SERIE A

ITALIAN PLAYERS WANT SERIE A HALTED AMID CORONAVIRUS LOCK DOWN

Published

4 years ago

March 10, 2020

An extraordinary meeting will be held this Tuesday by Italian football authorities and government officials to discuss the potential suspension of the Serie A season amid the global coronavirus outbreak.

Last weekend’s matches, which were played behind closed doors, could be the last round to take place for some time, with the players and their union unhappy at the risks being taken and the soulless atmosphere.

Italy is the hardest-hit country in Europe, with 7,375 cases and 366 deaths from the disease, known as Covid-19 and originating from Wuhan, as of Monday.

Some 16 million people or a quarter of the population have been placed in lockdown, with the Italian government ring-fencing the Lombardy region, of which Milan is the capital, as well as 14 provinces in four other regions, including the cities of Venice, Modena, Parma, Piacenza, Reggio Emilia and Rimini.

The drastic measures led Brescia striker Mario Balotelli to demand an immediate halt to SerieA games.

Ranting on his Instagram page, the Italy international said: “Money isn’t worth our health, we have to wake up. Don’t write rubbish to me like, ‘Nothing happens to you behind closed doors!’

“Playing means travelling by bus, train, aeroplane, sleeping in a hotel, in any case entering into contact with other people outside of your working environment.

“I already don’t get to see my children because of this damned coronavirus… I certainly don’t want my mother to catch anything from me, I won’t risk her getting ill.

“Why would I? To entertain someone else? Or to stop them losing money? Don’t be ridiculous. You can’t joke around with health.”

DamianoTommasi, president of the Italian Footballers’ Association (AIC), agreed, tweeting “the teams to cheer are playing in our hospitals, emergency rooms” and “stopping football is the most useful thing for our country right now”.

In a further statement, the union added: “The signals that the sporting institutions are sending out are terrible.

It’s dangerous to travel to and from the red zones, it’s dangerous to play football, it’s dangerous to shake hands… football isn’t an exception when it comes to the coronavirus.”

The epidemic has also forced the second leg of Paris Saint-Germain’s Champions League last-16 tie with Borussia Dortmund to be staged at an empty Parc des Princes today, and the same closed-door policy will apply to the Juventus-Lyon game next Tuesday.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS

SERIE A

Ademola Lookman wins Atalanta’s ‘Player of The Season Award

Published

4 weeks ago

June 27, 2024

Kunle Solaja

Nigeria’s Super Eagles winger and silver medal winner with the country at the last AFCON 2023 tournament in Cote D’Ivoire, Ademola Lookman, has emerged as the Atalanta Player of the Season.

The pint-size forward has won the converted award Back-to-back with the Bergamo-based side after his exploit in the domestic and European matches for the side.

Atalanta qualified for two finals with the Nigerian International playing an active role in the campaign.

He was instrumental to Atalanta winning the UEFA Europa League beating Bayer Leverkusen 3-0 in the final with the Nigerian scoring all the goals.

The club announced on its official website on Thursday saying, “It’s him again, Ademola Lookman! The reigning champion defends his title and is crowned straight-a student for the second year in a row after staving off an unsparing competition, to the point of both bringing the contest to an overtime runoff and stepping the pose down up to the Instagram profile after the regular session ended in a tie. Kudos to Mola for his back-to-back Player of the Season!” it noted.
It went further that,” building on his 17 goals and 11 key passes in all competitions (making him the team’s second-best seasonal scorer and wingman) and with the hat-trick scored in the magical Dublin final as his main leg-up, Lookman tips the ItalianOptic branded crown once again,” the web remarked.

Aside from Ademola, the second and third-best positions were also announced as the midfield duo of Jose dos Santo Éderson and Teun Koopmeiners.

The Nigerian had a brilliant AFCON experience with Nigeria where he scored three goals and his exploits so far have put him in strong contention to win the next ‘African Footballer of the Year’ award which will come up before the end of the year at a venue yet to be announced by the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

Nigeria’s Victor Osimhen is the reigning winner of the award alongside Asissat Oshoola who retained the version.

SERIE A

Napoli reduces Victor Osimhen’s value

Published

1 month ago

June 24, 2024

Kunle Solaja

Former Serie A champions Napoli are reportedly ready to drop their asking price for Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen as his future grows ever more uncertain.

The 25-year-old is looking for a move away from Serie A but Napoli’s initial €150M release clause has warned off any potential suitors.

Quoting from another Italian outlet, Calciomercato, Getfootballnewsitaly reports that Napoli are ready to lower the initial valuation to €100M, in the hope that they can free up much needed transfer funds for new boss Antonio Conte, who is understood to be desperate to land Belgian international striker Romelu Lukaku this summer.

It is also stated that the English Premier League sides, Chelsea who were understood to be in pole-position to sign the Nigerian international, has never opened any negotiation with the 2023 Serie A champions.

The only avenues open at this time seem to be the Saudi Pro-League, where a reported salary of €40M a season has been offered, or Paris Saint-Germain, with Osimhen not keen on either option, preferring a move to the English Premier League.

SERIE A

Osimhen’s Napoli European hopes end with 0-0 draw against Lecce

Published

2 months ago

May 27, 2024

Kunle Solaja

If Nigeria’s Victor Osimhen remains in Napoli in the next season, he will not have any action in UEFA competitions.

Napoli lost their slim chances to participate in European competitions next season when they were held to a 0-0 home draw by Lecce in their last Serie A game of the campaign on Sunday.

Last season’s champions Napoli finished 10th on 53 points, level with ninth-placed Torino who were beaten 3-0 at Atalanta in a simultaneous kick off on Sunday.

Despite their loss, Torino can now still earn a Europa Conference League playoffs spot if eighth-placed Fiorentina, who have a game in hand, win the Europa Conference League.

Fiorentina face Greece’s Olympiacos for the title on Wednesday.

Napoli needed a win to maintain their European hopes but despite 24 shots, five of them on target, they ended their disappointing campaign winless in their last seven games.

Substitute Cyril Ngonge had a good chance to give Napoli the lead just after the break but his shot from the edge of the box was saved by Lecce goalkeeper Wladimiro Falcone.

Jens Cajuste hit the far post with a low strike shortly before Ngonge hit the bar in the 64th minute.

Europa League winners Atalanta, meanwhile, secured at least fourth spot after Gianluca Scamacca, Ademola Lookman and Mario Pasalic were all on target in a 3-0 win against Torino.

They sit fourth on 69 points but can still leapfrog third-placed Juventus, on 71 points, if they beat Fiorentina in their last remaining game next Sunday.

-Reuters