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With Juventus, Napoli and Genoa back in their natural habitat, this season’s Cadetti race could hardly be more open. Paul Watson introduces the sides in Italy’s Second Division and the cities they hail from



Albinoleffe
Coach: Elio Gustinetti
Stadium: Stadio Atleti Azzurri D’Italia (24,624)
Last season: 10th in Serie B
Bergamo’s minnows formed when two Alpine town teams – Albinese and Leffe – merged in 1998. Despite a tiny fan-base and travelling support often barely reaching triple figures, they continue to overachieve and share a largely empty stadium with more illustrious neighbours Atalanta.
Target: To cling on to their place in the second tier

Ascoli
Coach: Ivo Iaconi
Stadium: Stadio Cino e Lilo Del Duca (20,000)
Last season: 19th in Serie A
An old club with a history of occasional forays into Serie A, the Woodpeckers are back in the Cadetti after two seasons amongst the elite. Ascoli Piceno is a small central town in the Marche region with a beautiful Renaissance square called Piazza del Popolo at its centre.
Target: Rebuilding, but possibly a play-off spot

Avellino
Coach: Maurizio Sarri
Stadium: Stadio Partenio (26,308)
Last season: 2nd in Serie C1B
A Campania side that enjoyed a 10-year tenure in Serie A between 1978 and 1988. The Irpini have become a yo-yo club in recent years and again bounced back from a season in Serie C by squeezing back up through the play-offs last term. Located 20 miles north-east of Napoli, Avellino experiences regular earthquakes and became famous when TV show The Sopranos shot an episode there.
Target: Survival

Bari
Coach: Giuseppe Materazzi
Stadium: Stadio San Nicola (58,270)
Last season: 13th in Serie B
A well-supported club that spent most of the 1990s in the top-flight, the Galletti have struggled of late and have become mid-table stalwarts. Italy’s 10th biggest city lies in the south-east of the peninsula on the Adriatic coast and boasts an attractive old town in the north. Antonio Cassano grew up playing street football in the inhospitable south.
Target: Finally grab a play-off place

Bologna
Coach: Daniele Arrigoni
Stadium: Stadio Renato Dall’Ara (39,444)
Last season: 7th in Serie B
A club with a prestigious history, the Felsinei won seven championships between 1920 and 1940. These days they fluctuate between Serie A and B and start the season as bookies’ favourites for the title. The city itself is an exciting mixture of old and new. While tourists flock to the many churches, the large student population enjoys the lively nightlife.
Target: Automatic promotion

Brescia
Coach: Serse Cosmi
Stadium: Stadio Mario Rigamonti (26,856)
Last season: 6th in Serie B
The Rondinelle spent 2000-2005 in Serie A and feel at home amongst the elite, but have been frustrated in their last two campaigns. Located near Milan, Brescia is seen as an industrial hub, but the Alps give a beautiful backdrop and nearby Lake Garda is stunning.
Target: At least a play-off place

Cesena
Coach: Fabrizio Castori
Stadium: Stadio Dino Manuzzi (23,860)
Last season: 16th in Serie B
An Emilia-Romagna club with a history of ups and downs are now settling into Serie B. After a shock play-off place in 2005-06, last term saw a dull mid-table campaign. The home of Italy’s first public library and a gothic cathedral, Cesena will contest five derbies against Rimini, Modena, Piacenza, Bologna and Ravenna.
Target: Return to the top half

Chievo
Coach: Giuseppe Iachini
Stadium: Stadio Marc’Antonio Bentegodi (42,160)
Last season: 18th in Serie A
A true football miracle saw village side Chievo climb up to Serie A and stay there for six seasons. However, after last term’s cruel final-day relegation they are back in less illustrious company. The Flying Donkeys use rivals Verona’s huge Stadio Bentegodi, which is hardly ever half full as the vast majority of the city’s football fans see their existence as an affront. Amongst Italy’s most beautiful cities, Verona is home to a Roman Arena and the tourist trap that is Romeo and Juliet’s balcony.
Target: An immediate return to Serie A

Frosinone
Coach: Alberto Cavasin
Stadium: Stadio Comunale (5,300)
Last season: 14th in Serie B
The tiny club managed to survive comfortably in their first Serie B campaign and have spent the summer reinforcing the squad. Frosinone is located between Naples and Rome so most people in the area support Lazio, Napoli or Roma as well as the Canarini.
Target: Keep afloat in the Cadetti

Grosseto
Coach: Giorgio Roselli
Stadium: Stadio Olimpico Carlo Zecchini (10,200)
Last season: 1st in Serie C1A
Tuscan underdogs prepare to make their first appearance in Serie B in their 95-year history. The town is known for its Romanesque cathedral and is located just eight miles from Italy’s western Tyrrhenian Sea coast.
Target: Make the wait worthwhile by staying up

Lecce
Coach: Giuseppe Papadopulo
Stadium: Via Del Mare (40,800)
Last season: 9th in Serie B
Failed to challenge last year after relegation from Serie A in 2005-06 and must now stop themselves stagnating in the second tier. The city is known as 'The Florence of the South' due to its narrow streets and impressive monuments including the unusual Church of the Holy Cross and a half-buried amphitheatre.
Target: Reassert themselves and grab a play-off place

Mantova
Coach: Attilio Tesser
Stadium: Stadio Danilo Martelli (14,884)
Last season: 8th in Serie B
The Virgiliani spent seven seasons in Serie A in the club’s heyday in the 1960s and 70s. After play-off Final heartbreak in 2005-06 and an eighth-placed finish last term, they are emerging as promotion contenders. Mantua is a sleepy Lombardy town home to one of Europe’s biggest literature festivals and famed for being the city of Romeo’s exile in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.
Target: Play-off glory

Messina
Coach: Attilio Tesser
Stadium: Stadio San Filippo (40,200)
Last season: 20th in Serie A
Sicilian club were promoted to Serie A in 2003-04 and spent three seasons in the top flight in the best spell of their history before returning to the basement. Messina is the third largest city in Sicily and is a busy port. It has been victim to repeated earthquakes and was also heavily damaged during World War II. It was featured in William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing and Antony and Cleopatra.
Target: Play-offs at least

Modena
Coach: Bortolo Mutti
Stadium: Stadio Alberto Braglia (21,000)
Last season: 15th in Serie B
In Serie A as recently as 2004, Modena have a history of prolific strikers including Enrico Chiesa and Luca Toni. Ironically, last season saw the Canarini narrowly avoid the drop in a campaign blighted by a lack of firepower. The city is the birthplace of Luciano Pavarotti and has a successful volleyball team.
Target: Top half finish

Piacenza
Coach: Felice Secondini / Gianmarco Remondina
Stadium: Stadio Leonardo Garilli (21,608)
Last season: 4th in Serie B
Former yo-yo club Piacenza brought a spell of mid-table mediocrity to an end with a superb 2006-07 campaign. Their task now is to repeat that feat without Juventus, Napoli and Genoa to deny them their deserved glory. Pippo and Simone Inzaghi are from Piacenza, as is fashion designer Giorgio Armani. The city is in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy and is known for its many palaces.
Target: The play-off place they were denied last term

Pisa
Coach: Giampiero Ventura
Stadium: Arena Garibaldi / Romeo Anconetani (16,800)
Last season: 3rd in Serie C1A
Not Italy’s most famous Nerazzurri, Pisa did spend six seasons in Serie A during the 1980s when they boasted stars such as Dunga and English stopper Paul Elliott. Sadly, a vicious spiral saw relegation followed by bankruptcy in the 1990s and the club was forced to reform. Now they are back after squeezing through the Serie C play-offs last term. Aside from the famous Leaning Tower, Pisa is a hub of renaissance art and the birthplace of influential physicist and astronomer Galileo Galilei.
Target: Avoid the trapdoor

Ravenna
Coach: Dino Pagliari
Stadium: Stadio Bruno Benelli (12,020)
Last season: 1st in Serie C1B
The Giallorossi were in Serie B between 1996 and 2001 before relegation and liquidation and have clawed their way back from the Eccellenza – Italy’s Sixth Division. The city is near Bologna and Cesena and contains eight early Christian monuments that are on the World Heritage List for sites of outstanding cultural value. Ravenna is twinned with Chichester in West Sussex.
Target: Avoid Serie C return ticket

Rimini
Coach: Leonardo Acori
Stadium: Stadio Romeo Neri (10,000)
Last season: 5th in Serie B
The Riminesi stunned everyone when they flirted with Serie A promotion last term having been amongst the favourites for relegation. Having spent most of their history in Serie C, they are now starting to command respect at a higher level. Most Italians know the city as a holiday resort and also the ‘Ibiza of the Adriatic' - in winter it resembles a ghost town. The 1st Century Tiberius Bridge, the Arch of Augustus and a 1st Century cathedral are the main tourist sights.
Target: Continue their success with a play-off push

Spezia
Coach: Antonio Soda
Stadium: Stadio Alberto Picco (10,000)
Last season: 19th in Serie B
Needed a dramatic relegation play-off win over Verona to extend the club’s first Serie B adventure since 1951. The city of La Spezia in Liguria is on the edge of the Cinque Terre region known for its spectacular beaches and hillsides.
Target: Stay up again

Treviso
Coach: Giuseppe Pillon
Stadium: Stadio Omobono Tenni (12,000)
Last season: 12th in Serie B
Spent last season consolidating after a comprehensive relegation from Serie A in 2005-06 and made huge changes in personnel over the summer. Treviso is more of a rugby town – a rarity in Italy – and also contains the headquarters of the clothing company Benetton. The city is often overlooked by tourists as it’s very close to Venice.
Target: A play-off place isn’t out of the question

Triestina
Coach: Rolando Maran
Stadium: Stadio Nereo Rocco (31,350)
Last season: 17th in Serie B
Last in Serie A in 1958, the club has recently been closer to Serie C and came perilously close to the relegation quicksand again last season. Trieste is a port on the Slovenian border and cites the world’s biggest tourist cave, a Roman theatre and the castle of Miramare amongst its tourist attractions.
Target: Survival is the most they can hope for

Vicenza
Coach: Angelo Gregucci
Stadium: Stadio Romeo Menti (17,163)
Last season: 11th in Serie B
Cup Winners Cup semi-finalists in 1998, Vicenza have Serie A pedigree but have spent recent seasons trying to avoid the drop to Serie C. Situated west of Venice, the city is home to many impressive buildings including the work of famous Italian architect Andrea Palladio. It is rumoured that during a famine the residents ate cat meat and local rivals still chant this at them during games.
Target: Time to move into the top half