If you were to ask him directly, Ahmad Benali would tell you that he is, without a doubt, the first real Libyan to have graced Italy’s football pitches. That...
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Magical Marek Hamsik: Napoli’s comic book hero
Bologna’s Twitter account raised the social media equivalent of the white flag when they hosted Napoli last weekend. ‘Enough of that,’ ‘You can take him off now’, they...
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Franco Sensi: A life of family, passion and AS Roma
For many people in football, their club becomes their family. Franco Sensi was someone whose love for both was heavily entwined. The summer of 1926 was an intense one...
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My Aunt Rose Reilly: A World Cup winner with Italy
“My aunt has won a World Cup final for Italy.” This can be quite the conversation starter, especially if you’re Scottish! There aren’t too many footballers from our small...
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Tales from the Peninsula: Pisa will not bend – Ultras, protests & injustice in Tuscany
The message from the protesting fans is clear: ‘Pisa will not bend’ It is Thursday, 2 February 2017, and I am making a familiar journey to Tuscany to take...
Read MoreClassic Match: Lazio vs. Milan 1999/00
In October 1999, Sven Goran Eriksson’s Lazio welcomed reigning champions AC Milan to the Stadio Olimpico. The Biancocelesti were unbeaten at the time and had recorded an impressive 2-1...
Read MorePresidenti: The story of Tommaso Ghirardi – Parma’s ultimate villain
As the camera panned around, the pictures on the wall started to come into focus. On them were scenes of glory, ecstasy and passion. A few were from generations...
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Selecciòn Catania: When the Sicilians danced an Argentine tango
With the inevitable exception of Palermo supporters, every devotee of Italian football cannot help but sigh when looking at the current state of affairs in Catania. The recent history...
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Cassano: The boy from Bari who became calcio’s most polarising character
The 1990s inside Bari’s biggest slum – the San Nicola district of Bari Vecchia – were particularly difficult times for the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern...
Read MoreClassic Match: Juventus vs. Internazionale 1996/97
Italian football fans didn’t have to wait long for the much anticipated first Derby d’Italia of the 1996-97 campaign. Roy Hodgson’s Inter would travel to Turin in week six...
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