It is de rigueur to ignore the heroes of the past to focus on the stars of the present when selecting any all-time greats team.
The skewed formula cannot be applied when choosing five players to represent the oldest club in Italy.
Considering Genoa won the last of their nine Serie A titles in 1924 it would be a straightforward task to compose a team solely from that period.
Yet I couldn’t leave out some modern-day icons and decided it would be much more fun to pick a team of Il Grifone players from three different eras.
Giovanni De Prà (1919-1933)
Long before Dino Zoff and Gianluigi Buffon the most revered goalkeeper in Italian football hailed from Genoa.
Born and raised in the port city, the legendary shot-shopper won two Scudetti – in 1922-23 and 1923-24 – at a time when the men in red and blue dominated the early days of calcio.
Nicknamed ‘Il Ragno’ – The Spider – by Genoa tifosi for his incredible diving saves he was admired for his bravery and loyalty in equal measure.
Coached by influential Englishman William Garbutt the number one turned down a lucrative offer from Juventus as he could not face the prospect of leaving his beloved home-town club.
Capped 19 times by Italy he is most remembered for a courageous national team display in 1924. The goalie broke his arm after just 20 minutes as the Azzurri took on Spain in Milan. In the days before substitutes he played on and withstood some brutal challenges to keep a clean sheet in a goalless draw.
He won a bronze medal at the 1928 Olympics with Italy but never received it after failing to acknowledge the country’s fascist regime. Issued a commemorative medal years later the Genoa born goalkeeper insisted it was placed under the famous Gradinata Nord at Marassiafter his death in 1979. Forever remembered in Liguria’s biggest city a street is named after him beside the Luigi Ferraris Stadium.
Domenico Criscito (2002-2003, 2006-2007, 2008-2011, 2018-2002 & 2023)
Born in Campania the left-footed all-rounder could easily be mistaken for a native of Genoa after five different spells with the Ligurian club.
Ostensibly a full-back, the man with a passion for Il Grifone also played in central defence and midfield in a career largely spent in his adopted city.
I picked him for his attacking instincts and ability to cover space in the small sided version of the game. He scored 31 goals in 291 appearances for Genoa and would be a reliable option to make up ground quickly anywhere on a fives pitch.
In a team with just four outfield players, it is not possible to include everyone.
There is no shortage of great defenders in the Rossoblu’s long and illustrious history and a select few deserve a mention.
Renzo De Vecchi christened ‘The Son of God,’ won three championships as part of the great Genoa team that swept all before them in the initial stages of Italian football.
Brazilian full-back Branco scored some memorable free-kicks in a three-year spell at the club in the early 1990s.
Eternal captain Gianluca Signorini led from the back in seven seasons from 1988 to 1995. The inspirational skipper tragically passed away at the age of 42 after suffering from motor neuron disease. Genoa retired the number six shirt in his honour.
Stefano Eranio (1984-1992)
For his athleticism, mobility, and pace I am certain the right-sided midfielder would be perfectly suited to the compact confines of fives.
A son of Genoa from the district of Molassana, his positional play, rapid bursts of speed, and forward charges would complement Criscito in my team.
He joined the youth ranks of the port city club at the age of nine and progressed all the way to the first team.
An influential part of the Rossoblu’s great 90s team, he played a vital role as they won Serie B in the 1988-1989 season. Finally back in the big time after five frustrating years in the second tier, the wide midfielder was a pivotal presence as Genoa placed fourth in the 1990-1991 campaign. Along with gritty midfield team-mate Gennaro Ruotolo he spearheaded the club’s march to the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup a season later.
Ruotolo is Genoa’s record appearance holder – 502 games and 38 goals – and would command an automatic place in any other team of the club’s best players.
Virgilio Felice Levratto (1925-1932)
The forward from the Ligurian town of Carcare has a special place in the history of Italian football.
A mythical, much praised figure, he possessed a ferocious shot which ripped through nets and scared opposition goalkeepers into submission.
Lo Sfondareti – the net tearer – is regarded as the greatest Genoa player never to have won the Scudetto. Legend has it that he began training with a tough ball made from offal provided by the butcher that employed him. He developed a fearsome shot as a result, blasting the hard leather balls used a century ago through seven nets.
He registered 85 goals in seven years at Il Grifone between 1925 and 1932, yet his reputation was formed at the 1924 Olympics in Paris.
The muscular left-footer was only 19 when he smacked a screamer square into the face of Luxembourg goalkeeper Etienne Bausch with Italy two goals ahead. The shot-stopper sustained a nasty facial injury but continued with no replacements permitted. When the groggy goalie recovered, he fled his post rather than face another cannonball effort from the Azzurri front man. The forward did not take advantage and sportingly refused to put the ball into the unguarded net.
Who wouldn’t want such a legendary figure in their team, fives or otherwise? Forget Alvaro Recoba, Adriano, and Branco, the real life Hot-Shot Hamish ripped nets apart with his incredibly powerful shots decades before they kicked a ball.
Diego Milito (2003-2005 & 2008-2009)
An elite goalscorer who remains a fan favourite despite spending just three seasons at Genoa.
The Argentinian had an innate ability to find the net from every conceivable position and with either foot. Both these qualities make him an ideal striker for the five-man game.
Il Principe spent two years in Serie B with the Rossoblu after joining from Racing Club in 2003 and scored 34 goals.
He departed when Genoa were demoted to the third tier of Italian football after a match fixing scandal only to make an unexpected return five years later.
Gian Piero Gasperini was indebted to the prolific attacker as he struck 26 times to propel the Grifone to fifth place in a memorable 2008-2009 Serie A campaign.
In a sensational season he claimed the winner in the Derby della Lanterna against Sampdoria in December 2008 and went one better by netting a rare hat-trick in a 3-1 victory when the fierce city rivals faced off again in May 2009. His derby heroics cemented his place as a club legend.
In an alternative fives Genoa side, the towering, long haired Czech striker Tomas Skuhravy and diminutive Uruguayan Carlos Aguilera would reunite to form a deadly front pairing.
Yet I am sure that the terrifying prospect of facing the lethal Argentinian and the iconic Levratto would intimidate even the most assured defences.
@SKasiewicz.bsky.social