With the end of the summer transfer window, Football Italia previews the 2021-22 Serie A campaign and what to expect from Spezia. Words Michelle Osei Bonsu
Spezia have lost impressive coach Vincenzo Italiano since last season, and after defying the odds to finish comfortably mid-table more could be expected of the Aquilotti. Thiago Motta is on the bench with something to prove after a disaster in his last post at Genoa but a looming transfer ban means Spezia are fighting against the tide again.
SPEZIA TRANSFERS IN
Amian (D, Toulouse); Colley (F, loan from Atalanta); Nikolaou (D, Empoli); Mraz (M, Zaglebie Lubin); Sher (M, Hammarby); Hristov (D, Fiorentina), Zovko (G, free agent);
SPEZIA TRANSFERS OUT
Agudelo (F, Genoa); Farias (F, returned to Cagliari); Piccoli (F, returned to Atalanta); Galabinov (F, out of contract); Acampora (M, Benevento); Ismajli (D, Empoli); Capradossi (D, Spal); Mattiello (D, returned to Atalanta); Marchizza (D, returned to Sassuolo); Chabot (D, returned to Sampdoria); Dell’Orco (D, returned to Sassuolo); Ricci (M, released); Estevez (M, returned to Estudiantes); Agoumé (M, returned to Inter); Pobega (M, returned to Milan); Saponara (M, returned to Fiorentina)
PROBABLE XI
WHAT TO EXPECT
Spezia made their top-flight debut during the 2020-21 campaign, and impressively, pulled off some excellent performances to ensure they would be around for another season. Victories over big clubs like Milan and Napoli, as well as hard-fought draws with eventual Scudetto winners Inter in addition to Roma showed that the Aquilotti weren’t just around to make up the numbers.
A huge highlight was the call-up of Matteo Ricci to the Azzurri, making him the first Spezia player in over 80 years to achieve this; whilst he didn’t make the cut for UEFA Euro 2020, it’s still a noteworthy achievement for a club many had expected to crash and burn in their first-ever shot in Serie A.
Of course, now that they’ve established themselves as not just a one-hit-wonder, there will be slightly increased expectations of the minnows this time around. They have been dealt some setbacks, with the departure of Vincenzo Italiano to Fiorentina, plus a multiple-year transfer ban starting in January 2022 due to the illegal transfer of underage Nigerian players, but if any team can rise above adversity, it’s Spezia.
COACH – THIAGO MOTTA
Last season, Italiano successfully guided Spezia to safety, as the debutants ended up finishing in 15th spot. This time around, the man in charge for their sophomore campaign will be Thiago Motta, well known for his time with clubs such as Inter, Barcelona, and Paris Saint-Germain, where he won the Champions League with the Nerazzurri and the Blaugrana.
Motta, of course, will be hoping to redeem himself after his disastrous managerial debut with Genoa, during which he won only two of his 10 matches and was sacked just two months into his tenure.
CAPTAIN – GIULIO MAGGIORE
Incredibly, it was only five years ago that Giulio Maggiore made his professional debut for Spezia, who were then featuring in Serie B. Flash forward to 2021, and the 23-year-old midfielder is now the latest player tasked with leading the Aquilotti.
Of course, youngsters taking on prominent roles at their clubs is certainly not something out of the ordinary, but Maggiore, who has made over 150 appearances already for his hometown club, certainly will relish the added responsibility of helping rally his teammates – many of whom range from a few years to almost a decade older than he.
PLAYER TO WATCH – EMMANUEL GYASI
Whilst fellow African striker M’Bala Nzola got much of the plaudits, as the Angolan netted 11 goals for Spezia during their successful debut season in Serie A, Ghana international Emmanuel Gyasi was another who was also singled out for praise due to his overall solid showings, plus, he played a vital role in Spezia’s historic promotion by scoring nine goals during the 2019-2020 campaign. Literally. His goal against Frosinone decided the first leg of the playoffs, which set Spezia up nicely to ultimately secure their spot in Serie A for the first time.
At 27, Gyasi recently received his first senior call-up to the Black Stars this past March and now in his second term as a Serie A player, will hope to improve by leaps and bounds to put himself in good stead for participation at the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations tournament early next year.