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First blue shirt for Osvaldo with the U-21

Pablo Daniel Osvaldo will wear the blue Azzurrini shirt of the Italian Under-21 side.  It will mark the first call-up by Casiraghi and Zola for Osvaldo.  The Fiorentina center forward, who has decided to play for Italia, has been called up to take part in the Euro U-21 qualification matches against Azerbaijan and the Faroe Islands.

My take -- Osvaldo is Argentinian but, like so many of his countrymen, has Italian roots.  Since Montolivo and Pazzini graduated from the Azzurrini I don't pay much attention anymore.  Any thoughts on whether Osvaldo will play as a center forward or a left winger?

Long Gamberini Absence Expected

Long stop for Gamberini.  Will we see Mazuch?

Monday Alessandro Gamberini will undergo a medical procedure to stabilize the muscular injury he suffered Saturday evening in Roma.  The player (and coach Prandelli, as well) is hoping for a better prognosis than the one that came immediately following the Lazio match, but neither has yet lost hope.

The current speculation is that Gamberini will miss 5-6 weeks and that would see him return in the middle of December.  This would see him only play two matches before the winter break so, if it is as serious as believed, his return to competitive matches would probably be postponed until after the break.

So today we will know the verdict for Gamberini, but also for Ujfalusi who seems to be fully recovered from last week's injury.  Now all that must be decided is whether to have Ujfalusi return Thursday against Elfsborg or wait until Sunday's match against Udinese.

The absence of Gamberini, plus the predicted lighter workload for Ujfalusi, could lead to Prandelli activating the young Czech Ondrej Mazuch for the next few matches.  The center back has long been touted by Pantaleo Corvino as the next (after Kuzmanovic) Viola starlet to make his mark with the club.

My take -- A real shame as we have had 4 straight clean sheets in the league and Gamberini is a huge part of that.  Still, though, Dainelli and Kroldrup have been surprisingly good and we could always use a healthy Ujfalusi as a center back as we have plenty of depth at the fullback position with Pasqual, Balzaretti, Potenza, Jorgensen and Vanden Borre.  I hope that Mazuch is in some Italian total immersion course.

Lazio Win A Warning Shot To Serie A

Fiorentina: Now a Scudetto contender

The three points earned in Roma are a starting point.  Fiorentina is now a Scudetto challenger in the sense that it is finding ways to win even in adversity.  Saturday Fiorentina played with a largely experimental squad; without Vieri, Mutu and Gamberini (who went down injured); yet was still resourceful enough to win.

At the moment the league table is something to dream about for the Viola fanbase.