channel4.com - Football Italia




Roberto Mancini So little has changed over the years. If you look back to the very first Serie A game on British television, or our first issue of the magazine, you'd see an irritable man with bags under his eyes, arguing with the referee, shouting instructions to all the players and furiously wiping his hair back with one hand. Fast forward to 2008 and Roberto Mancini is doing the exact same thing, albeit now on the sidelines and wearing a suit. Becoming a Coach was always his destiny. As Vujadin Boskov used to say: “Mancio would give more orders on the pitch than I did.” This fiery character was intrinsically linked to his style of football - arrogant and with every reason to be so. It's no wonder he is so fond of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, for he was the original dribble addict, purveyor of fantastical flicks and inspirational assists. “I understand Ibra, for I was just like him. When I was 24 or 25, I too played for the crowd and myself, paying little attention to being clinical in front of goal. I was also pulled up by my Coaches so many times.” Inevitably, a showman such as this won the hearts of fans wherever he went and his teammates saw him as a true leader, a born captain. At the time the youngest ever Serie A debutant, at the age of 16 for Bologna, he found his spiritual home at Sampdoria and a father figure in President Paolo Mantovani. Before his arrival the Blucerchiati had barely won anything, but after 133 Serie A goals in 424 appearances he had helped place the Scudetto, European Cup-Winners Cup, Italian Super Cup, four Coppa Italias and a European Cup runners-up medal into their trophy cabinet. Mancio's mark on the side extended over 15 years, from Boskov's title-winners to the impressive Sven Goran Eriksson era. The Swedish tactician taught him to channel that inarguable natural talent into a more disciplined style of play and he followed Sven to Lazio in 1997. The career highlights continued to add up at the Olimpico with another Scudetto, Cup-Winners Cup, European Super Cup, Italian Super Cup and two Coppa Italia trophies. The Nazionale represents the only gap in his CV, as here his wilful streak and short shrift with the Press made him too hot to handle. It is criminal to think a talent like Mancini had only 36 Italy caps. As the magazine continues to roll on, so does Mancio's influence on Serie A. He still doesn't suffer fools gladly and wants to give the fans something to enjoy. I get the feeling his acrobatics on the sidelines have a little bit of that old show-off quality about them, forever playing to the gallery.

Words: Susy Campanale

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