THE WOLF'S DEN - Tana dei Lupi II

[Italiamia]

AS Roma released a press statement concerning the new candidates joining the board of directors for the 27th and 28th October executive meetings. Here is the list:

I) James Pallotta

II) Italo Zanzi

III) Mauro Baldissoni

IV) Brian Klein

V) Benedetta Navarra

VI) John Galanctic

VII) Cameron Neely

VIII) Barry Sternlicht

IX) Charlotte Beers

X) Gianluca Cambareri

XI) Thomas Dibenedetto

XII) Claudio Fenucci

XIII) Stanley Philip Gold
___________________________

Pallotta is killing me. Cam Neely? My God, if he gets an honorary appointment why can't I get one. The man has no pedigree to deserve this and I don't give a rat's ass if he's a former Boston Bruin player. I guess Chanel is going to be the official perfume of Roma and we can always ring up Goldman Sachs if we need quick cash. Also, who does Gianluca Cambareri think he is anyway. He was a gopher at Tonucci until recently. Here I am, just standing on the sidelines.

[p_maldini_3]

did you throw your name into the hat?

the least you could do is stop wasting time on benatia and shoot a couple tweets towards palotta.

[Italiamia]

I have made contact with the club. If I go to work with the Tonucci law firm perhaps I can get an appointment as long as I don't bring up any past Ultra involvement. The Rome authorities probably still have a record of my interrogation after the Paparelli murder in 1979. But I still know folks who will expose me if my name suddenly came up as a candidate for a seat on the board. Not that I have anything to hide.

Certainly, I realise that some of these guys are Pallotta's buddies like the guys from Chanel and Goldman. Obviously, I do not run in those circles. Nevertheless, Cam Neely is a joke. He's probably Pallotta's boy from his Boston days and he still serves as the Bruins' president. At least Tacopina is gone. How the hell he ever go close to this thing is still a mystery to me.

[Italiamia]

@RomaClubPhila: Will you be watching #RomaJuve with us at @fadophilly on Sunday? Please RSVP! We will be in the back private room. https://t.co/9TrqKGfxrX

[RomaShield27]

Did Tacopina and his consortium of cronies (don't know who they were) buy Bologna? Or did that fall through? I like Bologna, its a great city and one with a lot of potential in terms of building a club, I think, so hope they don't fuck it up. Though they were in big financial trouble.

We should probably delete all those Ultra pics we have posted of you and the Boys if you do move to that Tonucci law firm, Giovanni. The ones of you at 'Derby Paparelli' in particular.

[maro]

Come on, John. Why would they want a washed-up Yank like you involved?

[Italiamia]

You know, Thomas: I'm no Yank. However, I know that I would not have taken the same road if not for my father's prescience. Remember, I'm just a shit stomper born in Calabria. I have evolved and I regret many things I did when I was very young. Nobody here can comprehend the era of 1970's Italy. I'm a product of my time and I'll never forget the past. There was much sadness tempered by lasting friendships and very good times which are forever engrained in my memory.

[Aquilotto]

Hiiii Coattiiii!

[RomaShield27]

/ POSTED BY JAMES HORNCASTLE

For former footballer Zibi Boniek, Sunday's top-of-the-table clash between Juventus and Roma is like going back in time.

"There's the same tension. It has the same bearing on the championship [as 30 years ago]," he told La Repubblica.

The rivalry between his former clubs is at a height not experienced since the 1980s. If it were a film, the studio would title it "When We Were Kings." Both had their own: Le Roi, Michel Platini and the Ottavo Re di Roma, the divine Paulo Roberto Falcao.

These were title deciders not without controversy: Er go' de Turone in 1981, and the correspondence between the presidents Giampiero Boniperti and Dino Viola who would receive a plastic ruler in 1983 to measure the offside he claimed to see when Platini crossed for Sergio Brio to score the clinching goal in a 2-1 win at the Olimpico.

"The Rome derby is unique," Francesco Totti explained to Il Messaggero earlier this year, "then come the games with Juve. They are my second derby. As a fan it was like that for me too, seeing that there has always been a sporting hatred between the two clubs."

In 2005, Roma's captain was disciplined by the FIGC for claiming that when you play Juventus, it's 11 against 14, inferring that the referee and linesman are also on their side.

"They've always got a little help," he said ahead of last season's meeting in January 2014. "That's the evidence. There's little you can do about it."

Totti's weren't the first sparks to reignite an enmity that hasn't burnt this fiercely for three decades or at least the early part of this century. At the start of last season, Roma required only one win -- a ninth consecutive -- to match the record established by Fabio Capello's 2005-06 Juventus for the best start to a Serie A campaign.

Coach Rudi Garcia had already proclaimed "I feel Romanista" after beating Lazio in the derby and then showed just how much he had entered the fans' mindset when discussing Juventus.

"[After the Calciopoli scandal] they revoked the Scudetto from that team," he said in Il Figaro, "so I prefer to make reference to the two sides who won their [opening] eight games, [the 1930-31 Bianconeri and] Platini's Juve [in 1985-86]. And you're talking to a Frenchman whose favourite player for a long time was Platini. Besides, we want to keep this run of victories going for as long as possible. It's an added motivation."

They would stretch the streak to 10 before injuries to Totti and Gervinho slowed their pace. A series of draws allowed Juventus back in and to overtake. Remarkably, even though Roma were still unbeaten when they faced Juventus in January, they were five points behind. In the build-up to that game, their former striker and caretaker boss Vincenzo Montella, whose Fiorentina side had come back from 2-0 down to beat Juventus 4-2 earlier in the season, had made the suggestion to his old team that their "best weapon" was the counterattack. Execute it well and they would put the champions in difficulty.

But Juventus' coach Antonio Conte must have been listening because he took it away from Roma. He had his players sit back, relinquish the ball and left no space for them to break into. It was a tactical master class. Juventus triumphed 3-0, and wouldn't be caught.

"Juve are strong," Roma goalkeeper Morgan de Sanctis said after the defeat. "But the 'Italian system' makes them strong. I think about the advantage of the stadium, the [psychological] subjection [referees supposedly feel towards Juventus]."

It was a "provincial" -- small-minded -- comment, Conte would hit back, recalling it later in the season while also responding to Garcia's claims that the smaller teams roll over for Juventus. The truth is Roma were outsmarted. They would obtain a measure of revenge, edging the Old Lady to the signing of Radja Nainggolan and eliminating her from the Coppa Italia.

They also made the champions work to realise their aim of three-peating for the first time since 1933. The title race wasn't officially dead until May 4 when Roma surprisingly lost in Catania 4-1. Mentally, Garcia had already accepted it was over. Juventus had come back from behind to beat Sassuolo in midweek. He described his emotions on seeing that result as like losing three games in one night. How so? Because two of Juventus' three remaining games were at home where they had and would maintain a perfect record.

With Napoli miles behind, Roma had nothing left to play for. They lost their remaining couple of matches, including one at the Olimpico to Juventus, settled by their former player Dani Osvaldo, as the champions, motivated by the prospect of becoming the first club ever to break the 100-point barrier in Serie A instead pushed on. Their season was one for the ages.

As Garcia would observe in L'Equipe, Roma were like Cristiano Ronaldo trying to win the Ballon d'Or again in the Lionel Messi years. They'd had an extraordinary campaign themselves -- amassing a points total that would have been enough to win the title in five of the past six years -- only to be left 17 adrift of Juventus. Statistically the gap appeared wide, but it felt a lot closer and the consensus is Roma narrowed it over the summer.

They spent the most money and and made the biggest signing, swooping to secure a player who had seemed destined for Juventus, the Verona winger Juan Manuel Iturbe. They equipped themselves with two players per position so the team could repeat its performances in Serie A while also competing in the Champions League. Juventus meanwhile were shocked by Conte's resignation and its timing; there was skepticism about his successor Massimiliano Allegri and anxiety about the future of Paul Pogba and Arturo Vidal.

But the club remained as cool as the alpine air that surrounds Turin. The best squad in Italy -- a serial record-setter -- didn't need too much doing to it. Juventus gave themselves more options and experience -- Patrice Evra, Romulo and Roberto Pereyra -- would allow for changes in formation and they further rejuvenated with the arrivals of Kingsley Coman and Alvaro Morata. Juventus also kept their top players -- arguably the highlight of their business -- while Roma had their hand forced and reluctantly sold Mehdi Benatia, the rock of their defence, to Bayern on the eve of the season.

Both therefore had the potential to be unsettled and disrupted in the offseason. Allegri could be forgiven for feeling Conte's shadow, and Roma had an altogether higher level of expectation than what they experienced a year ago. Yet so far, both have either met or even exceeded the forecasts.

On maximum points with five wins from five, they have been outstanding in the league despite each having injury concerns. The two Andreas -- Barzagli and Pirlo -- have yet to play for Juventus. Giorgio Chiellini, Martin Caceres, Arturo Vidal and Fernando Llorente have all missed games. As have Leandro Castan, Davide Astori, Daniele De Rossi, Kevin Strootman and Iturbe for Roma. Yet they carry on winning regardless, underlining their existing and added depth.

Juventus haven't conceded a goal in the league since late April. Roma have allowed only one this season with Kostas Manolas not putting a foot wrong in the considerable boots left by Benatia. Their midfields are among the best in Europe, and even without the hobbled Pirlo and Strootman they haven't missed a beat. Claudio Marchisio has deputised superbly for Juventus while Radja Nainggolan has arguably been Roma's player of the season so far.

Carlos Tevez must surely get that accolade for the Old Lady with six goals in six games. His big man-little man partnership with Llorente, the most prolific in Serie A last term, continues to evoke that of Omar Sivori and John Charles in the 50s and early 60s, or that between Roby Baggio and Kennet Andersson at Bologna in the late 90s. Not a duo but a trident, Roma's attack is more elastic and unpredictable -- how could it not be with Gervinho involved? -- and that's what makes it a joy.

The contrasts between how these teams go forward are maybe a little less pronounced than when it was Conte versus Garcia. Juventus' players have spoken of how almost every pattern of play, every movement, run and pass was scripted and memorized under Allegri's predecessor. Their Roma counterparts, on the other hand, are given more license to freestyle and improvise. Garcia elaborated on this in Il Corriere dello Sport last Christmas: "In the final 30 meters, I won't stop a player from trying to beat his man like Gervinho does or try a back heel like Francesco."

For all the transformations both clubs have gone through in recent years some things remain the same: Gigi Buffon and Totti, two greats of the game, and friends outside it who wished they'd played together at club level. They still don't show their age. Buffon has started the campaign in imperious fashion. He made a huge save from Maxi Lopez at 0-1 in Verona on the opening day and stopped a German Denis penalty in Bergamo when the scoreline was the same away to Atalanta last week.

Totti meanwhile received a phone call from Italy's Prime Minister Matteo Renzi after becoming the oldest player to score in the Champions League in midweek. Roma's deserved draw at Manchester City, coming after their 5-1 thrashing of CSKA Moscow, gives them a spring in their step particularly after Juventus' disappointing defeat to Atletico at the Vicente Calderon. Those results have impacted the mood ahead of Sunday's game.

Yet to be stopped, Roma have the momentum, but it remains to be seen how they follow a big European night with another one in Serie A. Juventus are used to it, Garcia's team aren't, and while their hosts could recover Pirlo in time, their casualty list remains long.

For Il Messaggero, winning at the Juventus Stadium, where the Old Lady has been victorious in every league game since August 31, 2013 is "the last taboo" for the Giallorossi. Beaten 4-1 there under Luis Enrique, 4-0 under Zdenek Zeman and 3-0 under Garcia, breaking it would be of great psychological significance. It would give Roma the confidence and belief to push on and perhaps win the Scudetto for the first time since 2001.

"You see where the horses are at the end of the race," Totti mused cautiously in La Repubblica. "But this year could be the right one." Sunday's grudge match in Turin won't be definitive, but it will tell us a lot about the title race and provide one of Italy's great rivalries with another chapter.

"It's the best of today's Italian football," said Angelo Di Livio to the same publication, the "little Soldier" and former midfielder from Rome who came through their academy and then won everything with Juventus in the 90s. "They are two clubs in great health."

Modernising forces at the vanguard in Italy, it's hard to disagree. A calcio classic of old, it promises to be one this weekend and for many years to come.

[Italiamia]

Mancano 18 ore.

Lista convocati AS Roma:

CALABRESI
CHOLEVAS
COLE
DESTRO
EMANUELSON
FLORENZI
GERVINHO
ITURBE
KEITA
LJAJIC
LOBONT
MAICON
MANOLAS
MARCHEGIANI
NAINGGOLAN
PAREDES
PJANIC
SANABRIA
SKORUPSKI
SOMMA
TOROSIDIS
TOTTI
UÇAN
YANGA-MBIWA
___________________

Don't have a good feeling today for the obvious reasons. As Totti has observed over the years, it will be our 11 vs. 14. An early goal would benefit us tremendously

[juventino_italiano]

Already getting the excuses ready Gianni??

Quoting Totti?? HAHAHA!
Legendary player and i'd even admit he's better than The Waterboy, but he's not one i'd be quoting.
It is common knowledge that he isnt that sharpest tool in the shed.
Guess thats why he fits right in at Roma....

In all honesty, both teams look strong, the game could go either way and i have liked how Roma have been playing lately.
I've got my money on the Draw, 2 goals or less (1:1 or 0:0)

Good luck!

[Italiamia]

[RomaShield27]

I can only hope its a fair game, not decided by anything fucking dodgy like what usually happens. Gio is right, we have to be disciplined, focused and professional. It'll be a huge ask, a lot of pressure, but the performance away to City show us this team seems different and is capable of it. With that in mind, I think a win is possible, but a draw wouldn't be too shabby either.

Good luck Ennio. Like Rudi Garcia says, this is an advert for Italian football. The undoubted two powers in calcio at the moment, the only two sides capable of winning anything, so hopefully the game isn't shrouded in too much controversy and we kick yer arses.

[RomaShield27]

FORMAZIONI UFFICIALI

JUVENTUS (3-5-2): Buffon; Caceres, Bonucci, Chiellini; Lichtsteiner, Pogba, Marchisio, Pirlo, Asamoah; Tevez, Llorente
A disp.: Storari, Rubinho, Ogbonna, Evra, Padoin, Pepe, Mattiello, Vidal, Pereyra, Coman, Giovinco, Morata.
All.: Allegri

ROMA(4-3-3): Skorupski; Maicon, Yanga Mbiwa, Manolas, Holebas; Nainggolan, Keita, Pjanic; Iturbe, Totti, Gervinho
A disp.: Lobont, Marchegiani, Somma, Torosidis, Cole, Emanuelson, Paredes, Uçan, Ljajic, Sanabria, Florenzi, Destro.

All. : Garcia
Arbitro: Rocchi di Firenze.
Assistenti: Faverani e Stefani.
IV uomo: Bianchi.
Assistenti di porta: Damato e Banti.

[RomaShield27]

[RomaShield27]

Roma's Francesco Totti: Referee Helped Juventus Win
/ Sunday, 05 October 2014 22:17 / Anthony Wright

Francesco Totti could not hide his frustration and disappointment at seeing Roma lose to Juventus, but mused that the Bianconeri have been the beneficiaries of refereeing decisions for some time now.

Totti to Sky Sport

Tell us how you're feeling

Not great, I'm really disappointed about that because it was a good performance. We came here to play a match, then what happened has happened and the game was affected. These sort of incidents, and it's not nice to say this, have been happening for years. And in the end it's affected all those seasons.

Were you beaten by the referee?

Not by Juventus, certainly. The three incidents affected the match which we absolutely wanted to win. What we've seen in the replays we'd already seen out on the pitch.

You're very disappointed then

There's anger and a lot of it. We're a great team and we have to lift our heads again straight away. A lot will be said about this game, they will have to play in a league of their own again. As I've always said, whether they play well or badly, Juventus will always win.

Are we going back to the old days?

It's not me saying so, unfortunately the images are clear. The whole of Italy wants to say the same things I'm saying. I've already seen the incidents, Ilaria. All three of them were wrong, unfortunately.

Even Pogba's penalty?

It was outside the box. On the line? Fine... If in doubt it's always a penalty... Looking at the replays, for me it's outside. [A replay of the foul on Totti] The ball is a long way away, if he puts his arms round you in the box and pulls you down it's a penalty. [A replay of Bonucci's goal] How is it possible the offside wasn't spotted? I'll leave you to talk about it because if I do then I'll get banned.

If a mistake was made, does that call everything into question?

Put yourself in our shoes, we train to win. As a captain, those sort of incidents are... it's hard to say. They are a very good team, a formidable side. But this is hard to swallow. Very hard.

Do you believe in good faith?

I respect referees and have always respected them. But come on. If there's the slightest doubt, there is no doubt - that's the problem. If it had been the other way round then there would have been doubt. I believe in good faith but you can't make a mistake on all those incidents in such an important game.

Are you in favour of using technology?

Yes, very much so. Using technology you can see things straight away, in five seconds.

It would have been good to talk without all this controversy

Yes, we're two great teams, with tension and competitive spirit. This was a Juventus-Roma that was different from previous ones. We're two great sides, so much so that we'll come second again this year...

No one wants you to give up

Neither do we.

Totti to Roma TV

One of the most difficult evenings to comment on, it was bordering on the unbelievable

The images speak clearly. We knew we could get three points, then what happened has happened.


Sabatini has talked about three goals that should not have existed

They were three incidents that conditioned the game - the two penalties which should not have been given and Vidal's offside. Three inexistent goals which allowed Juventus to win the game.

As captain, what do you think? Can you transform all of this into positive energy?

It's natural, we have to react as the great team that we are. We're more competitive than in previous years, we'll try to make things difficult for Juventus. But as long as Juventus are in the Italian league we'll always finish second, it will always be this way. They should play in a league of their own.

[To Marco Cassetti] You've seen many games like this, eh?


What happened when you spoke with Rocchi at the start of the second half and said that it wasn't a penalty?

He said to me, "It's a penalty 1000 times out of 1000, I saw it myself".

[DCGweez]

Totti is correct, we'll be allowed to end up 2nd. No use in worrying about it. We should try to improve our coefficient in Europe and go for the Silver Star.

It's not much but it's something.

[Italiamia]

[Italiamia]

[Italiamia]

@gieffea: 2 giornate a Manolas per intimidazione, 1 al cabron @AlvaroMorata per grave fallo di gioco; l'attacco alla @OfficialASRoma prosegue. @CUCS_