Inter v Roma: who'll get the kickstart they need?

Surely anything Trabzonspor can do, Roma can do better? Their 0-1 win over the Nerazzuri was the first time a side from Turkey had beaten the Milan giants in 28 years, and the Trabzon side only made it into the competition because of Fenerbahce's implication in a match-fixing scandal. No disrespect, but compared to the opposition their Milanese neighbours faced this week, Inter were hardly up against football royalty. 


The shock loss piled more pressure on Gian Piero Gasperini, after the heavy 4-3 to Palermo in Sicily laid bare the myriad problems facing La Beneamata. It's Inter's worst start to a season in 89 years, and with all the media hype, fan pressure and less-than-encouraging comments coming from owner Massimo Moratti, something's going to give, soon.

INTEROMA: save yourselves ... if you can

A couple of weeks ago, the same sentence could have been written about Roma but now it seems that the players and the boardroom are all behind Enrique and his work in progress.

There was plenty to get behind in the Giallorossi's opening game, even if the result wasn't what anyone would have hoped for. Shots galore and 59% possession were the positives, that they failed to convert their dominance into a commanding lead and were punished on the counter were the negatives.

There was talent on show last Sunday, and even if Bojan had an unspectacular debut it seems likely that the Spanish coach will stick with the Barcelonan prodigy in a line-up that had a nice mix of experience and youthful exuberance. Without the suspended Jose Angel, Gabriel Heinze will deputise at left-back leaving Simon Kjaer a space in the centre beside Nicolas Burdisso. Pjanic and De Rossi were both effective in the midfield last week, and while Simone Perrotta's performance was not up to his usual standards, the Italian – who celebrates his 34th birthday – should have another chance to prove his worth should Enrique not opt for the returning David Pizarro. Up front, Totti and Bojan might be joined by Marco Borriello. Alternatively, reports in the Italian press suggest that young Fabio Borini will lead the line, so impressive has he been in training.

As for Inter: three or four at the back? And where will Wesley Sneijder be? He was the only chink of light for Inter fans watching the game against the Turks, but it remains to be seen how effectively Gasperini can shoe-horn him into his tactical ideas.

the squads

ROMA, from: Borini, Borriello, Burdisso, Cassetti, Curci, De Rossi, Gago, Heinze, Kjaer, Bojan, Osvaldo, Perrotta, Pizarro, Pjanic, Rosi, Stekelenburg, Taddei, Totti

INTER, from: Julio Cesar, Castellazzi, Orlandoni; Zanetti, Lucio, Ranocchia, Samuel, Faraoni, Jonathan, Bianchetti, Nagatomo; Sneijder, Alvarez, Cambiasso, Obi, Coutinho, Muntari; Pazzini, Forlan, Milito, Zarate, Castaignos

from Sky Italia

Roma 1 - 2 Cagliari

Not the result fans were hoping for. After a summer of new signings, much media hype, questions over the manager's suitability and worries about tensions inside the camp, Roma needed a win.

That they failed to secure one is no one's fault but their own. Rome's biggest sport's daily, Il Corriere dello Sport, called them "una squadra frenata", a blocked team that was "quasi paura di correre", almost afraid to run. And it's hard to argue. Cagliari spent just 15% of the match in Roma's final third and had just three shots on target, yet they managed to score twice. Roma, on the other hand, spent 49% in the middle of the park and 36% in front of goal, managing nine shots on goal but failing to score until the final play of the game, when it was already too late. At crucial moments they looked unsure of themselves, wasting the lion's share of possession and chance after chance.

The great shame in this is that Roma didn't play that poorly. With the exception of Bojan – who looked like a confused and lonely boy in a field of men – for the most part they played well, dominating possession and stringing together a lot of good passes.  Sure, Angel's idiotic tackle in the box spoilt an otherwise excellent afternoon for the Spaniard and put his team in jeopardy, and Perrotta, who was played in an unfamiliar role right of centre, did not (either by choice or by Luis Enrique's design) get forward in the manner most would expect him to and thus offered little,  but they weren't appalling performances. Even Osvaldo, who couldn't hit the broad side of a barn, showed pace and a positional sense that is encouraging.

Daniele De Rossi underlined his importance to the team with a solid performance. The Roman was imperious in defense, and when Gago came on late in the game offering some extra defensive cover in midfield, he was impressive going forward, too. His goal might have been too little, too late, but the 71 successful passes he made we fundamental to Roma's dominance in the centre of the park and on another day would have been enough to influence a different result.

Miralem Pjanic made an impressive debut, linking up well with his teammates – despite not speaking a word of Italian yet – and showing off some slick moves. Aside from De Rossi, the Bosnian completed more passes than any other and had as many shots as Francesco Totti – four.

The first surprise of the day was Gabriele Heinze, who took charge early on and even got forward on several occasions. At 33, he is not a long-term answer, but on the basis of this first performance he is a player that any team in the league would be lucky to have in its squad. With the Argentine as back-up for Burdisso, Simon Kjaer and Juan, Roma have a sturdy central defense – even if it will take some fans time to get over the loss of Philippe Mexes.

The second was Bojan. Surely no one expected him to be as ineffective. Unsurprisingly for a player fresh off the plane from Spain, he struggled with the direct physicality of the Cagliari back-line, but for a player of his potential he should have done much better. Some have mentioned his size as a factor that may hold him back, but at 1.7m he is the same height as Wesley Sneijder and Lionel Messi and just three centimetres shy of Sergio Aguero, all three of whom are walking proof that good things can come in small packages. The aforementioned trio have proven that with a mixture of speed, intelligence and guile a player's diminutive stature need not hold him back – the caveat being, of course, that the diminutive player in question must possess some speed, intelligence and guile. It would be foolish to write the Barca graduate off on the basis of his first league performance, but if he's to be a key figure in Enrique's Roma, then he'll have to improve.

The above graphic (borrowed from Il Corriere dello Sport ... ) of Roma's attacking frequency against Cagliari shows just how ineffective they were down the left with Bojan. De Rossi, Pjanic and Totti all combined well down the middle and as such the 64% is unsurprising, but that only 15% of the attacking pressure came from Bojan's territory – especially as he had, for most of the game anyway, Angel's impressive running to supply him – is damning. Even Osvaldo, unsure of himself and supported only sporadically by Rosi and Perrotta, managed better – more than 33% better than Bojan's figure, in fact.

Another surprise was Fabio Borini, the 20-year-old from the small town of Bentivoglio (just north of Bologna), who was signed by Parma from Chelsea this summer only to be loaned to i Lupi for the season, with an option to buy at the end of it. With his first touch in Serie A the Azzurini star had the ball in the back of the net, albiet after the linesman had flagged for Heinze's offside. Not quite the fairytale start, then, but one that shows plenty of promise and hints at a touch of magic to come.

Formation vs. avg pitch position






Roma's possession was congested in the middle of the park and stifled by an organised Cagliari side who set out to frustrate. Happy to defend in numbers and wait for their chance – taken again by Daniele Conti, son of Roma legend Bruno and perpetual thwarter of Roman desires – to strike. Perhaps against opposition more focused on getting forward, thus leaving space for Roma to work in, the giallorossi might have done better – but that's no excuse. A team of Roma's stature and quality should not have been so easily frustrated by such an obvious tactic. They will be offered more space in other games, certainly, but they will face tougher defenses too, and cleverer midfields.

With so many fresh faces, a new formation and a new emphasis on tiki-taka style passing, Luis Enrique probably tried to do too much, too fast. But disappointing as the result is, the season is long and there will be much time for redemption. La Gazzetta dello Sport described what we all saw as "una squadra in mezzo al guado: né bella né cinica" – a team mid-stream; neither beautiful or cynical. Let's hope that they can become the former before pressure from the media and the fans turns them into the latter.

Great expectations: the season begins with Cagliari

The previous season was not a classic by any means. After a change of coach mid-season, Roma stopped haemorrhaging points and clawed their way back to respectability, and now with some fresh faces, including two high-profile forwards to add flair and fresh ideas to a faltering front line, prospects are good. The coach has settled and much talk about the arrival of new owners fills the air with hope and expectation. Then the first game comes and goes and precious points are dropped against minnows. No longer are Roma the antidote to Milanese dominance, they're a shambles. And there's still 37 games to go.

This is not 2011, it's August 2010.

"Cesena spaventa l'Olimpico" screamed la Gazzetta dello Sport: Cesena scares the Olimpico. They did more than that. To anyone willing to watch, they pealed away the paper that had been thrown over the cracks, showing that Roma was anything but Scudetto material. With six debutants and Roma old-boy Francesco Antonioli in goal, coach Massimo Ficcadenti took on the title favourites and held his own – with a team that had been in Serie C two seasons previous. Experience required to be a success, indeed.

How much has changed since that drab 0-0 against Cesena on the opening day of last season? Well, a lot. But in Rome, the more things change the more they stay the same, and despite an influx of new players, new coaching ideas and new money, many of the same problems linger. The pressure to deliver now is palpable. Last season, the papers here had unanimously installed Roma as the only viable "Anti-Inter", but while this season it's Inter who are the "Anti-Milan", the press and the Roma faithful still expect the Giallorossi to figure heavily. If this doesn't happen right from the get-go, the classical Roman witch hunt will soon follow.

Ficcadenti is coming back to Olimpico – with another Roma old boy in the shape of Daniele Conti, leading his team – this weekend as Cagliari's new coach Can he repeat the trick? A draw in Rome would be a solid opening result for the Sardinians; no question. It would also be a disaster for Roma. An unmitigated disaster.

Daniele Conti: son of Lupi legend Bruno, graduate of the Roma academy and current Cagliari captain

For the new and inexperienced coach it would prove him unsuited to the highest level of the game. For the back-room staff and the new owners, it would make their gamble on such an untested talent look like a foolish one. For the new signings it would be used as a rod with which to beat them, and for the 34-four-year-old captain, it might be evidence that his powers in front of goal are not what they once were. Hard to complain about being benched if you can't score at home against Cagliari.

Of course, a good win would make Luis Enrique into Pep Guardiola version 2.0, allow the owners and technical staff to spend days slapping one another on the back, boost the confidence of the new signings and – should he be the protagonist – prove what everyone in Christendom has always known: Francesco Totti is not finished, he's only just getting started.

After a tedious summer of clubs playing Top-Trumps with their stars, you gotta love the return of fickle, fickle football.

So how will Roma go about this glorious win? Good question.

The likely line-up will be: Stekelenburg, Cassetti, N. Burdisso, Kjaer, J. Angel, Gago, De Rossi, Perrotta/Pjanic, Osvaldo, Totti and Bojan with Curci or Lobont (Eeewwww), Rosi, Heinze, Pjanic/Perrotta, Taddei, Borriello and Caprari or Okaka on the bench.

With Juan still recovering from injury, Kjaer looks set to line up alongside Burdisso, with Gabriele Heinze on the bench for cover. Cicinho is out too, meaning that Enrique will likely start with the veteran Cassetti on the right. With no real competition, Jose Angel is a sure starter at left-back, where hopefully his pace and craft can provide plenty of support to the forwards.

In the midfield, Gago and De Rossi should play beside one another, offering plenty of protection for the central defenders should Angel or even Cassetti go on a probing run forward. After a fine showing with Italy, hopefully De Rossi can do the same for Roma without sacrificing his defensive contribution. Certainly, with so many fresh faces, his experience, composure and confidence will be vital across the park for the start of this season.

Behind the three-pronged attack, Perrotta or Pjanic could start, as Lamela is still injured and likely still needs time to adjust to his surroundings anyway. Perrotta would be the safe bet, but while Pjanic is only back from international duty and hasn't had much time with his teammates, he is a player of real quality (as shown here against Real Madrid) and it would be great to see him at some point in the game.

Up front, Totti and Bojan will surely get the nod, in the start of what is potentially a devastating partnership. With Osvaldo on the right, the forward trio will be fluid and interchangeable, with the Italian roaming freely and creating space for the Argentinian and the Spaniard to exploit. The former Espanyol man will have a lot of convincing to do, especially as it will likely be he who has to fight Marco Borriello – already a fan favourite – for a starting birth over the season.

With only a couple of senior games to his name, it is far too soon to judge local boy Gianluca Caprari – who was born the same year Francesco Totti made his debut: 1993 – but coming on from the bench he might make a difference down the right side in the closing stages of the game. Compared to other Serie A coaches, the spaniard Luis Enrique is far more likely to give Roma's youth a chance, which is no bad thing considering how many of the academy's most recent crop are featuring for la Nazionale in the youth ranks.

So the season begins. Cagliari will be waiting, but for the first time in a long while, at the start of the campaign Roma seem up to the challenge. I can't wait.

Seats beside the pitch? What will they think of next?

Today, calcio history was made. And perhaps unsurprisingly, it was Juventus who made it.

The first team on the peninsula to own its own stadium, the Turin club opened the new "Casa Juve" with a friendly match against England's Notts County, the original (and best?) Bianconeri, who gave the Old Lady its club colours. Second paragraph, and I've run out of synonyms for Juventus. Nuts.

The idea to bring County – currently in League One, the third tier of football in England – oozed old school charm. Most other elite clubs would have Pep Guardiola's boys on the plane from Barcelona, because after all, it's not every day you open a stadium. But the juxtaposition of the English minnows with the fireworks, the state-of-the-art stadium and Juve's stars of past and present made the whole event seem like more than just a marketing exercise.

The media coverage has been a bit much – Tuttosport spent the day tweeting pictures of people in queues, people behind desks, road signs etc – but it is a turning point for Italian football. Though small at 41,000 seats, the fact that Juventus own the venue will mean massive financial benefits and a huge advantage over their rivals. And Juve's strength has always been that it is the most supported club across Italy – it's large fan base means lucrative TV deals and large away attendances, but not necessarily huge home crowds. Better to have 41,000-paying bums in seats than a theoretical capacity of 69,000 (like the old Del Alpi) with not a sinner in it.

Sky Italia are calling it "Lo stadio che cambia il calcio", the stadium that changes football. And while that's a little bit dramatic for my taste, it's not completely wrong. This is the future, and the ripples are bound to have wide-reaching affects. It's certainly made me jealous.

Media watch: the good, the bad and the ugly

Articles about Serie A in English are rare these days. But, disproving the popular saying, what's rare is not always beautiful. Most of the time it's anything but. With this in mind, there will be regular posts on this blog focusing on the best and worst of writing on Italian football. This time, let's start with the good ones.

The good 

Good stuff

For the cerebral football fan, the Swiss Ramble is a must-read blog. The posts are long, but this Brit's regular dissections of the financial side of the game (and how it applies to the on-field side of things) are fascinating. His latest post on SS Lazio (know your enemy, Roma fans) is typically well-researched and informative.


Elsewhere, James Horncastle of the Guardian and Four Four Two magazine is a fine writer who knows his stuff. This week, he has a rather good piece on Totti in Four Four Two. It's well worth reading and even features a nice link to a Cucchiaio (the captain's signature move, translates as "the spoon") compilation. 

The bad

Expect the world ... but not a calcio writer who knows what he's talking about ...

It is an unfair cliché oft-spouted by Europeans that Americans know nothing about "soccer", but those who do certainly don't work in the media. This week's cringe-fest of racial stereotype and silly comparison comes from Michael J. Agovino, a writer at that most august journal, the New York Times. 

"Dreading the Americanization of Romulus and Remus" is woeful. There's no other word for it. From ridiculous comparisons to US franchises moving cities to exploit new markets, to the stupid romanticisation of the city, the team and the previous owners – it's just awful. 


Why is it that when American writers talk about Italian football, they have to load the conversation with stupid "mama mia" crap? This article is talking about how the "family-run" AS Roma will be destroyed by American capitalisation. The Sensi were worthy owners but their Roma was not, to use an Americanism, a "Ma and Pop" set-up. Franco Sensi was an oil tycoon who bought a football team in a city that would be, were it in the US, the third most populous after New York and LA. Give the small town stuff a rest. 


Agovino is worried about Thomas DiBenedetto making sensible decisions. The hiring of Luis Enrique, he agonises, "feels like a corporate American one: find out who is the best and if he cannot be lured away, eyeball the masthead and poach his deputy." Wow. No other football teams ever try to find the best. What a novel idea. It might tarnish the romance of having a poor coach, though, so let's have one of those instead.  


This calcio expert also has some beef with the Stadio Olimpico. Mr Agovino: WE ALL DO. But they are not about the number of toilets or concessions, of which there are many. Had he said that the area around it was in disrepair, that the public transport links were chaotic or that the security barriers blocked his view, he might have given the impression he'd been there as a fan, rather than as a tourist with an over-active bladder. Anyway, the stadium is owned and operated by the national olympic committee, not AS Roma. 


The biggest laugh comes close to the end of this article. I wouldn't force anyone to sit through reading it, so I'll sum up: an American thinks it's worth mentioning (in an admirable sense, much as one would do when talking about how "wonderfully primative" the tribes of the Amazon are) that an Italian who lives and works in Italy doesn't speak English. "Totti," says Agovino, "speaks no English, does not even try, preferring the local Roman dialect."


Considering how well-known and well-regarded the NYT is, it's amazing how such poor content could make it onto its pages. There's hope for us all yet. 

The ugly

where football meets character and belief ... but not spell-check

This article from The Hard Tackle is the most bizarre football piece I've seen in a while, and I regularly read the websites of England's tabloids. I think the writer is trying to say that Serie A is knackered, but I can't be sure. Whatever point he's trying to make seems solely based on the fact that Pavel Nedved is gone, and so is Samuel Eto'o, who must have been put off by Italy and who would never have left a Spanish team. Oh, wait ...

The Hard Tackle is an Indian website, and as someone who regularly struggles with a foreign tongue, I would hate to take a pop at someone who speaks and writes English as a second language. But I do not know why an English-language site would employ someone with so tentative a grasp of the lingo. Surely someone in there knows what it's supposed to sound like? This is littered with spelling mistakes and wacky grammar, like this bee-ootiful "sentence":

"The preservation of the best talents hence, has become one of the most conspicuous points in question for the League and has thus far not been handled with the required levels of proficiency."

Then there's this belter:

"The adversities in Italian football henceforth, are quite deep rooted than that meets the eye and a few good signings here and there shall not serve the broader purpose of administering the League in the smoothest possible manner."

Exactly.

La nuova Magica? How Roma's new boys stack up

When Ronaldo arrived in the Netherlands to play for PSV, he was 18. Way back in 2001, Olympique Lyonnais didn't even blink before signing some unknown kid from Gremio called Ronaldinho, where before the age of 21 the buck-toothed genius had scored in almost every second game he played in.  Almost every time Gonzalo Higuaín touches the ball, Real Madrid is praised for having the foresight for bringing him from River Plate at the tender age of 19, and while hardly a football journo this side of the Atlantic knew who the 22-year old Javier Hernández was before Alex Ferguson signed him for Manchester United, they have all since applauded the whisky-nosed Scot for the coup.


So why the bloody hell is it that lazy hacks the football world over still insist on talking about “experience”? What would today's European football be like to watch if Thomas Muller, Wayne Rooney, Mezut Ozil or – heaven forbid – Lionel Messi had all been left on the reserves to "mature"?


Last season, Roma had the oldest squad in the league and absolutely no strength in depth. Now, the average age of the squad is 26.8, there's a young and hungry team of players at the coach's disposal and crucially, there's a spine of experienced class too.


Back when the Giallorossi last won the Scudetto in 2000/01, Walter Samuel, Vincent Candela, Damiano Tommasi, Francesco Totti and Vincenzo Montella were all at or below 25. But when combined with the knowledge and skill of players like Aldair, Cafu and Batistuta, they turned out just fine.


So what of the latest Romalution? Well, it is rather tempting to get excited and while this is not necessarily the team I'd pick, I've drawn it up to illustrate how many of these youngsters could be integrated into the team right away.

I chose this line-up simply to show how strong even a "young" Roma team might be. With the exception of Jose Angel, all of the above have senior international caps, and despite their age Pjanic, Bojan, Lamela and Angel have all featured heavily at club level, too. Simon Kjaer could prove an astute signing because despite a tough season in Germany, Roma will have a fine defender for the future – as long as the Dane rediscovers the form he showed at Palermo, where he made more than 60 league appearances before the age of 21.

This promise, coupled with seasoned players like Perrotta, Pizarro and Borriello on the bench, makes for a potentially intoxicating blend.

Stekelenburg in goal is a no-brainer. The mere thought of Bogdan Lobont ever pulling on a Roma shirt again fills me with terror. Gianluca Curci returns to his native Rome after being relegated with Sampdoria, and no longer looks like the future Italy number one many tipped him to be. That said, at just 26 he shouldn't be written off. Let's just hope the Dutchman settles in nicely and stays injury-free.

At 24, Aleandro Rosi is yet to develop into a grown-up player and many question if he will ever be truly good enough for that right back slot. Sometimes, his passing and crossing is just mental. Marco Cassetti is ten years older and not the speed demon he once was, but new-signing Loic Nego is too young to risk, having only a handful of club games with Nantes and some U-20 internationals to his name. I've never understood why anyone would rate Cicinho as a footballer, but we'll wait and see. 

Burdisso and Juan are sure to start in the centre, with Kjaer and Gabriel Heinze providing cover. The Argentine is 33, but he came free, and in fairness featured heavily over the last two years in a Marseilles team that won both league and cup honours. He might also provide cover for Jose Angel at left-back. The Spaniard has shone since breaking into the Sporting Gijon senior team, and many expect great things. He offers much, both in defence and attack.

The midfield and attack could be exciting. With Gago to cover the back four, De Rossi might be allowed to become that box-to-box midfielder he once was, influencing the play across the pitch rather than sitting in the deep position forced upon him by Claudio Ranieri's formation. 

The front four above are flexible, comfortable in several positions each and all blessed with intelligence and flair on the ball. Totti needs no introduction, and considering that at Barcelona he broke the records set by Messi, neither should Bojan Krkic. Going on his long, long record as a talent spotter, Walter Sabatini's gamble on Erik Lamela should pay off because he looks like a talented kid. The aforementioned Higuaín made a similar move from River Plate to Real Madrid aged 19, and despite the money spent on Galacticos 2.0, many still hail him as  Los Blancos best player.

One wonders where Borriello fits into coach Luis Enrique's philosophy, and plenty question the validity of Pablo Daniel Osvaldo's signing. Between 2006 and 2010, the Argentine played for four Italian teams in Serie B and the top flight, yet managed only 17 league goals in all that time. Admittedly, he has looked better since moving to Espanyol, but whether that's because of the Spanish league's dodgy defensive quality or because the striker matured is open for debate.

Anyone with any alternative line-ups/death threats, please feel free to comment.

The new kids (and one old man) on the block

Thumbs up for the new arrivals in the capital? Just mind that goal, Maarten

Maarten Stekelenburg
Maarten Stekelenberg (hereafter to be referred to as Stek on this blog, to save me time and typos) is possibly the most important signing of the summer. Teams don't win anything with poor goalkeepers, and having to watch Lobont, Doni and J.Sergio all make horrible mistakes week in, week out last season was heart-breaking. I spent most of my time in the stands praying for a good goalie, and in Stek I think Roma has one. Just 28, he has years of experience at Ajax and with the Netherlands, and he only cost around €6 million. Compared to the €20 million Manchester United spent on the relatively untested David de Gea, and the bargain looks even better.

Jose Angel
A young, exciting left-back. Roma have needed that for years. The Spaniard was indispensable that last two years at Sporting Gijon and earned praise for both his defensive and offensive qualities. Also part of the Spanish side that won the summer's UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship, the Iberian is solid addition to the team.

Simon Kjaer
The Dane underwhelmed for the most part during his spell at Wolfsburg, but at just 22 he has two seasons of Serie A football under his belt from his time at Palermo, as well as 16 international caps. Looks to be a good signing.

Fernando Gago
Fernando Gago is interesting, not just because the 25-year-old is a very good player, but because if he can sit deep and protect the back four he could well be the key that unlocks the Daniele de Rossi of old. Capitano Futuro had a poor season last year, by his standards at least, possibly because he's been played in a constrictive, defense-focused role. With Gago now filling those shoes, the Roman will hopefully be given more freedom to boss the midfield and make the killer runs that his reputation as a world-class midfielder is based on. And, in pairing the former Boca Juniors man with de Rossi, Roma must now have one of the steeliest midfields going. Good passer of the ball too. Exciting stuff.

Miralem Pjanic
The Bosnian is a great sigining. Just turned 11 when the Giallorossi beat Parma on the final day to secure their third and last Scudetto, he has stared for Olympique Lyonnais over the last couple of seasons making more than 100 appearances in both Ligue 1 and the Champions League, where he scored a memorable winner over Real Madrid. With 26 international caps and counting, evidence suggests that Pjanic could be integral to the hopes of Bosnia – and Roma – for years to come. Could well be one of the best Serie A signings of the summer.

Erik Lamela
Bought for €12 million from the troubled River Plate, the young Argentine is a classic Walter Sabatini purchase. Seen as a cheaper, younger Javier Pastore, if Lamela can become anywhere near as good he'll be a legend in no time. There are a lot of people out there deriding him for being too young, but another Argentine, Javier Saviola, left River Plater for around €20 million in 2001 at the same age and scored 17 goals in his first season – for Barcelona. South Americans, it seems, grow up fast.

Bojan Krcic
Normally, you wouldn't be too excited about signing a young player who couldn't break into the regular line up at his previous team, but when you consider that team was Barcelona and the people he was trying to displace were Lionel Messi and David Villa (and Samuel Eto'o and Thierry Henry and Zlatan Ibrahimovic ... well, you get the picture), it's only fair to cut Bojan some slack. The young Serbo-Spaniard broke Messi's record for being the youngest ever player to feature in a Liga match, and he took the youngest ever scorer of a Lig goal record from Raul. Now he needs to push on and fulfill his promise.

One thing irks me about this singing, and it's not the convoluted loan deal. It's an odd thing to remember, but it came back to me the minute he signed: In 2008, he asked to be left out of the Spanish squad for the European Championships because he was "simply exhausted". I can't imagine a truly great player with genuine aspirations turning down a chance to perform on such a stage, especially with such a special team. I know he was only 17, but WHY!?!

And the rest ...
At €17.5 million, Pablo Osvaldo cost to much and has, in his career to date, shown too little. Maybe Luis Enrique and Walter Sabatini know something we don't. Let's hope so. Loic Nego has featured for all the French youth teams up through the ages, but he's too young and untested to pass judgement on unless you're a full-time football scout. Fabio Borini could be interesting. Released by Chelsea in the summer, he was snapped up by Parma (who know a thing or two about young talent) only to be immediately loaned to i Lupi. Why the club wanted to take a 20-year-old prospect on loan is anyone's guess, but the one-time U-19 Italy captain is certainly "one to watch" for fans of Italian football. Gabriel Heinze ain't getting any younger, but coming in on a free, he represents little risk. The 33-year-old has league-winning experience in England, Spain and France, so perhaps he can show the young guns a thing or two.