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Ufo Out Against Napoli

Prandelli: "Ufo out against Napoli. You'll see a much brighter Montolivo."

"I'm still not sure what changes I will make from the side that played Sunday's match because I still need to evaluate the players' conditions following the final training session.  Ujfalusi will definitely not play."  This is what Fiorentina coach Cesare Prandelli had to say on the eve of the match with Napoli. 

Prandelli continued.  "It will be a wide open match against a fine squad even if we will want to impose our will.  Regarding Zalayeta, even I was on the side of the Napoli delegation as he was clearly trying to avoid Buffon.  Montolivo will be much more impressive than he was against Genoa.  Last week, as he was not going to play in the UEFA Cup, he worked very hard and this hurt his conditioning."

You'll Thank Us Later

Some notes for the Juventus match

The visitor's curve will be closed for Sunday's match between Juventus and Fiorentina.  This means that the club will open those sections of the stands that are normally kept empty to separate Viola fans from interlopers.  More seats, more Fiorentini.  It's all good.  I don't think that the Juventini are going to want to see this anyway, to be honest.

There are reports that Grygera may be forced to skip the match as he left training today with some kind of injury problem.  I will let you know once I find something more concrete.

Comments From Prandelli & Vieri

Prandelli: Roma toughest match of the year. Vieri on Mutu.

Following the victory away to Catania, Domenica Sportiva caught up with Cesare Prandelli and Bobo Vieri. 

"Roma will give us our most difficult match of the season.  They really do play great soccer," said Prandelli.

Vieri spoke of Totti's goal scoring and the bust-up between him (Vieri) and Mutu.  "These are things that happen," speaking of his gesture to Mutu.  "Has Mutu asked my forgiveness?  No, I am the one who should be apologizing to him as he should have had two assists that I wasted.  Totti?  He always scores.  We'll see what happens Wednesday.  We're second in the standings and that is truly beautiful."

My take -- Mutu has said that there is no problem between he and Vieri.  They have known each other a long time, they have a good relationship, and they are both very intense.

Firenze Is Soccer City

2007/2008 Season: 23,389 Season Ticket Packages Sold

ACF Fiorentina announces that the result of the 2007/2008 Season Ticket Campaign is 23,389 packages sold.  The society thanks the fans who have re-newed their attachment with the team and have again made the Artemio Franchi one of the most imposing stadiums in Italia.

My take -- The list (thanks to Tahoma for finding this for me) of all Serie A clubs' season ticket sales is below.  To keep it in perspective here is some trivia...

• Milano has a population of around 1.3M with a metropolitan area of almost 4M.
• Roma has about 2.7M inhabitants and a metro area of around 4M.
• Napoli has a population about a million but the metro area swells that to around 3M.
• Even Genoa has a population of over 600k and the metro area swlls that to around 900k.
• Little, beautiful Firenze has a population of about 400k; 600k if the metropolitan area is included.

1. Milan 41.341
2. Inter 36.768
3. Roma 32.000
4. Fiorentina 23.290
5. Genoa 21.121
6. Napoli 20.000
7. Palermo 19.447
8. Sampdoria 17.800
9. Juventus 17.500
10. Torino 16.500
11. Catania 13.960
12. Lazio 13.157
13. Udinese 12.054
14. Parma 10.946
15. Reggina 9.300
16. Siena 7.228
17. Atalanta 6.939
18. Livorno 5.699
19. Cagliari 4.500
20. Empoli 4.291

How are Mutu and Pasqual?

Injuries: Optimism for Mutu and Pasqual

The day after the match against Atalanta the training for the Viola side was focused on running with an eye on Thursday's match in Groningen.   The condition of Mutu and Pasqual, who both left Sunday's match with slight ankle injuries, is being evaluated.

Their condition will be monitored day-by-day but the feeling is that they will both be available to start against Groningen.  Also available to Prandelli will be both Montolivo and Santana. 

Tuesday evening the side will again train in Firenze and expects to arrive in Groningen late Wednesday afternoon.

Prandelli's Salary

Prandelli: 4th highest paid coach in Italia

With the players' salaries already noted, today we focus on Serie A coaches.  According to the information delineated in Gazzetta dello Sport Roberto Mancini is the highest-paid coach in our league, earning €5M per season.  Next in line is Ancelotti at €4.5M per season.  Spalletti is a good ways back, and in the 3rd spot, earning €2M per season.  Prandelli and Ranieri are tied for 4th; each earning €1.5M per season.

My take -- It seems that our salary cap is not only for our players.  Personally I believe that the coach should make as much as the club's highest-paid player.  And these coaches are all Italian.  How many of the other big leagues are so dominated by coaches from that country?  Is that a good or a bad thing?

Doppleganger Sighting?

Prandelli: We will try for the Champion's League

Excerpts from Prandelli's interview with Repubblicatv.it...

On Fiorentina

"We have young players with bright futures.  In these two years we have tried to give consistent performances and we are convinced that this is a winning project.  Truly, the start to this season has gone well.  There has been less pressure on us as we search for our best form."      

On The Prize

"We have earned Champion's League qualification the last two seasons and we have yet to compete.  I want to say that we are even more motivated this time.  We are aiming for 4th this season.  We have already reached a 4th-place and a 3rd-place spot.  With Toni's departure we cannot keep up with the big clubs so we have decided to focus on young players who can become champions in 2-3 years.  We have champions.  We have Mutu and we have important young players.  All that we lack is the culture of the match, of the team and of being on the field."

"I read the writings of Gianni Mura often and really reflect on the things he says.  I think that he has hit the mark.  Without making a prediction he has said that Fiorentina and Roma can make a challenge for the Scudetto.  At the moment Roma is better than us but we are hoping to be even more competitive in the coming months."

On Vieri

"We will speak again about Vieri in a few months...  If Vieri continues the way he is going he could even find himself back with the Azzurri in a few months.  It is very easy for a champion to re-discover himself when he is very motivated.  He wants to show that he is still a great player.  We are training him hard but he has no need to train his ball skills.  All that he has lost is a bit of toning and conditioning but he is fine.  He has already progressed a lot and he even did well in the AC Milan match.  We are following the correct path."

On Pazzini

"We have a very interesting young man.  He's not a gamble.  It is clear that we need to play with in diverse styles.  That is what we are doing now but we can still improve.  I am convinced that by the end of the season Pazzini will have scored at least 12-13 goals."

On Television Rights

"I am hoping for changes not only for Fiorentina but for the other teams, as well.  It would raise the level of our league.  There are 6-7 clubs that cthink of aiming for the title.  It would be beautiful if every club's supporters could dream of winning."

My take --  Who is this guy?  Aiming for 4th?  In September?!?!?  The official society line in the past has been to say that we are aiming for survival through March.  So, if we earn European spots on years where we are aiming for survival what can we achieve when we aim for 4th?  I'm getting giddy.  I'm not 100% sure who this guy is but I am really beginning to like him.  Finally.  It's a very nice feeling.

Balzaretti Recovering

Training: Athletic work and mini-match

Athletic work for Fiorentina during Wednesday's training session, the first since Monday's match at the San Siro.  Missing were the eight players away on international duty.

Fiorentina worked on the field (aerobic work, running laps) and in the gym (power and strength) in the first training session of the week.  Later the Viola players (minus the 8 on international duty) played out a mini-match on a small field that even Federico Balzaretti took part in.

My take -- It is becoming more and more likely that Balzaretti will be ready to go for our Atalanta match.  Good news with two of our fullbacks (Ujfalusi and Vanden Borre) on international duty and risking injury.

The Gift

ViolaIE reader and fellow blogger (she blogs on general Serie A events) Martha perfectly illustrates that the club has, in fact, come through on its promise to give the tifosi a special gift.  It is illustrated perfectly on her blog HERE.

Reflections On Our Schedule

                                 

Well, the schedules have been announced and once we look past the tantrums thrown by the Romanisti (yeah, the league just ALWAYS treats them so harshly) we can begin to daydream on the start that we could likely have to our season.  No crying about Juve's seeding or anything else.  The beauty of soccer is that the schedule is balanced.  For all.

Empoli will give us all they can but it won't be enough.  The one thing that has me a wee bit concerned is that we will not have played in Coppa Italia or the UEFA Cup yet and we still may not have found our form by then.  For as much as Prandelli is lauded as a coaching genius, though, there can be no excuses.  Empoli will afford us the chance to work out the kinks and find our form.  Our one Tuscan rivalry that never (in my memory) leads to chaos in the seats or the streets should see the Artemio Franchi packed to the gills and be an all-around mood lifter.

While we are enjoying our opening week love fest Milan will be caught in the hornet's nest in Genoa with their rabid fans making life much harder on the Rossoneri.  Not that Milan will lose but it will not be the same team-building experience that Fiorentina will have enjoyed.  This could leave us on better form than Milan and able to snatch a point on their ground in Week 2.  Note that this game will most likely be played on Monday due to Milan's Super Cup obligations.

We follow our first big test with two very winnable matches home to Atalanta and away to Catania before welcoming Roma into Fortress Franchi.  Despite their protestations they will have at least 8 points to our 9 or 10 and still riding high on their come-from-behind, two penalty kicks in injury time, 3-3 home draw to Juventus.  I really think (well, definitely to me) that Roma is more our rival these days than Juve.  We have been basically equal (except for in head-to-head matches, I admit) with them on points the last two seasons and I really see it being similar again this season.  This game is HUGE and we have to expect at least a draw at home.  Not a bad start.

I will be adding the schedule to the Viola Calendar this weekend.