Introductory post,a look at the table,our next opponent&some rumours

By: Dumitru | March 31st, 2009

Hi everyone!My name is Dumitru and i’m gonna join Ted&Tim to write for the Fiorentina offside.A little about myself,i’m a 22 years old romanian,currently residing in new england.i studied law.My main interests are history,politics,phillosophy&…soccer.I think thats enough about me so let’s switch our attention to Fiorentina.
Currently,Fiorentina is involved in a three horse race with Genoa&Roma for the last place that gives you a ticket to Champions League and its financial blessings.Chances are even,all three teams are worthy to finish in 4th place.Genoa had a consistent season so far and are in pole position,but they recently lost their star striker Gabi Milito,their top scorer.They have a relatively easy schedule,except Juventus and,maybe,the derby with Sampdoria.The rest are relegation candidates&Lazio.And here is were it gets tricky,since the worst time to meet these relegation threatened teams is at the end of the season.I will not be surprised if they will drop some points.Anyway,even if Genoa doen’t finish 4th,their campaign should be considered a success,given the fact that they are only in their second year in Serie A.You know,the jump from Serie B to CL football may be too soon for them.Not the same thing can be said about Roma,a team who started the campaign with ambitions for Scudetto,wich quickly dissolved due to their poor start.The lack of CL football will be a major financial blow for them,and they might be forced to sell(mexes).They currently have a long injury list and a five points handicap to Genoa(& three behind us).This may prove too much for them.
Mixed in between Roma and Genoa,we find our beloved purple team,Fiorentina.Our campaign has been erratic so far,but that is understandable due to our involvement in european competitions&partially by the unrest in the locker room(Osvaldo&Pazzini exit-saga).We also had our share of injuries(Mutu,jorgensen,santana).Although Viola is not having their best season,there’s still time to save it.We play Atalanta,Cagliari,Udinese,Roma(at home),Torino,Catania,Sampdoria,Lecce&Milan.I think we have the best schedule possible,since most of these teams are safe from relegation and will lack motivation,while Lecce&Torino simply lack qualty.The only two teams that could pose us some threat are Roma and Milan,both of wich we are playing at home,and i seriously doubt that Milan will play to win on the last matchday of the season.
Speaking of our next opponent,Atalanta,it’s a team stuck in midtable mediocrity,they win and lose randomly,although i think they are having a great season by their standards.We played some memorable draws with them(remember those 2-2 draws)and i hope it’s not gonna be the case this time.We need the win.I don’t really know much about their players,they are more about the team than individuals.I know more about their coach,Luigi del Neri,the artisan of the Chievo miracle.While they have a good coach,we have a great one,San Cesare,and we also have some names in team,like Mutu,Gilardino,Frey and a bunch of stars in becoming.The game is away,but i don’t think it really matters,since the atmosphere inside Azzuri D’Italia can hardly be described as intimidating,like the ones inside San Siro or Olimpico.I predict a 2-1 victory for us with Mutu on the scoresheet.We have some injury worries with Mutu&Gila,but i think Mutu will play,since his injury is related to his elbow,while Gila will probably not.
Speaking of rumours,we are linked with Simon Kjaer,the 20year old danish central defender from Palermo.He would join our danish contingent of kroldrup&jorgensen and pair Gamberini in the center of defence.Sounds great,i like his hair.
The other two protagonists of the rumours compartments are Melo and Frey,both,supposedly,moving to bigger clubs.Melo is wanted by Arsenal,while Frey…to Milan?I don’t know what to say about that,but i do think alot will depend on whether we qualify for CL or not.
i call it quits for today,i exausted my subjects.i hope you enjoyed reading my post.your thoughts,opinions&impressions are warmly welcomed.FORZA VIOLA!