Even during his time out wide on the flanks, he was still able to create chances for the team whilst also getting the best out of his team-mates.

On the other hand, the attacking midfielder could make a return to Spain and do quite the job for the likes of Sevilla, Valencia or even Atletico Madrid, who are always looking to improve in the league and in Europe. At the end of the day, many will be unsatisfied with how Juan Mata went through four United managers, who failed to play him in his best role, which is behind the forward.

Ander Herrera

The one player that will be leaving on a free transfer that has shocked the Premier League experts and most importantly the United fanbase is no one other than Ander Herrera. A complete midfielder who has always been effective and consistent on the pitch, and is also seen as quite the type of vocal leader when necessary, which is something that the current squad is lacking from top to bottom.

Overall, some of the folks will not be too angry with his departure as he apparently wanted £200,000 a week, which does seem extortionate for someone who does not play regular football. However, when the likes of Alexis Sanchez, Luke Shaw and Paul Pogba are on a lot of money whilst not proving to be consistent or reliable enough, you could see why Herrera cheekily demanded a massive pay rise.

The Top Five Managers From the 2018/19 Serie A Season

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Finally, we end the series with the ‘allenatori,’ the men in charge of the day to day and marathon that is 38 crucial rounds of calcio.

Here are the five best managers from this past season. Continue reading

Five points to take away from a season of triumph and torment at Lazio

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Lazio’s campaign of highs and lows concluded with the latter on Sunday when Simone Inzaghi’s side lost 3-1 at Torino to finish the Serie A campaign in eighth place.

It was the Roman club’s worst league finish in three years and topped off a season of startling inconsistency.

The joy of a 3-0 win over Roma and an impressive 1-0 victory away to Inter was in stark contrast to lifeless performances that resulted in damaging defeats to the likes of Genoa, SPAL and above all the unforgivable 2-1 loss at home to already-relegated Chievo over Easter weekend.

The Coppa Italia triumph gave the campaign a huge lift, raising spirits and securing Europa League qualification for next season. Continue reading

Serie A Top Six Fantasy Midfielders in 2018/2019

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Predictably, the top point-getters among those listed as midfielders fully play as strikers. Some have done it for few years now, like Dries Mertens, who unleashed holy hell on the opponents down the stretch and run away atop of the chart with his 111 points, and Gregoire Defrel, who had a strong start and a prolific finish and collected 74 points. Others, like Josip Ilicic (72) underwent the transformation mid-season with good profits.

However, as far as the column goes, the choices fell on those who actually feature either as no.10, as winger or as a central midfielder.

Alejandro Gomez (63): he did the opposite compared to his Slovenian teammate, as he commenced the year as second-striker, but moved his position way back as the games went along, featuring as pure attacking midfielder in the second half of the season. Continue reading

Top Ligue 1 Strikers of 2018/19: Kylian Mbappe

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Kylian Mbappe had another fantastic season as he scored 33 goals and topped the lead goal scorers list in France as a result. His goals were the primary cause for PSG winning another Ligue 1 title as Mbappe underlined his reputation as one of the best strikers in Europe.

This season in particular was a massive step up for Mbappe when we consider his previous seasons. Before the start of 2018/19 season the most league goals Mbappe had scored in one season was 15, for Monaco, in season 2016/17. This season he managed 18 more goals and the plaudits need to be lauded on the player for the following reason; he was able to step up after PSG lost the services of both Edinson Cavani and Neymar and Mbappe then became the main player and forward for the club.

Let’s analyse his season. Mbappe started off with a bang when he scored a brace against Guingamp in a fairly routine win and all of this happened despite him only playing 50 minutes of the game. Within the first 2 games of the season he had acquired 14 points and never really looked back.

His best game of the season happened in matchday 5 when PSG destroyed league rivals Lyon 5-0 in Paris. Mbappe was heavily involved and scored an incredible 4 goals, he also picked up bonus points for getting a hat-trick and ended the game with 18 points. Other highlights of the season included scoring a hat-trick and making an assist in PSG’s 9-0 victory over Guingamp, that earned him 16 points and he earned another 14 with another hat-trick against Monaco later in the season.

There were only 4 games when Mbappe failed to record any points and he remained consistent throughout the season. One such instance of this was at the beginning of the season where Mbappe scored points in the first 8 weeks of the season.

Mbappe finished on a huge 144 points in Ligue 1 Fantasy Football rankings and finished 35 points ahead of Nicolas Pepe. His value going into last season was 10.5m and perhaps after having such a great season his value may go up next season. Overall Mbappe would rank 2nd in the strikers list with only Lionel Messi at Barcelona having gained more points.

It is still incredible to think that he is only 20 years old and he has already won 6 major trophies including a World Cup and 3 Ligue 1 titles with PSG and Monaco.

As for his future it looks destined to be away from Ligue 1, but he looks like he will stay with PSG for the foreseeable future and will remain the main focus point of Ligue 1 football. He is arguably the most special talent in classic centre forward style since the Brazilian Ronaldo.

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Inter appoint Conte to replace Spalletti

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Serie A’s worst kept secret was made official between Thursday and Friday, when Inter announced the sacking of Luciano Spalletti and the hiring of Antonio Conte. The 49-year-old coach reportedly signed a three-year, €33M contract.

Even though the Nerazzurri got a top-four position and qualified to Champions League with a dramatic win over Empoli in the season finale, the writing has been on the wall for some time for Spalletti due to problems in the locker room and a not-so-great playing style. He finished fourth in both his seasons in Milan, where he did not manage to do better than his Roma days. He is set to receive a conspicuous severance pay since he had two more years left on his contract. Continue reading

The Top Five Attackers From the 2018/19 Serie A Season

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Forwards are often on the receiving end of most of the attention and praise throughout the course of a season; after all, it is their end product after a build-up and impact on the scoresheet that decides matches.

There was a large selection pool to choose from, and in several forward roles, but here are the five top attackers from this past campaign. Continue reading

Boss Jose Bordalas the only star at Getafe

Jose Bordalas

It is hard to believe that until August 2017, Jose Bordalas had never managed a match in the Spanish top flight. It was not for a lack of trying – he had been involved in management across a 25-year spell but had never been able to breach the top-flight. He was desperately unfortunate not to do so the previous year, when he guided Alaves to La Liga after a 10-year absence only to be dismissed after winning the Segunda title.

That was a decision which ultimately proved hugely beneficial not only to Alaves – who have impressed in three successive seasons in the Primera – but also to Bordalas, who has worked wonders at Getafe. He took the helm at Los Azulones in September 2016, with the club second-from-bottom in the Segunda and facing the prospect of further gloom and doom. Continue reading