(FM16) Il Ritorno: Parma Calcio

LEGA PRO GIRONE A PREVIEW: AS CITADELLA VS. PARMA

Date: 18 December 2016
Kick Off: 15:00


AS Cittadella
Based In: Citadella
Position: 4th
Manager: Roberto Venturato
Captain: Giuseppe Pugliese
Key Player: Filippo Scaglia
Injuries & Suspensions: Daniel Cappelletti, Claudio Coralli, Orlando Held
Last Match: 4-1 Vs. Venezia
Form:

Fans Prediction: ”We’re going pretty well at the minute and our fans, myself included in that, are quietly confident that Roberto Venturato can put a run of form together that can see us push for the top of the league and earn a place in Serie B again. Doing that would be fantastic although here we’re going up against one of the best teams in the league. They are on a brilliant run of form which is fantastic for them and they’re putting together a very good winning run and they’re going to be pushing for the top of the league too. This is a big six pointer and I really hope we can get the result I think we can.”


Parma
Based In: Parma
Position: 2nd
Manager: Paolo Vanoli
Captain: Alessandro Lucarelli
Key Player: Francesco Corapi
Injuries & Suspensions: N/A
Last Match: 3-2 Vs. Pavia
Form:

Fans Prediction: ”The run of form we’re on at the minute has led to fans just sitting there, hoping for Vicenza to slip up. With that in mind, for me it feels like we’ve forgotten how big this game is going to be. Cittadella are going really well at the minute and if they get the result they want against us this weekend then they’re in a really good position. So for us this weekend the game has to be about avoiding defeat rather than making sure we win and keep the pressure up on Vicenza, because if we avoid defeat we will capitalise on a poor Vicenza result at some point this season.”

DECEMBER UPDATE

Results

05.12.2016: Parma 4-1 Venezia
- Denis Baumgartner Wonder Goal Inspires Parma To Big Win
6: D. Baumgartner
24: M. Minesso
74: G. Innocenti
83: G. Piscitella
86: F. Cernuto
Denis Baumgartner

11.12.2016: Parma 2-0 Lumezzane
- Parma Go Further Clear In Play Off Spots
40: Y. Baraye
77: M. Minesso (Pen)
Alessio Innocenti

18.12.2016: AS Cittadella 3-2 Parma
- Winning Run Comes To An End As Cittadella Claim Important Win
8: F. Di Nolfo
22: Y. Baraye
23: M. Busellato (Pen)
55: M. Lignani
72: Y. Baraye
Yves Baraye

The Coppa Italia Lega Pro: Third Round

14.12.2016: Pavia 2-3 Parma
- Last Gasp Winner Sends Parma One Step Closer To Glory
20: D. Baumgartner
26: F. Sforzini
50: F. Corapi
58: A. Cesarini
90+3: F. Corapi
Alessandro Cesarini

League Table

Player of the Month

Denis Baumgartner

The baby faced 18 year old has really burst onto the scene at Parma in the last few months and he has now established himself as one of the best forwards at the club. His all round play has come on in leaps and bounds and he is more than capable of playing out wide, just behind the striker or as the man up front. Wherever he plays though, he always poses a threat and could be a huge asset for the club moving forward.

Injuries

Denis Baumgartner. The young Slovakian who has really burst onto the scene over the last few weeks, was an unfortunate casualty of the teams winter break, straining his back meaning that he will miss up to 6 weeks of action, ruling him out of action until at least February.

Next Month

A run of fixtures that Parma will hope to be getting nearly full points from. Pro Piacenza, Como, Padova and Pavia are all sitting in mid table or in Pavia’s case just outside the play off spots, whilst Parma still occupy 2nd despite the defeat against Cittadella. However if Parma can keep up there run of form and just consider the defeat to Cittadella as a blip then Paolo Vanoli’s men will be edging their way closer to the promotion spot in the league.

Other News

04.12.2016: 38 year old manager Aimo Diana was sacked as manager of FeralpiSalo as the club’s poor start to the season saw the team lie bottom of Girone A in Lega Pro.
06.12.2016: After the thumping 4-1 victory over Venezia, Parma broke a long standing Lega Pro record, with Paolo Vanoli’s men now holding the record for the long winning streak in the leagues history.

Manager’s Thoughts

A good month on the whole but it ended in a poor result against Cittadella. We were absolutely awful and defensively we were a shambles and there will be a mix up next month, with a new signing in the pipeline, and maybe some players getting another chance in the starting XI. Having said that, the winning run that we were on has really pushed us into the frame for promotion and if we can recover from the defeat to Cittadella next month then there is no reason why we can’t put together another good run of form.

LEGA PRO GIRONE A PREVIEW: PARMA VS. PAVIA

Date: 29 January 2017
Kick Off: 15:00


Parma
Based In: Parma
Position: 3rd
Manager: Paolo Vanoli
Captain: Alessandro Lucarelli
Key Player: Francesco Corapi
Injuries & Suspensions: Michele Messina, Simone Corazza Yoan Severin
Last Match: 2-0 Vs. Viterbese Castrense
Form:

Fans Prediction: ”Those two successive defeats really dented our confidence by the looks of it, and then the injury and suspension crisis we were suffering hasn’t really helped. Having Michele Messina out for the time he is going to be out for hasn’t helped and its led to some uncertainty in our defence but it looks like we are over the worst of it now and hopefully we can start to move forward. We need to try and get a victory here because otherwise our bid to secure automatic promotion could be all but over because Vicenza just aren’t losing at the minute.”


Pavia
Based In: Pavia
Position: 6th
Manager: Fabio Brini
Captain: Alessandro Cesarini
Key Player: Alessandro Cesarini
Injuries & Suspensions: Antonio Marino, Angelo Siniscalchi
Last Match: 4-1 Vs. Venezia
Form:

Fans Prediction: ”We’re not doing too badly this season, we were predicted to finish 4th but to sit in 6th and only be just behind the teams in the play off spots is pretty good. The last time we met Parma they stole it at the death and hopefully they don’t get the chance to do that again here. Honestly I think we can win this time, because they’re going to be desperate to win and close the gap on Vicenza at the top of the league and hopefully we can stop exploit that desire to win at all costs.”

JANUARY UPDATE

Results

08.01.2017: Parma 0-1 Pro Piacenza
- Domination Not Enough For Parma As Pro Piacenza Pick Up Vital Win
43: L. Orlando
Daniele Rieti

15.01.2017: Parma 2-0 Como
- Rapid Start To Second Half Earns Parma Victory
46: N. Belloni
74: F. Santacroce
Mattia Minesso

22.01.2017: Padova 0-0 Parma
- Parma Hold On For Point Despite Sending Off
35: Y. Severin
Enrico Pezzi

29.01.2017: Parma 1-1 Pavia
- Late Equaliser Saves Parma From Defeat
58: A. Ferretti
87: F. Piovaccari
Tommaso Bellezzini

The Coppa Italia Lega Pro: Quarter Final

25.01.2018: Parma 2-0 Viterbese Castrense
- Place In Semi Finals Secured By Comfortable Victory
14: M. Minesso
62: F. Corapi
Mattia Minesso

League Table

Player of the Month

Yves Baraye

Whilst the teams form hasn’t been too brilliant this month, Yves Baraye has had a good month, putting in some very good performances. His ability to play as a deep lying playmaker or further forward, or even out wide makes him an extremely useful player and by averaging a 7.5 rating over the course of the month, the player has been the best player in the team by some way in January.

Injuries

Michele Messina. The young defender who has recently established himself as one of the first choice centre backs suffered a sports hernia just as he was really hitting form and now the defender will miss another 4 to 5 weeks.
Simone Corazza. Much like with Messina, Corazza was another player who was really hitting form but by straining his knee ligaments injury has halted his progress in the side and now the striker will miss another 6 to 7 weeks of action with the injury.

Next Month

A huge month for Parma who will be desperate to put their recent poor form behind them. The big fixtures start with a huge clash against play off chasing Reggiana where defeat will really put Parma in trouble but victory would give them hope. The first of the two Coppa Italia Lega Pro semi final legs is next as Parma visit Cittadella before hosting Cremonese in the cup a few days later. Parma are again on the road in another crunch match, this time against Pro Patria before they host Cittadella in the second leg of the Semi Final. Their final game of the month sees them host Olginatese, the team they beat 4-2 at the start of the season to kick start their good form.

Other News

01.01.2017: FeralpiSalo finally ended their search for a new manager by appointing Riccardo Maspero, who had previously managed relegation threatened Serie B side Mantova, as their new man, hopeful that with his experience in the second tier, he could steer them away from relegation danger.

Manager’s Thoughts

Just the one win in the league this year really isn’t good enough and we’ve slipped into an uncomfortable position where we’re so far off Vicenza at the top of the table and we’ve got teams like Reggiana breathing down our necks and that want a place in the Play Offs. It’s not a comfortable experience and the performances this month have been, honestly, atrocious. We’ve not looked anywhere near as convincing in attack and defensively the injuries and suspensions we’ve had have not helped but hopefully that crisis will start coming to an end. In the cup though we’re having a great time and we’ve got two legs against Cittadella to try and get into the Final and if we can do that then we could have some more silverware this season.