tags: AC Milan , AS Roma , Derek Rae , Edison Cavani , ESPN , Hernanes , Inter , Juventus , Lazio , Maradona , Napoli , Rafa Benitez , Roberto Baggio , Serie A , Toto Schillaci , Zlatan Ibrahimovic
You may have already guessed from the topics I cover on my site to the amount of rubbish that I tweet about, I am a fan of most European football. Only a full time job and the amount of hours in a day stop me from watching more. , I feel in love with Totò Schillaci, Roberto Baggio, Maradona and the whole West Germany side.
Back then Italian football was the hot topic, most fans that I speak to loved watching Football Italia on Channel Four and fell in love with everything about the league, including James Richardson. Once the Channel Four deal stopped so did my oppurtinity to watch Serie A. Bravo took it on but I didn’t have access to it. There was a period of about five years where I was subjected to only five channels and not internet. Watching Serie A just wasn’t a possibility.
Then with a proper job came proper money and I have all the channels you can legally obtain, plus an internet connection that brings access to more football than any one person could need. Recently I have become very bored with the English Premier League and find myself watching fewer and fewer games, always opting for the alternative option. That option more recently has become Serie A via ESPN.
Inspired by my good friend Scott I have become attracted to the wonderful world of Italian football. Not just the football itself but some of the wonderful people on twitter that talk about it so passionately and make it an enticing league to follow. , , and the fans of and . And don’t forget when you watch on ESPN you get to , this man can make St. Johnstone v Hibs sound entertaining.
However being the type of person that I am, to follow a league I need a team to latch on to. In Spain I have Valencia: they have been my Spanish team. In the Bundesliga my soft sport leans towards was there. And if you’ve been on my site before you will know of my love for Lille OSC.
To make this simple – I need a Serie A team.
I want to watch games from this league, but in not having a team I feel like I’m just fluttering my eyelashes at all twenty teams. With my colours nailed to a mast I then have a reason to want teams to win lose or draw, for me it just adds to the enjoyment. In my 29 years on this planet I have never had a strong feeling for any of the teams.
It would be very easy to jump on the Milan bandwagon with Zlatan riding into the sunset. Napoli with Cavani are great to watch but would it be glory hunting the same with Lazio and Hernanes. Roma are always interesting but I just couldn’t fit into that strip. Inter seem slightly tainted after Rafa’s short reign. And then there’s Juventus, but it seems everyone and their dog on twitter support’s “The Old Lady”.
I just can’t decide!
This is where I ask you, the good people of the internet, please either vote for one of the teams below, or leave comments on what team I should support and why, even better do both. I had ruled out some teams as it would help if they remained in Serie A for the forseeable future.
Thanks for your time.
Sorry, there are no polls available at the moment.PART 2: And then there were four….
Fiorentina – if you were watching in the 90s surely the goal scoring exploits of Batistuta didn’t go amiss, plus Baggio was playing for them when the 1990 World Cup was on. A delightful shade of purple too!!
I did love Batigol and Baggio (for all his clubs) Rui Costa, Steffan Effenberg legends. I’m a Phoenix Suns fan so Viola is a good colour.
BTW first belated DVD review coming tonight/tomorrow
I think you should try to get your own team. Look through some of the teams to find a link that you like.
Despite being Northern Irish, I never had any feeling good or bad towards Celtic or Rangers. I enjoyed the Scottish league and when I moved to Edinburgh I decided to pick a team to follow. I went with Hibs due to their Irish links and the fact that I lived 15 minutes from the ground. Made getting to games pretty easy.
Where do the teams come from? Who were they founded by? Is there a Scot in there somewhere you can support? Did your favourite ever player happen to play for an Italian team at any stage?
Don’t just go for the results of a poll… Or I’ll start a Twitter campaign to make you a Roma supporter and everyone knows they are the racist fans.
Haha Thanks Ryan. Yeah I really miss there was a team that stood out and lured me towards them, but I keep finding good and bad reasons for each. Hopefully the poll will guide me towards one, and whoever I decided I will really immerse myself in that team.
Thanks for the guidance, please not Roma, fat people don’t look good in Roma jerseys
By the way, I just want you to know that I haven’t started my campaign yet.
Roma is winning all by itself right now.
Ryan
http://www.the1steleven.com
Udinese are an ever-renewing resource of young talented players that go on to become top-players in bigger clubs. This year, with the like of Alexis Sanchez and Di Natale in attack, supported by players such as K. Asamoah, Inler or Isla, Handanovic in the goals.
They have once again all it takes to mount a very decent European cup challenge, ar not overhyped but play quality football, and they are based in one of the nicest regions in Italy. Udinese Calcio it is for me!
Thank you sir. I was doing some research on PES2011 last night and I scored a 90th minute winner with Inler against Lazio, good team.
Well, Andrew. I can see your troubles, as favourite clubs are often somewhat by chance revelated to you as a boy.
This is different and requires some thought. It depends somewhat on your personality I think. And your fan-persona, if that makes any sense.
Here’s a short select list of team traits to consider before making your choice:
If you love a madhouse with feisty players and colourful management a la Spain or Bayern, Roma is the obvious choice.
If you prefer a bit more control, more money and the Prime backing your team, you’d go for Milan.
Palermo is an even more nutty place than Rome (Cf. Zamparini) but has a great scouting network.
If carrying grudges and dreaming of better days does it for you, both Fiorentina and Genoa are ideal places to go.
Napoli boasts the maddest fans and the craziest city on the peninsula. And certain past stars.
Inter… Hm. Can’t find any other reason than Javier Zanetti to back Inter…
In my mind of course, there’s only one path to go down: The black and white pride of Italy, Juventus. And here’s why:
http://ponderingcalcio.net/http:/ponderingcalcio.net/tenacity-loyalty-magic
But it’s all up to you and some of the smaller clubs could do with your support as well. Looking forward to hearing what you decide!
if you want to suffer, rejoice, cry and yell, live the madness and the magic, join us passionate Roma fans on the Magica rollercoaster. If you want safer choice for your mental health: Milan or Inter. or just keep watching and one team will choose you.
Cheers Lars, Thanks so much for the advice. Celtic is my team from birth so no option with that one. Kinda big fish in a very small bowl syndrome. Lille my second team, happened to be in the CL when I found them, but that wasn’t the reason why I latched onto them, loads of mediocre season since then, so success isn’t a requirement for my fandom.
Peter Odemwingie and Lille’s playing style made me fall in love for them.
I have enjoyed Milan, Inter, Samp, Napoli, Palermo, Juve and more this season.
Looking forward to everyone’s thoughts.
Thanks
Thank you Di.
I have been watching quite a lot this season, more than previous years and lots of teams have impressed none have really captured me, this is why I called out for help.
Parma so you can support them back to the glory days.
If one of your earliest football memories is Italia ’90 then you & I must be around the same age.
If you were getting in to football and specifically, Italian football, around the early 90s then you, like me, would have been witness to the great Sampdoria side which included stars such as Vialli & Mancini.
Sampdoria, vote I, are the team for you to follow. Never a dull moment, yo-yoing between divisions in the middle of the last decade and then in the blink of an eye it’s Champions League qualification.
The Luigi Ferraris, a fantastic stadium, steeped in history and an amazing arena in which to watch football.
The town, alas, is rather quiet but that shouldn’t stop you choosing the Blucerchiati because after all, who could resist a team with THAT badge?
Choose Sampdoria, choose Pazzini, choose Palombo, choose the Luigi Ferraris and choose that badge!
Simon
P.S How the hell did you leave Roger Miller off your “I fell in love with…” paragraph!?
Are you kidding?there’s only one team to watch for attacking brilliance and slap stick slip shod defending and thats the mighty Milan!every single match is a roller coaster.Once you go red and black you’ll never go back…or summat like that.
I vote for Inter, but i think you should get your own team. If you think you recognize in Milan, then be a rossoneri fan, for example
Have to say, I’m disappointed by the options. I became affiliated with Lecce for reasons unknown, and follow them in their yo-yoing be they at the top or bottom of the string. If its a bad year, there’s always lots of ex-players in Serie A to enjoy, Mirco Vucinic being the most prominent. Its great fun trying to bloody the noses of the great and the good, even if it never quite works out.
Or Fiorentina. Good to hear there’s also fellow Valencians out there.
Go for Palermo.
Ilicic and Pastore with Miccoloi just ahead makes for an entertaining attacking trio.
Maccarone has flashes of brilliance too.
Depends on how long the can hold onto the quality youngsters I suppose….
When I first flirted with Serie A, I had a soft spot for Genoa, simply because of Tomas Skuhravy (hat-trick of headers and all that). However, when I moved to Italy in the early-2000′s, I didn’t really support anyone. At the school I worked at though, everybody and their dog was a Milan supporter. Not surprising when the clientele of the school were taken into account!
It drove me up the wall, listening to the constant cussing of Inter, who I had seen on TV a couple of times whilst in Italy. I was taking a shine to them. Under my apartment was an Inter bar, where I used to stop off every morning. The bar owner invited me along to watch a game at the bar one afternoon, and from there on in, that was it. Zanetti, Cambiasso, Stankovic…they just epitomised the type of football I loved to watch. Gees, even with Oba Martins in attack missing a barn door by light years, they were good to watch. And disliked too. They fitted how I felt at the time in that respect, too!
That was it. Seven years, three season tickets, countless games and a stash of silverware and scudettos later, I am still a big fan – and always will be. Forget about Rafa; he’s the past. We’ve had worst experiences than his time in charge. And do read up on the history of the club too…
If that hasn’t convinced you, I suggest buying ‘Calcio’ by John Foot. Read uop on the history of the game there and then adopt a team. Or just pick Reggiana, based on the fact Franz Carr played six games for them in the mid-1990′s…
Thanks Gav an award winning speech, I have in my time donned a few Nerazzuri shirts.
I do have Calcio on my shelve ready to read, just not finished the other 6 books beside it, or the one in my bag. Too busy replying to good people like yourself
Tika is right, that Fiorentina club of the 90s was entertaining. I had to go back and check them out after I adopted Fiorentina like 8 years ago. And they were technically the first post you got, so that is bonus points too.
Milan. Because sometimes it’s good to be on the side of evil.
Are you calling Milan evil Terry?
I believe that is what I was trying to convey, yes.
Gib!
After all we’ve been through? Don’t turn your back on the pink and black when we need you the most!
I know our last outing we spent together (Cagliari – Palermo) was a dud, but bad dates can happen sometime! Just think about all the other romantic exploits you’ve enjoyed! The pearl of a game vs. Juventus, the demolishing of Roma and the drubbing against Sampdoria!
The exploits of the fantastic trio of Miccoli, Pastore and Ilicic are enough to keep you coming back!
Plus, the team wears pink and black…and you know what they say – real men wear pink.
I trust you’ll make the right decision Andrew…
Lorenzo
PalermoOffside
Lorenzo you don’t even follow me on twitter, not building a good case for your team
I sense you like your teams flawed and with a dash of the underdog. That is why I have no reservations in recommending you follow Fiorentina.
A 40-year-plus dream of the Scudetto; legends of yesteryear like Antognoni, Baggio, Batistuta and Rui Costa and a club anthem to get the hairs standing up on the back of your neck.
If that was not enough, you get the crazy antics of the goalie formerly known as holy, a power-packed Peruvian like Juan Manuel Vargas and not one but TWO players featured in World Soccer’s young stars to watch (Ljajic and Jovetic when he returns from injury).
And, if the football is useless, you can gaze dreamily into the Fiesole hills.
I rest my case.
Very good arguement Ginkers, lots of appealing qualities to Viola
It has to be AS Roma. This team can fuck up the most promising situation very easily and you have to love them for it. A Roma scudetto is very special because they are very rare.
You don’t want to support Fiorentina as there is no derby to speak of (you can’t count Sienna, Pisa or Empoli).
Roma’s Kappa kits are now much bigger made.
Roma have the best song as well
Roma Roma Roma by Antonello Venditti.
Forza i lupi
Milan of course… look at the History!
Parma. How could you not have fallen in love with the rise of the small regional club from nowhere if you watched Football Italia? Crespo, Veron, Ortega, Cannavaro, Buffon, Thuram, Chiesa, Sensini (and so on and so on) all came and went as a provincial club who’d first contested Serie A in 1990 became the Italian club with the third most honours on the European stage, behind only Inter, Milan and Juve. Throw a couple of Coppa Italia trophies in there too, as well as the fact that no team in Italy averages a higher point tally in Serie A and you understand just how big they were back then.
Many thought they’d never return after relegation in 2008, but they have and even managed eighth position on their return. You say you were a fan of Football Italia in the 1990s? Parma are the perfect crystallisation of that era; rising as Italian football did and descending into the financial mire as Italian football did. Let’s hope for a renaissance in both to match your interest.
I support Roma, personally, but I’ve always had a rule that I tell anyone who’s starting to watch Serie A:
NEVER support a Northern Italian team with black stripes in their kit. Or Lazio. Anything else is fair game.
I had exactly the same dilemma in 1993 and I went for Parma. Luckily it was just before the golden era began and it was a wonderful period.
I turned up on Parma’s front door at the Tardini unannounced in 1994 and was given a one hour guided tour, dressing rooms everywhere and the general manager even gave me a lift back to my hotel! Would any other club do that? Fantastic place to visit, fantastic people and no trouble at the stadium.
If you don’t choose Parma go for Samp or Fiorentina but you can’t go for the big four, that’s too easy or the racists Lazio.
No need to think too hard about this. You love God. God is Francesco Totti. Francesco Totti is Roma. Therefore you love Roma. No need to fill your pretty little head with ideas below its station. And remember, you don’t choose Roma. Roma chooses you.
I am a strong Juventus fan…but if Juve wasn’t there I’d certainly go for Napoli..Juve is anyway too much of a frustration since Calciopoli
As for Napoli it’s an exciting team with rich history..one that you can be proud of including Maradona playing there..
The team now has young players that are only going to become better as time goes on..there is nothing bad about the team..even their jerseys are really cool
If I am you I’d cheer for Napoli..
Juventus, for very simple reason, the burning passion of the players, just look at gianluigi buffon, alex del piero, giorgio chiellini (youtube him being to get off field when he was bleeding but he wanted to stay on to score in the last minute, that said, hes a defender), milos krasic (take a look at goal.com article today, nough said), yes, some players are medoocre, like a certain brazilian “striker”. But then again, i have been a juve fan since 2 years old so telling someone of the glorious 90s and early 00s wouldnt be a wise thing. But then again, dont go with what people said, trust your heart!! Forza bianconeri!
Start following Napoli. I started following them in the very late eighties in the times of Careca et al winnign the waffercup and stuck with them ever since.
I admit it was a wee bit of glory hunting, but I stress it was post-Maradona and I was only about nine.
interesting, my serie a viewing history is very similar to yours
the reason i follow fiorentina is that i first fell for calcio around italia 90
baggio was the star for me and when i discovered the whole story of his move from fiorentina to juve that very summer the choice was simple
I really loved Batistuta and Baggio so yeah I think we’re in the same era.
I like Fiorentina, defo a possibility!
Please don’t go with Juventus.
Milan, surely!
Want to thank everyone for your comments, very much inspired by the response. I think I’ve narrowed it down to 3/4 teams.
Post coming soon
I tell you what if you give me the 3/4 teams and we will do a live draw on the show???
See the new post mate for the last 4 teams, what do you think?
Believe u should go to italy to watch a game. In that situation which area Of italy appeals more to you?
I would love to be able to visit the cities and fall in love with a team, but without the time or the money that dream will have to wait.
I will make it my duty to visit whatever team I pick in the next 18 months to see a game.
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