“Sono qui per vincere”

By: Dan | July 14th, 2009

This is the motto of the 2009-10 Reggina campaign. The words uttered by head coach Walter Novellino, reflecting his desire to win and win now. We took a big step toward this goal today when it was officially announced that Emiliano Bonazzoli will be back in a Reggina shirt this season! So as promised, let’s review the transfers this season – who’s in and who’s out – as well as the current squad.

Who’s In:
- Emiliano Bonazzoli (Sampdoria): The powerful striker was a favorite of many Reggina fans in his two seasons at the Granillo from 2003 to 2005. Many were surprised he took the step down to Serie B, but I’m not gonna complain. He is going to get playing time and be a central figure in this project. An attack with Bonazzoli AND Brienza would be deadly. Big big signing!
- Simone Rizzato (Ancona): Not a big name by any means, but was apparently a key part of helping Ancona stave off relegation. He plays as a left back, but I’ve heard he could also play in on the left side of the midfield in Novellino’s preferred 4-4-2 system. This could mean that he is a replacement for my guy, Emil Hallfredsson, which I would be extremely upset about. Apparently Novellino wanted this kid and sees something in him.
- Sergio Volpi (Bologna): Despite his age (35) this is a big singing for our young team in need of some leadership with the departure of Ciccio Cozza. Volpi was a protege of Novellino during their years at Samp and was excited to be reunited with his mentor once again. Except him to wear the captain’s arm band in the coming season.
- Other miscellaneous returning players include Simone Missiroli, Joelson and Jose Montiel.

Who’s Out:
- Davide Di Gennaro (Milan): Co-owned between Genoa and Milan, he was only on loan and his departure was inevitable. He’s now back at Milan, the team of which he grew up in the youth ranks.
- Djordje Rakic (Red Bull Salzburg): Another player that was only on loan. Despite showing glimmers of brilliance, he never really got to prove himself or get any consistent playing time.
- Bruno Cirillo (PAOK): Back in Greece after a mediocre season in the Reggina defense. His reckless play cause a handful of penalties and he became the target of repeated jeers from the fans.
- Matej Krajcik (Slavia Praha): The only player that was brought in during the winter transfer window. Had somewhat of a chance to prove himself but didn’t really play well. After he conceeded the penalty that blew our 1-0 lead over Milan, he was not welcomed by the fans.
- Bernardo Corradi (Udinese): Was a major part of the team last year, leading in goals, but inconsistent play relegated him to the bench many times in favor of Ceravolo. Had to stay in Serie A.
- Antonio Giosa: Not sure where he is now, but he didn’t even make an appearance last year. Injuries prevented him from playing early on, recovered late in the season but failed to make the first team.
- Andrea Campagnolo (Catania): After he got injured, Christian Puggioni took over and did well enough to take the reigns as the first choice keeper. Campagnolo did decent with a poor defense in front of him, but was no longer needed.
- Luca Vigiani: The veteran midfielder played sparingly throughout the season and had to deal with various injuries along the way. He is now testing the free agent market, being linked with Chievo and more recently Brescia.
- Francesco Cozza (Salernitana): Il capitano, a hero to many in Reggio, was not able to save the team from relegation and is now on his way after his contract expired. He’s now in Salerno and will be missed by all.
- Alessio Sestu (Avellino): Who knows what’s going on with Sestu. He was co-owned last season and became a regular in the lineup thanks to his great pace and skill as a winger. Avellino is now in financial trouble and he is likely on the move again. We might just be able to get him back.
- Luca Tognozzi (Pescara): Loaned out to Brescia midway through the season, the midfielder seemed out of his league in Serie A. He now returns to his old stomping grounds in Pescara.
- Edgar Barreto (Atalanta): The biggest move of the summer, Barreto was highly desired by several clubs all across the continent. One of the few bright spots in our terrible season, his stunning long-distance strikes are going to be missed.
- Other miscellaneous departures include Francesco Cosenza (Ancona), Kris Thackray (loaned to Ancona), Ivan Castiglia (remaining with Cittadella), Nikolas Kras (Lucchese), Giuseppe Toscano (Lucchese), Giuseppe Sarao (Paganese), Josias Basso Lisboa (loaned to Ravenna), Tommaso Squillace (loaned to Ravenna), Antonio Rizzo (loaned to Ravenna) and Antonio Lamenza (loaned to Legnano)

Question Marks (Players who are under contract but were not summoned for training in Roccaporena):
- Pablo Alvarez
- Emmanuel Cascione
- Leonardo Gatto
- Jonis Khoris
- Leonardo Pettinari
- Lorand Szatmari
- Mike Tullberg
- Gaetano Ungaro

As I stated before, Novellino will implement his preferred 4-4-2 system. Some pieces of the puzzle are falling into place as training begins, but the market is by no means closed. Let’s take a look on the current situation…

Goalkeepers: The first choice keeper as of right now is Christian Puggioni. He had an excellent season after taking over for Campagnolo, and helped keep survival hopes alive until the final two weeks. I have no reservations about a player like Puggioni being in front of the net for us in Serie B so I’m hoping he sticks around. If not, waiting in the wings is the 6′7″ Pietro Marino and young Hungarian primavera keeper Adam Kovacsik.

Defense: Without a doubt the weakest part of the team last year. No major signings have been made yet to address this, but we still do have some talented players. South America duo Santos and Carlos Valdez were the two best when healthy and will be at the heart of this defense. Valdez has attracted interest from Bologna, however, and might be back in Serie A before the season begins… Maurizio Lanzaro is a powerful defender who did seem a little overwhelmed at times in Serie A, perhaps he will be more of a force in Serie B… We also have Andrea Costa who played as an outside left midfielder last year but is fully capable of playing left back… And the young 17-year-old Vincenzo Camilleri, who many remember from the drama that revolved around Chelsea’s capture of him, should get plenty of first team opportunities this year… As mentioned earlier, defender Simone Rizzato was signed from Ancona. I’m a fan of Valdez, Santos, and Camilleri so I don’t have too many major concerns as of right now.

Midfield: Most notably is the new signing Sergio Volpi, a veteran leader who is going to be surrounded by a lot of great, young talent. With the depature of Barreto, we can keep our fingers crossed that Chilean international Carlos Carmona sticks around. Carmona was a workhorse who played well in Serie A. His agent recently stated that he will remain with Reggina, but rumors of suitors in Spain and Germany are ever-present. The new Reggina midfield will be built around Carmona… A player I absolutely love is Daniel Adejo. Brought up from the Reggina youth ranks, the young Nigerian was used as right midfielder and was a viable replacement for the injured Sestu. Novellino has stated that Adejo has a lot of growing to do, but I hope we see him this year… My favorite player on the team is Iceland international Emil Hallfredsson. His goal against Juventus was a stunner. He is a strong, physical player who prefers to play on the left wing but might have to adapt to a central role if he stays with us. There were rumors that Cagliari wanted him, but the deal fell through. I think he would be a force in Serie B… The lanky Simone Missiroli returns from his loan stint at Treviso. He is a maturing player but I haven’t been really impressed with him over the past few years. He still has to show me something. I’m also not a big fan of Antonino Barilla because he consistently started over Hallfredsson, but apparently he was good enough to get called up to the Under 21 squad this year… And finally the young Nicolas Benito Viola, who we haven’t seen much of to form a reasonable opinion, will get a chance to earn a place in the midfield.

Forwards: As I mentioned before, we found our guy in Emilano Bonazzoli. I am extremely excited about the prospect of Bonazzoli paired with Franco Brienza in the attack. Despite getting jeered by the home fans for various reasons, I love Brienza (I am also #81 on my rec league team) and retaining him this year in Serie B would be a dream come true. That is the best striking tandem in Serie B right there… Another option is young Fabio Ceravolo. Ceravolo netted a couple goals in Serie A last year in his limited playing time, but his agent has clearly stated he deserves to play regular first team football so we might not be seeing him much longer… Uruguayan striker Christian Stuani is a player I would argue has never gotten a fair chance to prove his worth. He was a highly anticipated signing a couple years ago but has been left in the shadows. He scored goals at a ridiculous rate in Uruguay, so there’s gotta be something there… We also welcome back from loan Jose Montiel and Joelson. Montiel, formerly of Udinese, has experience with the U-21 Paraguay national team. He was deemed a surplus to requirements last year and was shipped to Romania where he had a decent year. The Romanian club, Poli Iasi, wanted to retain his loan but he is now back in Italy. The Brazilian striker Joelson had a good year in Serie B with Pisa, despite their relegation. He scored seven goals and is a fine Serie B caliber player.

That’s all I have for now… call me crazy but I think we can be competitive this year. What are your expectations for this Reggina team?