Planet Soccer

CBCSports.ca soccer expert John F. Molinaro is on vacation in Rome for a month. While there he plans on eating a pile of prosciutto, soaking up the warm Italian sun and watching a lot of soccer.

After eight long days, I finally got my fix of live soccer Tuesday night.

Before leaving Toronto, I purchased a pair of tickets to seven games, but things didn't get off to a good start: for security reasons, the local authorities decided that only season ticket holders (abbonati) could attend this past Saturday's game between AS Roma and Napoli, the heated Derby del Sole (Derby of the Sun), thus leaving me out in the cold.

So, instead of seeing in person what turned out to be an exciting game (the two teams battled to a 4-4 thriller), I was forced to watch it on TV from the comfort of my cousin's stylish apartment.

Things got back on track, though, Tuesday night as I was securely in my seat in the Tribuna Tevere Centrale section of Stadio Olimpico for the AS Roma-Sporting Lisbon match in the Champions League.

Of course, getting to the stadium in the first place was quite an ordeal.

The game was scheduled to kick off at 8:45, but circumstances prevented my cousin Gabriele from picking me up on his motorino (motorcycle) until 7:45. No big deal, you would think, except traffic in Rome is absolutely brutal at dinner time and it can take upwards of an hour just to cross town.

But Gab flashed me a confident look just as we headed out the door, suggesting that we would make it there in plenty of time. And we did, thanks to his expert driving, weaving in and out of the gridlock traffic, dodging pedestrians, changing lanes furiously and whipping down the streets of Rome at incredible speed.

Once we took our seats, we were treated to a delight of sights and sounds. The curva sud (south end of the stadium), where the hardcore Roma fans reside, were in full voice and singing at the top of their lungs, lighting their flares and waving their flags.

It's interesting to note that here in Italy they don't play the national anthem before the game. Instead, teams play their own official song over the public address system. Roma's song instantly got everybody on their feet and holding their team scarves in the air as they sang along.

After faking I knew the words to the song, I sat down and took note of all the interesting characters around us.

The two guys to our right engaged in an analytical discussion about Roma's starting lineup (Why wasn't Mirko Vucinic, Roma's Serbian striker, starting? And why does Luciano Spalletti, Roma's manager, insist on playing defender Marco Cassetti?) Behind us, a father who spent a small fortune on ice cream, coke and chips for his young son. To our left, a foul-mouthed brute who was constantly dropping F-bombs. And in front of us the stereotypical Italian who talked with his hands waving frantically in the air, only this guy was also prone to standing up and stamping his feet like a petulant child.

Over in the curva nord, a band of about 1,000 Sporting Lisbon fans who made the trip to Rome but who were constantly being shouted down by the Roma supporters whenever they tried got a chant of their own going.

All of this was just a precursor to the pageantry that was about to unfold on the perfectly manicured grass pitch before us on a gorgeous Rome evening. Roma's Brazilian defender Juan, easily the player of the game, put the home side up 1-0 after only 15 minutes, scoring on a exquisite header off a corner kick.

It looked as though it was going to be a cakewalk for Roma, who was dominating early, but Lisbon struck back with a sensational goal just three minutes later sending the Portuguese fans in the curva sud into a frenzy.

From there, things fell apart for Roma. They couldn't string two passes together, captain Francesco Totti was hobbling with an ankle injury (he later left the game with 10 minutes remaining in the first half) and they couldn't muster a decent shot on net.

Roma's luck appeared to have changed when it as awarded a penalty shot early in the second half, but the Lisbon goalkeeper saved Mancini's shot.

Frustrated, the crowd turned on the referee (as if he had anything to do with Roma's poor play!) and began hurtling insults at him, from his whore of a sister, to his alcoholic father, to his deadbeat brother who milked the welfare system. My favourite one, though, had to be the guy four seats down from me who questioned his mother's ability to make a decent spaghetti sauce (although that's a pretty safe assumption to make, considering the ref was from Norway).

The game turned with 20 minutes left in regulation when Vucinic, who came on for the injured Totti, scored a fabulous goal, slaloming past three Lisbon defenders inside the box and slotting the ball home with a perfect shot.

The stadium erupted as Vucinic ran over to celebrate in front of the curva sud. And why not, because it was a magical goal, as evidenced by the "Magico Vucinic" (Magical Vucinic) headline on the front page of Il Corriere dello Sport the next day.

Roma managed to kill off the rest of the game and held on for the 2-1 win, leading to a chorus of Forza Roma! chants from the crowd after the final whistle blew.

Gab and I quickly made our exit and quickly sped off into the Roman night on his motorino with the deafening sound of the Forza Roma! chant still ringing in my ears.

« Previous Post | Main | Next Post »

This discussion is now Open. Submit your Comment.

« Previous Post | Main | Next Post »

Post a Comment

Disclaimer:

Note: By submitting your comments you acknowledge that CBC has the right to reproduce, broadcast and publicize those comments or any part thereof in any manner whatsoever. Please note that due to the volume of e-mails we receive, not all comments will be published, and those that are published will not be edited. But all will be carefully read, considered and appreciated.

Name:

Email Address: (will not be published)

Location:

Comments:

Privacy Policy | Submissions Policy