A.S. LIVORNO CALCIO

[Forza_Roma]

Thankfully no Lucarelli goals!

Serie A Week 36 - 13/5/07 (14.00 UK)

Livorno 1 - 0 Sampdoria
Filippini 72 (L)
Stadio Picchi

Antonio Filippini's lone strike propelled Livorno up the standings and ended the Blucerchiati's European dreams.

The Amaranto had lost their last three on the trot and were not yet safe from relegation, while Samp still had a UEFA Cup spot to aim for, but with Bastrini, Emiliano Bonazzoli, Fabio Bazzani and the suspended Francesco Flachi out, had precious few options upfront.

Sampdoria had never won here in Serie A, managing just three draws and two defeats. In the opening 60 seconds Cristiano Lucarelli drilled just wide of the top corner.

Emanuele Manitta rushed forward to clear from Parola with his feet and the first real shot on target saw Luca Castellazzi smother a Lucarelli strike.

Castellazzi flapped a dangerous cross off the head of Lucarelli, but there were few real scoring opportunities.

Stefano Fiore turned an acrobatic but inaccurate attempt over the bar in the second half, then both Antonio Filippini and Lucarelli couldn't get the final touch to a David Balleri cross.

On the hour mark Livorno finally went close as Lucarelli's looping header skimmed the far post.

The deadlock was broken on 72 minutes at the end of a long and hard-fought move. Castellazzi managed two fantastic saves to keep out Dario Passoni's volley and the Filippini follow-up, but the ex-Lazio midfielder beat him at the third attempt.

Livorno: Manitta; Grandoni, Pavan, Galante; Balleri (Paulinho 66), A Filppini, Morrone, Passoni, Pasquale (Pfertzel 87); Fiore (Coppola 75); Lucarelli

Sampdoria: Castellazzi; Maggio, Accardi, Falcone, Pieri; Volpi; Olivera (Delvecchio 70), Palombo, Parola (Franceschini 58), Ziegler (Zenoni 46); Quagliarella

Ref: Rizzoli

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[Forza_Roma]

Livorno look all set to stay in A as well as Atalanta. This may be the last time we see Lucarelli at Livorno, as well as Amelia. Both have publicaly admitted to seeking transfers and the club will likely cash in on the two superstars. Livorno will be a shell of a club next season if they do not bring in reinforcements to replace Lucarelli and Amelia or they will be relegation bound next season!

[Forza_Roma]

Serie A Week 38 - 27/5/07 (14.00 UK)

Livorno - Atalanta
Stadio Picchi

Pride is the only thing at stake this weekend at the Stadio Picchi as Livorno welcome Atalanta to Tuscany. The Amaranto ensured that they would be playing Serie A football for a fourth straight term after drawing with Torino in Week 37, while the Orobici are mathematically unable to obtain a UEFA Cup spot.

Nonetheless, it’s been a tremendous season for Stefano Colantuono’s side, who have been one of Italy’s yo-yo clubs in recent times. The fact that they will be playing top-flight football for a second straight season should allow them to strengthen considerably in the summer, while they will be keen to hang on to experienced heads like Cristiano Doni and Christian Vieri. Unfortunately, the former has seen his season ended prematurely by injury, while the latter is unlikely to start against Livorno as he continues his rehabilitation process after missing much of the campaign.

Colantuono is unlikely to make many changes to the side which earned a highly-respectable 1-1 draw against champions Inter last week. Moris Carrozzieri is banned, so his place at the heart of the defence is likely to go to Leonardo Talamonti. Nelson Abeijon is also expected to miss out, with Massimo Donati tipped to get the nod ahead of him in midfield.

There’s every chance that the Stadio Picchi faithful will be waving goodbye to several key players on Sunday afternoon, with the likes of Cristiano Lucarelli and Marco Amelia expected to move on. The No 99 might be the club’s captain and scorer of so many of the Amaranto’s goals since their return to Serie A, but it seems likely that a rift with the fans and President Aldo Spinelli could see him depart his hometown team. So after missing the draw with Torino after pulling out through injury in the warm-up, there’s no way he’ll miss the chance to potentially pull on his side’s jersey for the last time.

Paulinho was the man who replaced Lucarelli against Toro, but he is expected to miss out this week. Amelia is also tipped to return between the sticks for the first time in over a month in place of Emanuele Manitta. Elsewhere, Dario Knezevic should step into the defence in place of old head Simone Pavan, while Aparecido Cesar could return at the expense of Giovanni Pasquale.

Man on fire: Adriano Ferreira Pinto (Atalanta) – The Brazilian midfielder has slowly but surely made an impact in Bergamo. Has netted in consecutive weeks, while also chipping in with several assists.

Last season: Not played

Form guide: Livorno (L L L W D) Atalanta (W D W W D)

Livorno (probable): Amelia; Grandoni, Knezevic, Galante; Pfertzel, Morrone, A Filippini, Passoni, Cesar; Fiore; Lucarelli

Atalanta (probable): Calderoni; Rivalta, Loria, Carrozzieri, Adriano; Bernardini, Donati, Ariatti; Ferreira Pinto, Tissone; Zampagna

Ref: To follow...

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[Forza_Roma]

1-0 Livorno. Goal by Lucarelli. A blast from outside the area....top corner.

[Forza_Roma]

HT 1-0 Livorno

[Forza_Roma]

2-0 Livorno. Goal by Morrone

[Forza_Roma]

2-1 Goal by Zampagna from the penalty spot. This guy is great!

[Forza_Roma]

3-1 Livorno. Goal by Lucarelli from the penalty spot. This guy is a scoring machine. Thankfully Totti is well ahead.

[Forza_Roma]

3-2 Livorno. Goal by Bernardini.

[Forza_Roma]

4-2 Livorno 85' Paulinho

[Forza_Roma]

FT 4-2 Livorno

[Forza_Roma]

Ciao Lucarelli!

Serie A Week 38 - 27/5/07 (14.00 UK)

Livorno 4 - 2 Atalanta
Lucarelli 45, pen 56 (L), Morrone 47 (L), Zampagna 52 (A), Bombardini 65 (A), Paulinho 84 (L)
Stadio Picchi

Cristiano Lucarelli probably played his last game at the Stadio Picchi and saluted the fans with a brace.

Pride was the only thing at stake here, although uncertainty hung over the two clubs in other respects. Cristiano Lucarelli and Coach Nando Orsi were considering leaving Livorno, while Atalanta boss Stefano Colantuono is a target for Palermo.

The Orobici had not won here in Serie A since a 2-0 result on June 5, 1949.

Marco Amelia did well to block a curling Riccardo Zampagna effort from distance and a couple of Tissone efforts proved dangerous.

Nelson Abeijon sidefooted wide and Cristiano Lucarelli's free kick was off target.

Lucarelli was desperate to score one last goal for his hometown club. He gathered Stefano Morrone's pass on the edge of the area, turned his marker and smashed the right-foot shot into the near top corner.

Straight after the restart it was 2-0 thanks to a howler from goalkeeper Ivan. The Atalanta shot-stopper seemed to be comfortable, but spilled the ball and allowed Morrone to pounce.

The referee pointed to the spot for a handling offence in the defensive wall to parry a Davide Bombardini free kick. Although Amelia saved Zampagna's penalty, he could do nothing on the follow-up for the 11th goal of the season.

Livorno were also awarded a soft penalty for a challenge on Lucarelli. The captain took the kick himself and sent Ivan the wrong way.

Lucarelli had a goal ruled offside and was given a standing ovation by the Stadio Picchi as he went off for Paulinho.

Atalanta got back into the game as substitute Christian Vieri threaded through for Bombardini's tap-in from close range.

Paulinho netted the fourth for Livorno in the final minutes, as Ivan only parried Morrone's effort into the path of the Brazilian.

Livorno: Amelia; Grandoni, Pavan, Galante, Pasquale; Balleri (Knezevic 71), Morrone, Passoni, A Filippini; Fiore (Bergvold 63); Lucarelli (Paulinho 59)

Atalanta: Ivan, Rivalta, Talamonti, Loria, Adriano (Bombardini 46); Ferreira Pinto, Bernardini, Abeijon (Donati 46), Ariatti; Tissone; Zampagna (Vieri 56)

Ref: Celi

Missed penalty: Zampagna 52 (A)

[D-Kin]

Livorno have improved their midfield with the arrival of Verona’s 23-year-old Nico Pulzetti.

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[D-Kin]

It is now official that former Deportivo La Coruna star Diego Tristan is the new Livorno centre-forward.

This morning reports had emerged that the 31-year-old Spaniard had agreed a move to the Stadio Picchi, but the club only confirmed the news in the late afternoon.

Tristan has put pen to paper on a one-year contract worth £470,000 with an option for a second.

It will be the first Serie A experience for the striker, who was a star of the Liga and Champions League for Deportivo La Coruna.

However, he has fallen on hard times recently, as he was released by Real Mallorca in January due to poor form after failing to score a single goal in 13 appearances.

Tristan was top scorer in La Liga in 2001-02 and is on his way to Livorno’s pre-season training camp for a medical.

He will partner Valencia-owned Francesco Tavano in the reconstructed attack following Cristiano Lucarelli’s £6m sale to Shakhtar Donetsk.

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Good signing.

[Jager]

Livorno dump Dhorasoo? Thursday 26 July, 2007

Vikash Dhorasoo’s second Serie A stint could be over already, as Livorno want to scrap his contract due to insufficient fitness levels.

The Frenchman was signed as a free agent earlier this month, having been sacked by Paris Saint-Germain in January 2007 for his poor form.

There are now reports that the same has happened at the Stadio Armando Picchi, where he failed to impress the Amaranto medical staff.

A clause in his contract allows Livorno to scrap the deal within the first 60 days of the signature and it seems as if they are considering taking that option.

Dhorasoo made his Serie A debut for Milan in a 0-0 draw with Brescia on November 10, 2004, but it was the first of only 12 appearances.

Since that brief stay at San Siro, the 34-year-old had another disappointing term at Paris Saint-Germain.

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