Man Udinese's line up is really shit these days. Watford better stay up because they're putting all their eggs in one basket.
I'd like to expand that thought and discuss the other teams in the league. Something that may add to the the ongoing debate about the preseason expectations and the current achievements of Mancini's Inter this season.
These are samples of the 16th and 38th rounds of Serie A for the last 5 seasons, my emphasis isn't about Inter but the teams struggling today like Udinese and Genoa. This isn't a prediction on the things to come but a hypothetical argument on the overall team performances and how it's a factor, as marginal as it may be, on where everyone is positioned today.
For reference, this is the Serie A table so far:
Serie A 2014/15 - Rounds 16 & 38:
- Genoa were disqualified from the Europa League
Serie A 2013/14 - Rounds 16 & 38:
- Parma were disqualified from the Europa League
Serie A 2012/13 - Rounds 16 & 38:
Serie A 2011/12 - Rounds 16 & 38:
Serie A 2010/11 - Rounds 16 & 38:
Seeing how thatdude brought them up, we'll start with Udinese who have been underachieving not only this season but since Guidolin's final year as their manager so their regression is a steady matter before Stramaccioni's appointment. In the 2012-2013 season Pozzo took over Watford and both of his clubs finished in promotional positions whether it was the Europa League for Udinese or the Premier League playoffs for Watford. The problems began a year later, when Udinese and Watford both ended their season in the 13th position. Obviously their stuttering campaigns in both countries were down to their unresolved priorities between the two leagues, the magnitude of investments required to compete again in England, as well as the managerial mistakes from Zola to Sannino there. I revert you to an interview conducted by the
Guardian's Simon Burnton with Andrea Carnevale, Udinese's chief scout who discusses the club's renowned transfer policies and their newest objectives and realization about the Premier league. My suggestion is for you guys read the article as it'll shed some light on their operations but what concerns us is this part:
“Watford will be our engine room, to create a team that will take us to Europe. The very best young players, players of potentially world-beating quality, will go to England, where they will gain the experience that will eventually bear fruit in Friuli, The Pozzos’ heart remains here, Udinese fans can chill out because this summer we’ve bought four new players, each one better than the last. It’s a great team. The Pozzos make sure all three teams get the same focus.”
Perhaps Watford's chief executive Scott Duxbury has a better explanation:
“Our aim is to establish a business plan that makes the club self sufficient as quickly as possible. The previous business plan covered significant losses through player trading. We don’t want to do that, we want to keep the players, remain competitive, and we think the best platform to get to the Premier League with no timescale being put upon it is to become a sustainable Championship club.”
The best breakdown comes from Gino Pozzo who explains their plans for Udinese, Granada, Watford and their youth policies:
"Watford and Udinese are on two different planets. You know what the budget is of our English team? More than 50 million euros. In Udine it is nearly half. That is because here in the UK, TV rights are divided proportionally between the teams. In Italy it is an absurd policy, the money is divided between the stronger teams. Thus increasing the (players’) salaries is impossible if you’re keeping balanced books. Watford and Udinese, however, can be allies, by targeting different players. Therefore they do not compete in the marketplace.”
"Let's say that the market has changed, we are ready to change course. When in Serie C we had to go to Brazil or Chile to find talent but now the players that we target there are already known. We now look at more experienced players who will choose Udinese for the 'restart' of their career. There is Granada, and especially its B team – it’s the ideal place to mould young foreign signings that we buy. You will see how many will arrive in Udine soon and are ready to explode.”
“We were surprised that a club (Watford) that works with young players is not committed to young players. They had one, two-year contracts. Why? It was a mixed message. By changing that idea – to say that the players are here to fully develop to a top, top level – then they will sign longer contracts for the next three or four years.”
“We are here for the long term. This is not a case of a foreign owner with an injection of money looking for a quick return. We wish to establish Watford as a Premier League club… self-sufficient over time. Longevity to us is key to success. It is only over many years that success can be judged.”
Quoted from the
Swiss Ramble who have summed up the Pozzos situation perfectly:
Promotion may have come sooner than the owners (and the fans) anticipated, but it is clear that they have arrived with a good plan.
Let's hope it doesn't backfire.
On the other hand, we have the Genoa clubs who had an exceptional campaign last season when they influenced and joined the race for the Champions League and the Europa League places till the end but today they fall into relegation territory. Genoa, in particular, had an impressive 7 win streak out of 10 games while losing the other 3 at the end of last year, so it's understandable why I consider their season so far as the worst among all Serie A clubs. Also, it should be pointed out that their 6th place achievement wasn't due to a spike in their form during the second half of the season but a gradual process as they remained in the top 10 from round 3 till round 38 and were only nudged when their points equaled another team.
Now the question, were Genoa and Sampdoria overachievers last season? Did they benefit from the stuttering state of the Milano clubs? Or was it their own strength that got them a higher standing?
Truth be told, all these conditions supported that surge especially when their average achievement these past 3 years has been avoiding relegation at all costs. It wasn't a surprise their mercato relied on capturing bargains or loan deals that avoided mandatory purchase. In reality Genoa are one of the clubs that were hit hard by the co-ownership deals cancellation. That said, Preziosi has been in the game longer than his city rival Ferrero so it's normal he'd find other means of income like the brand valuation deal which got them 27 million in the 2013/14 season. The same thing happened when they cut their debt and salary expenses by almost 60% but it still didn't hide Genoa and Preziosi's problems with the small shareholders (who published an open letter about him delaying the budget submission), the undisclosed loan he took from a company in Switzerland to recapitalize the club, and the debt problem as he reportedly sold 50% of the club shares to Giovanni Calabrò, a man who is implicated in legal disputes in Italy.
Here's a brief
summary of his situation: (footbal-italia)
It’s reported Genoa President Enrico Preziosi has sold around 50 per cent of the club to Giovanni Calabrò.
The patron has been in negotiations to sell a stake in the Grifone for several weeks, but it later emerged that Calabrò had been sentenced to six years and four months imprisonment for bankrupting the company Algol.
The court in Monza found that Calabrò had employed his Kurdish friend Mario Saeed to act as a fake Sheikh with oil money from Dubai, in order to impress investors and strip the company of its assets.
Saeed was presented to the Algol board in order to convince them to sell to Calabro, though he was a Swedish citizen described by the court as being “without a Euro in his pocket”.
That ruling bans Calabrò from commercial enterprise for 10 years, but in Italy a person is not considering guilty until all levels of appeal have been exhausted.
Given that the entrepreneur is appealing the ruling, he is currently free to invest in Genoa, with CalcioNews24 reporting that a deal has been struck for somewhere in the region of 50 per cent.
That would make Preziosi and Calabrò equal partners, but the former is expected to stay on as President.
Originally I wanted to address various teams and even explore their profits from transfers in comparison to losses and all that but like with Black Knight my attention span isn't that long.
It's clear that Udinese are struggling because of their Watford relationship since you don't go from being a top 5 challenger to a relegation candidate when your finances are intact before the English adventure. Check out and bookmark Luca Marota's
blog about the finances and budgets of Serie A and European clubs. The provided link concerns articles about Udinese these past few seasons.
The Pozzo family may have handled themselves well in England and adapted after the
Football League sealed the loaned players loophole. This season's conclusion in Italy and England will be essential for them to preserve their old model and set off the newer one (EPL longevity) so I doubt they can afford to ignore or sacrifice Udinese.
Genoa on the other hand have a mountain to climb.
By the way, the same questions could be asked about Inter lately. Were we underachievers? Did the mediocrity in the first team and the financial problems (from debt, losses, and salaries) during Moratti's final years as president reflect itself fairly on our lack of achievements in the last 5 years?
Also..
Here are the official Calcio Reports from the FIGC on subjects relating to professional and amateur football, the economics, social trends, taxes, analysis of Italian contribution in Europe and more.
PDF Version:
2014 Report
2015 Report
They're in English if anyone is concerned.
10 years of FIF
Forum Supporter
FIF Special Ones
.
Transfer Guru
Comedic Post of the Year
