Hard Times (Pt. 1)

By: bingitz2002 | August 4th, 2009

Well, you are probably surprised I am here. To be honest I am a little surprised I am here. It’s been tough for me to get inspired to write given Torino’s fortunes over the past few months but I am feeling relaxed, in a good place and cautiously optimistic that we have hit our lowest point and have nowhere to go but up. I could spend a lot of time explaining my long absence, but that could easily have its own post. What’s important is that I’m here and ready to bring you coverage of Toro’s campaign to get back to il paradiso, aka Serie A. The first part of this two part post will deal with last season and the personnel changes at the club this summer while the second part, to be published in a day or two will deal with preseason preparations and the season ahead.

We all know the details of Torino’s relegation all too well. Too many opportunities to win at home squandered, most notably the 1-1 draw against Bologna and the direction of our season summed up perfectly by that ugly 2-3 loss at home to Genoa that resulted in a number of bans which in turn contributed to the 2-3 loss at Roma, ending our season. There was some disgusting behavior from some of our players and that illustrated a lot of the pent up frustration within the locker room and the team in general.

Moving on from the ugly incidents last season we now have to deal with some ugly goings on this summer. Cairo has been continually at odds with the fans, accused of gross incompetence in running the club. While it must always be remembered that he saved the club from oblivion four summers ago and helped us back into Serie A beyond that he has done very little. He is demonstrated a complete lack of football knowledge, much naivety in the transfer market and an continuing tendency to meddle in the affairs of the team when such things should be left to the manager or the director of football. Speaking of which his continual impatience with managers places him second to Zamparini in the crazy owner department.

It is a wonder then, why Stefano Colantuono, a man very much the victim of Zamparini’s chopping and changing, would agree to work for Urbano Cairo. Nonetheless he is here and it is one of the few Toro-related things this summer that I am excited about. Here we have a promising young manager whose career was derailed at Palermo. He led Perugia to the promotion playoffs in 2005 where they were defeated by none other then our very own team (before both teams were busted down for financial issues) before he led Atalanta to promotion the very next season. One might recall that in 2006 we were not automatically promoted but had to suffer through playoffs. The team that won Serie B dominantly that season? Colantuono’s Atalanta. The following season, while we were struggling againt relegation despite much promise, Colantuono guided Atalanta to a very respectable seventh place in Serie A and earned himself a spot on the Palermo bench. After some promising results at Palermo he was sacked by Zamparini after a 5-0 defeat to i ladri only to be put back in charge when Palermo was going nowhere better without him, only to be sacked again just a few games into last season.

I hope that Colantuono can be given a fair shot at Torino because he has the potential to be one of the best trainers we have seen in recent years. After so much mediocrity among our old stiff managers Colantuono has the promise tobe a breath of fresh air. If he can replicate his achievments with Atalanta or even some of his results with Palermo (barring the 5-0 of course) then we could be in for a good ride, especially with Rino Foschi remaining at the club (he had said he would leave should the club be relegated), but first we have to build the team to get us out of Serie B. Apart from Foschi, Colantuono and their staff at the helm the team is undergoing a bit of a makeover.

Addio

Firstly some of the familiar faces have disappeared, none so recognizable as Alessandro Rosina. Obviously Rosinaldo has been the face of the club for the past four years. However, I think that Rosina in many ways has represented the fate of the club. Loads of promise, a few glimpses of brilliance but ultimately a letdown. Just as he is off to new beginnings at Zenit St. Petersburg, a club that won a small place in my heart for their 2007-8 UEFA Cup campaign and 2008 Super Cup victory over Man U. Although I am sad to see him go, it is ultimately the best move for the club from a financial standpoint considering the €7.8 million transfer fee and the room this frees up in our wage budget. It also gives us a clean slate in many senses as we can live without the expectations he brings and the controversy he has shown he can carry with him. Ciao, Alessandro, you will will be missed. Buona fortuna in San Pietroburgo!

Also departing, unsurprisingly is Ignzaio Abate, who returns to Milan for €3.25 million after his one year of co-ownership at in Turin. The staff there clearly see a purpose for him this season, even if it is off the bench and he is in all likelihood too good for Serie B and needs time in Serie A to cement his place as one of Italian football’s rising stars. He was one of the better performers last season so it is naturally sad to see him go, but I wish him the best of luck in his future career. Perhaps we will see him again at Toro, who knows? He has a bright future ahead of him.

The last major piece of the puzzle on their way out (so far) is Cesare Natali. While easily our best central defender he was oft-injured during his time here. He is off to Fiorentina for €2.2 million where he will back up Dario Dainelli and Alessandro Gamberini and join former Toro captain Gianluca Comotto. This is a disappointing loss but one of the inevitable ones that come with relegation, though I am fairly confident we can come, at least in Serie B.

Also on their way out are Marco Moro to Ascoli for €300,000 and Sasa Bjelanovic to Vicenza. Both players were on loan last season and clearly not part of the first team picture. Beyond that no sales have been made but of course rumors will abound until September 1st rolls around. Lastly, many players, including a number of familiar faces have been released after the end of their contract. Perhaps most notably Toro legend Eugenio Corini has retired. Although he was at the club for a relatively short period of time he worked his way into the hearts of many Toro fans and will be sorely missed. Also gone are Roberto Stellone (not sure on this one, I think he should have been kept around), Nicola Ventola (never really got going), Marco Di Loreto (average defender, we have better now), Ivan Franceschini (see Di Loreto, plus was frequently injured) and goalkeeper Alberto Maria Fontana (the only senior player to stay with Toro through the 2005 meltdown but had little to no chance at playing time – has moved to Novara, best of luck!). Also, Paolo Hernán Dellafiore returned to Palermo after his loan ended.

Blerim Dzemaili was acquired after his loan spell from Bolton but has been heavily linked to Palermo with a deal even being quasi-confirmed by Zamparini before being denied by Cairo. A swap deal with Fiorentina for ex-granata Franco Semioli has also been rumored but at the moment it looks like a deal with Palermo is the most likely option with Davide Succi possibly coming the other way. Dzemaili would be useful to have in Serie B and was a Toro fan favorite last season so I do hope he stays though I feel that Succi could also be a useful player. Other players rumored to be going are the obvious ones, namely Bianchi and Rubin but also possibly Sereni and Säumel.

Other possible transfers out: Calderoni (Brescia); Pratali (Livorno, Palermo); Rubin (Napoli, Palermo, Livorno); Barone (Livorno); Dzemaili (Palermo, Udinese); Zanetti (Livorno, Chievo); Amoruso (Parma); Malonga (Cittadella, Boulogne – this would most likely be a loan)

Welcome (back) to Toro!

On the other hand coming in we have a few loan returns including Davide Bottone from Vicenza and Dominique Malonga from Foggia. Nick Amoruso also returned from Siena but could now be on his way to Parma, unsurprising given his fallout with the club’s management in January. Bottone could have some role to play in the upcoming campaign, but it could be hard to see Malonga getting a shot, especially if Bianchi stays. The big name returning from loan though is David Di Michele coming back from an unspectacular spell at West Ham. Di Michele had some serious problems with the management, particularly Novellino and didn’t look like he had much of a future at the club. However, Colantuono has now made Di Michele the club captain given the departure of Rosina, a somewhat surprising move but one that indicates DDM will certainly be playing an important role in this campaign. He is a vastly talented but inconsistent player (similar to Rosina if not in playing style then at least in this sense) but I have a feeling he can eat Serie B alive if he is on form this season.

Our first summer acquisition aside from Dzemaili and the loan returns was that of Nicolás Gorobsov, a promising Argentine winger from Vicenza coming for €400,000. He worked his way into the Vicenza first team at the tender age of 19 and put in some solid performances for them. Fiorentina were rumored to sign him but we beat him to it. He has been compared to Joaquín and hopefully he will be a future star in the granata colors, but for now it looks like he will be relegated to a bench role.

Next up and probably our ‘biggest’ name signing is that of central defender Simone Loria from Roma on a free loan. While clearly not good enough for Roma, Loria can be a force in Serie B and will fill the gap left by Natali. I had questions when he was linked with us in January but now that events have transpired in this way, I think he is a fine signing.

Lastly, we have acquired Luca Belinghieri from Ascoli as part of the deal sending Marco Moro the other way, though we have also compenstaed Ascoli to the tune of €1.5 million. He is a 26 year-old center midfielder who has shone in Serie B and even has a little bit of Serie A experience with Como. He will be a fine addition to our midfield, epsecially if Dzemaili and/or Barone go on their way out and I look forward to seeing him in a Toro uniform.

A “definitive” list of rumored entries includes: Terranova (Palermo); Cerci (Roma); Iori (Cittadella); Loviso (Livorno); Migliaccio (Palermo); Morosini (Udinese); Pazienza (Napoli); Filipi (Ravenna); Succi (Palermo)

Clearly we are looking for more depth in the relatively thin central midfield area. Migliaccio, Pazienza, and Loviso would all be solid acquisitions while I don’t know much about Iori. Morosini would be OK but not the quality of the first three. In the attack Cerci would be a solid addition to add some speed and creativity. Succi could be a useful Serie B striker while I know little of Filipi. (I guess I should bone up on my lower Lega Pro knowledge.)

We have done rather well in the financial aspect of things, with good work from Foschi so far in his first summer mercato with Toro. With these signings and departures as well as a number of smaller ones we have received €13.25 million in transfer fees while only shelling out €1.9 million and maintaining a fairly strong squad, especially for Serie B. Hopefully this is a sign of better things to come from the management, who have come under serious fire from the fans (something I will discuss more in my next post).

With these transfers already done and assuming Dzemaili goes on his way to Palermo in exchange for Succi I could envision this lineup for Toro in Serie B:

———-Bianchi
—————Di Michele
Rubin-Säumel-Barone-Diana
-Pisano-Loria-Pratali-Rivalta
————Sereni

Bench: Calderoni, Ogbonna, Colombo, Belingheri, Vailatti, Gasbarroni, Succi

Right now we have plenty of depth and quality and look quite better than most all of the squads in Serie B. However as we Toro fans know all too well that does not always translate to success on the pitch (that and there is still plenty of time left in the mercato), but with Colantuono on the bench I think we can turn this quality into results and retain promotion immediately.

Tomorrow I will review Toro’s performance in the pre-season, our prospects in the coming season, discuss details of the problems Urbano Cairo is currently facing as chairman and discuss our first competitive match of the season, a Coppa Italia tie versus Lega Pro 1 side Figline.