By Steve Amoia
Contributing Writer

From Max Allegri of AC Milan to Maurizio Zamperini of Palermo, along with a few 'pseudos' in between, welcome to our featured quotes of the week.

Please add some of your favorite quotes in the comments section.


Getty Images.
MADRID, SPAIN - OCTOBER 19: Head coaches Jose Mourinho (R) of Real Madrid and Massimiliano Allegri (L)
of AC Milan follow the game as Clarence Seedorf throws in the ball.

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Max Allegri of AC Milan was quoted by Tuttosport:

«Quale è quello vero? Quello di sabato scorso, di mercoledì in Champions e di oggi. È sempre lo stesso. Però attenti: prendiamo troppi gol, dobbiamo migliorare».

"Which one is the real Milan? The one of last Saturday, of Wednesday in the Champions League and today. It is always the same. But look out: we are conceding too many goals."

Let's take a look at the classifica. Top of the table Milan has conceded 11 goals. Relegation zone candidates Cagliari and Parma have allowed 10.

Uncle Silvio: "Hello Max, this is Silvio. As I told Carletto a long time ago, I want to win everything. Even the trophy for fewest goals conceded. How do you feel about a return to Cagliari?"


Getty Images.
Italian actress and model, Martina Colombari and Italian football player Billy Costacurta.

Former Milan legend, Billy Costacurta, was quoted on Sky Sport 1 after learning of Oguchi Onyewu's fight with Zlatan Ibrahimovic:

"Nei venti anni in cui sono stato al Milan ci sono state quattro risse. E sono stati gli anni in cui abbiamo vinto lo scudetto."

"In the 20 years in which I was at Milan, there were only four fights. And all happened in years that we won the Scudetto."

Looks like a good omen for Rossoneri fans. Had Rino Gattuso played with Billy for all of those 20 years, something tells me that there would have been four fights every month and Milan would have three stars on their shirts now.


Getty Images.
AS Roma Norwegian defender John Arne Riise (C) kicks the ball in front of Lazio's Brazilian midfielder
Anderson Hernanes (L) as Lazio's coach Edy Reja (R) reacts,

Edy Reja of Lazio, gentleman that he is, was quoted by La Gazzetta dello Sport after the Roman derby:

“Certamente l’arbitraggio non è stato dei migliori, però accettiamo anche questa sconfitta. Volevo semplicemente puntualizzare che questo derby è stato condizionato da degli episodi".

"Surely the officiating wasn't the best, but we also accept this defeat. I wanted to simply highlight that this derby was determined by certain events."

Or the non-politically-correct version:

"On behalf of SS Lazio, it is our sincere hope that Luciano Moggi locks you in a bathroom with our eagle mascot the next time you call our game."

Gigi Del Neri of Juventus was quoted by La Gazzetta dello Sport on camera-shy Gigi Buffon and on his dwindling numbers of available players:

"Perché negli ultimi mesi non si è mai visto a Vinovo? Bisogna chiedere a lui. Forse avrebbe potuto presentarsi qualche volta".

"Because in the last few months, you have never seen him at the Vinovo training center? You need to ask him. Perhaps he could have shown up a few times."


AP Photo.
Italy's national team goalkeeper, Gigi Buffon.

Buffon missed the team photo to cause the latest uproar. Apparently at La Vecchia Signora, that is like saying no to Don Corleone, who famously said, "Don't take the family wedding picture until Michael gets here." But perhaps Mister Del Neri should ask Gigi, "When was the last time that your agent spoke with Manchester United and how are your English lessons coming?"

Grosso e Salihamidzic? Non ci vuole Einstein a capire chi gioca, deve giocare Grosso per forza e anche se è fermo da un po’ sono sicuro che farà bene”.

"Fabio Grosso and Hasan Salihamidzic? It doesn't take an Einstein to understand who will play. Grosso needs to play by necessity and even if he has been out of the side for a bit, I'm certain that he will do well."

Albert Einstein mentioned in the same sentence as Fabio "I didn't dive against Australia" Grosso and Hassan "Brazzo" Salihamidzic? That has to be historic. For some reason, this quote sounds like something Claudio Ranieri would say.

Trivia


Getty Images.
Albert Einstein in 1953.
 
The next time that you take out a cold beer from the refrigerator, you can thank Albert Einstein. It did take an Einstein to invent the fridge.

Jokes aside, if Mister Ranieri played Lazio every week, we might be calling him an Einstein. Three on the trot in the Roman derbies for one of Rome's favorite sons, Claudio Ranieri, who was quoted after the derby in La Gazzetta dello Sport:

“Vorrei vedere il gol che hanno annullato a noi nel primo tempo. Ha avuto occhi di lince, ma non li ha avuti nello pseudo-rigore della Lazio. Sapete che non faccio polemica, ma è riuscito a vedere la punta del piede in avanti di Borriello per decretare il fuorigioco".

"I'd like to see the goal that they negated against us in the first half. He had the eyes of a lynx, but he didn't have them on the pseudo-penalty of Lazio. You know that I'm not trying to make a federal case, but he was able to see the top of the foot in front of Marco Borriello on the offside call."


Reuters Pictures.
AS Roma's coach Claudio Ranieri looks on before their Italian Serie A soccer match against Lazio at the

Olympic stadium in Rome November 7, 2010.

Pseudo Vocabulary Lesson

Ranieri has coined a new word: "pseudo-rigore." I think that it would take a Sigmund Freud to figure out Mister Ranieiri.

Speaking of rigori, pseudo or otherwise, let's see what match official, Emidio Morganti. said to La Gazzetta dello Sport after the Roman derby:

"Nel corso di una partita, ci sono tante situazioni, in particolare sui cross, in cui un arbitro è impallato dai tanti giocatori in area di rigore. Un arbitro di porta avrebbe sicuramente visto meglio di me, ma rimane pur sempre un uomo chiamato ad interpretare un episodio".

"In the course of a game, there are so many situations. Particularly on crosses, in which a referee is blocked by many players in the penalty area. A referee near the goal would have surely seen something better than I, but there always remains a man called to interpret a situation."


Reuters Pictures.

Lazio's players react against referee Emidio Morganti during the Italian Serie A soccer match against
AS Roma at the Olympic stadium in Rome November 7, 2010.

I guess that the last reference was to some sort of "pseudo referee." But we all know that a pseudo arbitro should always award a pseudo rigore. But at least Morganti didn't blame the Lazio flying eagle for blocking his view.

The pride of Sardinia, Gianfranco Zola, was quoted in the il Corriere dello Sport about the tarnished jewel from Bari Vecchia, Antonio Cassano:

«Cassano? Uno come lui può giocare ovunque».

"Antonio Cassano? A guy like he can play anywhere."

He can play anywhere except at Roma, Real Madrid, Sampdoria and perhaps now with La Nazionale. Riccardo Garrone of Genoa called Cassano, "almost normal," last week. Perhaps Antonio can play for an almost normal team. Any suggestions? Do we have any remotely-normal teams in the Serie A? What about pseudo normal?

Genoa patron, Enrico Prezioso, was quoted by La Gazzetta dello Sport on his recent firing of Gian Piero Gasperini:

"Ringrazio Gasperini per tutto quello che ci ha dato in questi anni, dalla promozione in A alla Champions sfiorata. Forse è stato un errore iniziare il quinto anno insieme. Qualcosa non andava già dalla fine dello scorso anno”.

"I thank Gasperini for everything that he gave us in these years, from the promotion to Serie to the Champions League. Perhaps it was a mistake to begin the fifth year together. Something wasn't working already at the end of last year."

Prezioso sounds as if he were describing a failed marriage. For Mister Gasperini, it wasn't a marriage made in heaven. Genoa has played some of the most attractive football over the last few seasons. So now he can enjoy either a long or short vacation. As Jose' Mourinho once said, "Teams pay sacked managers not to work. I prefer to work." He also prefers to talk, and talk and talk...

Speaking of talking, Maurizio Zamparini, patron of Palermo, was quoted after the midweek Milan match by La Gazzetta dello Sport:

"E' un calcio di merda, faccio sul serio, me ne vado in Austria".

"It is sh*tty football, and I'm serious this time. I'm going to Austria."


Getty Images.

BAD KLEINKIRCHHEIM, AUSTRIA - JULY 19: Maurizio Zamparini President of Palermo meets supporters
during a Palermo training session at Sportarena on July 19, 2010 in Bad Kleinkirchheim, Austria.

Steve Amoia is a freelance writer, editor and translator from Washington, D.C. He is the founder, editor and writer of World Football Commentaries. He has written for AC Cugini Scuola Calcio (Italian soccer school), Football Media, Italian Soccer Serie A, Keeper Skool and Soccerlens.

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