#if lorenzo has 0 fans i died

[marcsnuffy]

need to know what addictive chemical kaneshiro put in him that make people react the way they do with him

[italianfootballtheories]

Important Euro Goals From Insigne & Cutrone

Champions & Europa League - October 5, 2018

Insigne’s late strike sinks Liverpool in a game dominated by Napoli. The local boy has talent that’s well appreciated in Italy, but he’s now making a name for himself on the continent through his clinical finishing.

I got this! Insigne is making a fine habit of finding the back of the net. - Image courtesy ansa.it

This page is running the serious risk of becoming an Insigne fan shrine, but Lorenzo Il Magnifico keeps popping up in the headlines and for all the right reasons. Even Klopp was impressed, and I’m not about to argue with him, even if I disagreed. Ancelotti’s arrival and influence has sharpened Insigne’s aim as he’s scoring important goals and with more regularity. In the past critics bemoaned his seasonal goal tallies as not being bloated enough to be considered a world class forward. Since returning home to Napoli, he only breached the 20 goal mark in the 2016/17 season. On this kind of form Lorenzinho will eclipse that figure and likely propel his hometown club into the knockout phases of the Champions League. Unanimous praise was sounded out by the global footballing media and having the Napoli homeboy getting the winning goal was the......cherry on top?  Buffalo mozzarella on top. It’s a shame there weren’t many other Italians joining him on the San Paolo park, but Simone Verdi was thrown on with just over 20mins to play as Napoli went in search of the winner with Liverpool on the ropes.

Twenty four hours earlier Juventus did the business on Switzerland’s Young Boys,  3-0. Bonucci and Bernardeschi were solid contributors to the victory, as Moise Kean got himself a handful of minutes with the Bianconeri cruising.

Roma followed up their famous derby win with a 5-0 thumping of Viktoria Plzen. Di Francesco’s side may just have turned the corner, with Lorenzo Pellegrini finding the right impetus since his protagonist derby performance. The young midfielder laid on an assist and pulled many a string in the Giallorossi midfield. Florenzi and Cristante were the other Italians who started; the former’s corner allowing Dzeko to complete his hat-trick. Luca Pellegrini and Nicolo’ Zaniolo came on for the last 20mins to get another feel for the Champions League.

Inter made it 4 for 4 on a memorable round for (most) Italian clubs in Europe with 3 precious points at PSV Eindhoven. Politano started and continues to do well in his maiden Champions League season. There’s a sense that Politano is growing and stepping up to the next level and he definitely looks like a player who will be very useful to Inter and the national team. 

Onto the Rossonero side of Milan and into the Europa League, it’s hard not to get excited about Patrick Cutrone. Into the second half and losing 1-0 at home to Olympiacos, Gattuso rolls the dice on the young striker who’s apparently still not fully recovered from an ankle injury. A brace and a 3-1 victory ensues and you only need to look at Cutrone’s celebration to understand exactly how up for it he is. The boy from Como has an impressive goal return for the his minutes played so far and he consistently finds a way to snake away from defenders to find himself in the right place. Calabria, Romagnoli, and Bonaventura were the other Azzurri taking part.

Leave me on the bench again and I’ll throw my shin guards at you. Cutrone’s brace challenges Gattuso’s tactical setup. - Image courtesy of getty images.

Lazio unfortunately spoiled the Italian party as they were thumped 4-1 by Eintracht Frankfurt in the other Europa League tie. After receiving 2 red cards (Basta and Correa) before the hour mark, there was very little Immobile could do to turn the capital side’s fortunes around.

[ssportsnews]

3 goals and 1 assist in the first half... The Kane we knew is back

토토 사이트, 카지노 사이트, 파워볼 사이트, 온라인 카지노, 토토먹튀,파워볼먹튀,카지노먹튀 

 This season, Kane has been sluggish in the Premier League. He has only one goal in 10 games. There are so few attack points that some have even mentioned the controversy over sabotage.

However, 'National Representative Kane' was different. He showed off his side as the best striker in the EPL that fans knew. He completed a hat-trick in the World Cup qualifiers, effectively ending England's trip to Qatar.

England beat Albania in Group I of the European qualifiers 5-0 at home in the 9th leg. Kane scored three goals, and Maguire and Henderson split the goals side by side to win.

Kane showed dazzling productivity, harvesting 4 attack points in the first half alone. He headed Henderson's cross in the 18th minute of the first half and helped Henderson's goal with an exquisite pass in the 28th minute.

In the 33rd minute and extra time, they shook the Albanian goal in turn.

England, who continued their undefeated streak with 7 wins and 2 draws in the European qualifiers, will qualify for the Qatar World Cup just by drawing a draw with San Marino, the bottom of the table, in the final match on the 16th (Korean time).

▲ Harry Kane Italy retained first place in Group C. They drew 1-1 with Switzerland in the 7th leg of the qualifying round. In the 11th minute, Silvan Bidmer opened the scoring, but 25 minutes later, Di Lorenzo equalized the header to score 1 point.

Italy and Switzerland had 15 points side by side, with Italy leading the group in goal difference. The result of one remaining match will determine which team will advance to the finals.

[a-hobbit-in-isengard]

I was tagged by @pezzo-di-paradiso thank you so much!!

Rules: list 10 artists you like before answering these questions

1. Ermal Meta

2. Fabrizio Moro

3. Marco Mengoni

4. Lorenzo Fragola

5. Ultimo

6. Fedez

7. Il Volo

8. Enrique Iglesias

9. Mika

10. Pink

What was the first song you heard by 6?

I believe it was “Beautiful disaster”. But the first time I came across it was because of Mika. And I thought that ‘italian rapper’ was annoying :DD A year later or so, I found that song again, but this time while I was searching for more Fedez content, and this time I absolutely loved that song :D

What is your favourite song by 8?

My favorite changes everytime he releases something new, but I guess I’m gonna have to stick with Duele El Corazon.

What kind of impact has 1 left on your life?

I think it’s too soon to tell. I can tell you that a couple of lyrics from “Vietato morire” have now become my life motto, and I want to tattoo them onto my arm. And I will do so as soon as possible. As much as I wish I could say otherwise, he hasn’t left a significant mark on my life yet. YET. I’m still waiting for it though. But for now, the only change in myself I’ve seen so far, is that I’m becoming more romantic. I don’t know if it’s his music, his lyrics or him as a whole, but I’ve become more accepting of romance. It still baffles me, I don’t yet know what it means, but I’ll come back to you on this one :D

What are your favourite lyrics by 5?

“Sono presente ancora oggi nel ballo delle incertezze dove ti siedi e più sei poco e più ti senti grande incontro me stesso e poi gli chiedo se vuole ballare ferma la musica che il silenzio adesso sa parlare”

How many times have you seen 4 live?

Sadly, 0.

What is your favourite song by 7?

Si me falta tu mirada, Canzone per te, Delilah.

Is there any song by 3 that makes you sad?

Sai che and Ti ho voluto bene veramente (especially that one. I relate to it so much)

What is your favourite song by 9?

Good guys, Beautiful Disaster, Hurts, Happy Ending.

How did you get into 2?

Portami Via was the first song of his I ever heard, and I immediately fell in love, and I reaaaaally wanted it to win Sanremo 2017, so I was a bit sad when Fabri only came in 7th. But after that I’ve been shuffling through his music, trying to follow whatever he was doing, and in the end, I accidentally went crazy due to MetaMoro :D

How did you get into 10?

I think it was back when she released “Fucking perfect”. Back then I really needed to hear everything she had to say. That song went straight to my heart and hasn’t come out since. It helped me cope when I had lost all hope, and since it got such power over me, I couldn’t let Pink go so easily even after I got better. I’m still a big fan of her music, especially one of her newest songs “What about us”.

I tag @metamoros @ohermal @nineteeninetyeight @nelmezzodelcammino @bunnywithnat @arsenalmakesmesuffer @the-infamous-wine-bottle

[eurotickets20]

Euro 2020 - Italy maintain perfect record with an easy win in Liechtenstein

Italy, already qualified for Euro 2020, maintained their perfect record in Group J and clocked up a record-equalling ninth international win in a row with a 5-0 thumping of Liechtenstein on Tuesday.

Teemu Pukki scored twice as Finland beat Armenia 3-0 to strengthen their grip on second place and move closer to a first-ever appearance at either the Euro or World Cup finals while Bosnia & Herzegovina suffered a severe setback with a 2-1 defeat in Greece.

Italy has 24 points from eight games while Finland has 15, five ahead of Armenia and Bosnia. The top two teams qualify for Euro 2020. Fans are excited to get their Italy Euro Cup Tickets to see live performances of their favorite team and players.

Italy's run, which includes a friendly win over the United States followed by their eight Euro qualifiers, is their longest since 1938-39 under Vittorio Pozzo.

"Am I interested in equalling Pozzo's record? I would be interested in winning two World Cups and an Olympic Games like he did, but a European Championship would do just fine," said Italy coach Roberto Mancini.

Mancini made 10 changes to the side which beat Greece on Saturday to clinch qualification and gave a debut to Giovanni Di Lorenzo.

Liechtenstein nearly stunned the visitors after 40 seconds when Dennis Salanovic forced Salvatore Sirigu to save with his legs but, from the resulting corner, the hosts broke down the other end of the field and Federico Bernardeschi put them ahead.

Italy struggled to build on the early breakthrough and Sirigu had to make another difficult save from Salanovic's curling shot just after the hour before the floodgates finally opened.

Andrea Belotti headed in from a corner in the 70th minute and, seven minutes later, Alessio Romangnoli headed in his first Italy goal from Stephan El Shaarawy's cross. El Shaarawy, with a breakaway goal, and Belotti, with another header, rounded off the win.

"The important thing is that all the lads are really involved," said Mancini, who has rejuvenated the team during his 18 months in charge. "And the truth is that, on June 1, I will be forced to make some important choices and some kids will have to miss out."

Fredrik Jensen gave Finland a halftime lead against Armenia before Pukki scored two nearly identical goals in the second half.

Joel Pohjanpalo threaded a fine pass into the path of Pukki who clipped his finish over Armenia goalkeeper Aram Airapetyan in the 61st minute and the Norwich City forward repeated the trick in the 88th minute, this time from a Rasmus Schueller pass.

Bosnia was condemned to a 2-1 defeat in Greece when Adnan Kovacevic turned an Ioannis Fetfatzidis cross into his own net two minutes from time. Greece had gone ahead through Evangelos Pavlidis on the half-hour with Amer Gojak equalizing for Bosnia five minutes later.

Football fans can get Euro Cup Tickets through our trusted online ticketing market place. EuroTickets2020.com is the most reliable source to book Euro Cup 2020 tickets.

[gadgetsrevv]

Italy and Mancini are set to cruise to Euro 2020. Just don’t ask about the green shirts

Italy look rested and rather comfortable in Euro 2020 qualifying right now. It’s a refreshing change after failing to reach the 2018 World Cup.

Perhaps it shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise to hear Roberto Mancini say “I prefer the blue.”

His opinion on Italy’s new green shirt, which the team will wear for Saturday’s qualifier with Greece — stream live: 2.45 p.m. ET, ESPN+ (U.S. only) — isn’t necessarily that of a traditionalist. Mancio won league titles as a player in the blue of Sampdoria and Lazio and his greatest successes as a coach came in the same hue at Inter and Man City. Superstition is the way.

“We’ll see what it looks like on the pitch,” he smiled. “It’s a bit strange.”

Returning to the Stadio Olimpico for the first time in four years, greying fans of a certain vintage will maybe remember the time Italy last played in green here. It happened just once in 1954: a friendly against Argentina. PUMA are calling it the “Renaissance Kit” and whatever you might think of it, the launch it certainly captures the zeitgeist around Mancini’s Nazionale.

– Rodri: Man City’s new star talks exclusively to ESPN – Ogden: What’s the problem with England’s traveling fans? – O’Hanlon: Who’s the best finisher in soccer?

Designed to appeal to a new generation, this is very much the Italy team of that generation. Eleven of the players in the squad are 25 or younger and Mancini will call up one or two from the Under-21s once Thursday’s qualifier with the Republic of Ireland is done and dusted. Dialling up the “linea verde” (“the green line”) is one idiom Italians use when youth is being invested in and Mancini hasn’t put the phone down in his year in charge.

This weekend, Italy will book their place at Euro 2020 nice and early with three games to spare, as long as they beat Greece and Armenia fail to win in Liechtenstein. The choice of venue is significant. In the event of qualification, Italy will play their first two group games next summer in Rome; Mancini wants the players to get used to the atmosphere. After vanquishing Finland 2-1 in Tampere last month, he said: “The hope is that the Stadio Olimpico is as full as it was during the 1990 World Cup, a time when we were all a little younger.”

Currently on a seven-game winning run, matching the streaks of former coaches Ferruccio Valcareggi and Giovanni Trapattoni, this new-look Italian side has completely changed the mood around the national team, regenerating enthusiasm after the massive disappointment of 2018. Sure, as Mancini’s predecessor Giampiero Ventura (now coaching in Serie B at Salernitana) has pointed out, their qualification group is an easy one. But Italy laboured and rarely entertained against similar opposition not just under him, but also legendary managers who could call on hall-of-famers in contrast to promising youngsters.

“I wanted a group with Germany, Holland, France and Spain but they didn’t give it to me,” Mancini cheekily hit back.

His latest squad includes only one debutante: Napoli right-back Giovanni Di Lorenzo, whose story is the stuff of fairytales. The 26-year-old has gone from playing in the third division with Matera to the Champions League and now, his country in just two seasons. He is the Moreno Torricelli of 2019.

Nicolo Zaniolo is back after his punishment for showing up late for a training session at the U21 Euros in the summer. Moise Kean, his partner in that tardy crime, is not, however, after a slow start to life at Everton. Currently training with the Azzurrini, it wouldn’t come as too big a surprise if he were promoted to the senior squad after the weekend. That said, Mancini has given the impression that the more likely graduate will be Brescia’s Sandro Tonali who has yet to debut for the Azzurri but was on the bench last month in Armenia.

Florentines were disappointed that Gaetano Castrovilli did not make the cut after a breakout start to the campaign but his chance will come soon enough. That said, Mancini believes “the squad is more or less set,” adding “there are maybe two or three spots up for grabs. If someone all of sudden gets ruled out [through injury] then we’ll see but the players going to the Euros are here or have already been called up. If anything, we’re a little short on the left-side of our defence. Emerson Palmieri [Italy’s main creative thrust in Yerevan] is out. [Roma’s] Leonardo Spinazzola has played the last two. [Inter’s] Cristiano Biraghi is back [fit] but he isn’t playing a lot.”

Italy coach Mancini, left, presents the new green Italy shirt to Vincenzo Spadafora, Italy’s Minister for Sport and Youth Policies.

Questions about Italy’s problem position, the No. 9 role, ended up getting convincing answers in September. Andrea Belotti scored in Armenia and Ciro Immobile found the back of the net in Finland, the pair of them putting to rest long droughts for an international goal. Friendly rivals for one place in the team, the competition seems to be bringing out the best in the former club teammates. Belotti boasts 12 goals in 17 games for club and country this season, Immobile nine in 10.

It means the striker-less lineup that sparked Mancini’s Italy into life this time last year has been shelved as has the Kean-Fabio Quagliarella combo that lit up the Azzurri over the spring. It’s up to them and the likes of Mario Balotelli and Patrick Cutrone to persuade Mancini otherwise over the next eight months ahead of Euro 2020.

Out wide, the only guaranteed starter at the moment is Federico Chiesa, who is learning more tricks of the trade alongside Franck Ribery at Fiorentina. On the opposite side, Napoli’s Lorenzo Insigne needs to shape up after a poor and bad-tempered start to the season. He’s failed to score or assist in five of his last seven appearances and Carlo Ancelotti left him in the stands for the trip to Club Brugge in the Champions League, unimpressed with what he’d seen from his captain in training.

As for Federico Bernardeschi, he has barely played for Juventus this season. He only made his first league start at the weekend and did not match what he’d shown previously in the Champions League against Bayer Leverkusen. One of the novelties of the Greece game could be the repurposing of Bernardeschi in midfield. It would highlight how much Mancini rates the player and underline his efforts to skill up the team as much as possible.

Ciro Immobile, right, is in superb form for club and country and will be leaned upon as Italy’s attack looks better and sharper than it has for years.

Last time out he used Lorenzo Pellegrini as a nominal left-winger knowing that when Italy had the ball and Emerson or Leonardo Spinazzola pushed up, the Roma playmaker could come inside and occupy something akin to a No. 10 role. Pellegrini ended up getting the go-ahead goal in Armenia and has made it rain assists at club level throughout September. Unfortunately, his foot is now in plaster and he’ll be watching from home. 

The midfield that seemed written in stone, with Nicolo Barella, Marco Verratti and Jorginho complementing each other brilliantly in last season’s internationals, was remarkably being challenged not only by the form of Pellegrini, but also Stefano Sensi, the player everyone’s been talking about, who, lamentably, will also be missing this round of games after straining his adductor in the Derby d’Italia.

Injuries aside — don’t forget captain Giorgio Chiellini is rehabbing from knee surgery as well — Mancini must be encouraged by the range and age profile of the players coming through. He has lifted the gloom around the national team and is imposing his own winning mentality. Ending this qualification campaign with a perfect record will see Italy back among the top seeds and heading into the Euros full of self-esteem and optimism.

As for this weekend, it’s hoped the team will play better than they did in September when you could tell they had not worked together for four months and that the Serie A season was only two games old. It was no coincidence that the Premier League-based players and the Torino contingent — back early for the Europa League qualifiers — were the ones who stood out.

Saturday’s game has been billed as a “mock exam” by Mancini. Italy should pass it in flying colours. Just not the ones we’re used to seeing them in.

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[torentialtribute]

15-year-old sensation Coco Gauff awarded wildcard to US Open after her rise to stardom at Wimbledon 

15-year sensation Coco Gauff gave wildcard to US Open after her rise to stardom in Wimbledon

Cori & # 39; Coco & # 39; Gauff reached the fourth round in Wimbledon in July

She defeated Venus Williams in the first round and won on her Center Court debut

15-year-old eventually lost to champion Simona Halep in round four

She is now playing her second Grand Slam in New York in two weeks

By Kieran Jackson for Mailonline

Published: 18:59 BST, August 13, 2019 | Updated: 18:59 BST, August 13, 2019

Coco Gauff, the 15-year-old who singles the fourth round of ladies on Wimbledon has received a wildcard for the US Open.

Gauff was one of the stars of the Wimbledon fourteen days after qualifying for the tournament before defeating idol Venus Williams in the first round

Eventually she lost until final champion Simona Halep on Court No 1, but her rapid turnout was enough for the USTA to give her a direct place in the women's singles in New York.

Coco Gauff & # 39; s progress to "Wimbledon" of Wimbledon

Gauff, 15, saved two match points in her third round match against Polona Hercog at Center

Gauff & # 39; s journey to Wimbledon started in qualifying, where she sent crossed three games drop a set there.

She was then drawn against 39-year-old Venus Williams, a match between the oldest player in the draw and the youngest, with a staggering 24-year gap. Gauff, with her brand aggressive, powerful tennis at the back of the field, swept Venus aside in straight sets on Court No. 1.

The 15-year-old has only played a hard court tournament since Wimbledon, Washington

Gauff defeated former Wimbledon semi-finalist Magdelana Rybarikova in round two, before she won a marathon match against Polona Hercog during her debut at the Center Court, which saved poi with two matches nts in memorable scenes of Friday night

And although Halep was a step too far, Gauff had a set of different fans encased on both sides of the Atlantic.

Since Wimbledon, Gauff plays in the Citi Open in Washington, where despite a first round exit she won the doubles with fellow teenager Caty McNally, 17, who has also received a wildcard for the US Open.

Jack Sock received a wildcard in the singles at the US Open

The other wildcards for ladies singles have been awarded the 2011 champion Samantha Stosur from Australia, the French Diane Parry and the Americans Kristie Ahn, Francesca Di Lorenzo, Whitney Osuigwe and Katie Volynets.

Meanwhile, on the man's side, there is a place for former top 10 player Jack Sock, who won the men's doubles last year at Wimbledon with Mike Bryan but has not won any singles this year.

The other recipients are Ernesto Escobedo, Bjorn Fratangelo, Marcos Giron, Denis Kudla and Zachary Svajda from the United States as well as Frenchman Antoine Hoang.

The US Open, the last Grand Slam of the Year, starts on August 26.

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[freebetalerts-blog]

Champions League Tipsheet: Barca to come unstuck at San Siro

(New post on FreeBetAlerts.com) - https://freebetalerts.com/2018/11/04/champions-league-tipsheet-barca-to-come-unstuck-at-san-siro/ #Football, #Freebets, #Tips

Champions League Tipsheet: Barca to come unstuck at San Siro Please share.

Inter are in the best form of the Luciano Spalletti era and can upset Barcelona at San Siro on Tuesday, says James Horncastle…

“Inter are hitting heights they have previously not reached in 18 months under Spalletti. The team is playing good football, boasts the best defence in Serie A and lost causes like Dalbert, Roberto Gagliardini and Joao Mario are suddenly contributing to decisive effect.”

Intergalactic

Inter v BarcelonaTuesday, 20:00Live on BT Sport/ESPN

Inter could not go into Tuesday night’s clash with Barcelona in better form. This weekend’s 5-0 win against Genoa was their seventh in a row in the league and it built on the team’s best performance of the season, a 3-0 dismantling of Lazio last Monday.

Inter are hitting heights they have previously not reached in 18 months under Spalletti. The team is playing good football, boasts the best defence in Serie A and lost causes like Dalbert, Roberto Gagliardini and Joao Mario are suddenly contributing to decisive effect.

Saturday’s victory served to underline once again that Inter are no longer dependent on Mauro Icardi for goals. The Argentine was able to put his feet up and keep himself fresh for Barcelona without his absence impacting negatively on the team. The sight of Radja Nainggolan returning from injury for the first time since the derby and using the five minutes available to him to get himself on the scoresheet is another reason for Interisti to be encouraged.

San Siro is sold out for Tuesday’s game and as we saw against Spurs this stadium can lift the team even when it is not playing well. Inter will fancy their chances of making a dent in this Barça team which continues to concede goals all too easily for Ernesto Valverde’s liking. The Nerazzurri disappointed at the Camp Nou but I predict it will be a different story this midweek. Take Inter to win @ [3.55].

Scary for Thierry

Monaco v Club BruggeTuesday, 17:55Live on BT Sport 1

Bottom of the table, four points adrift of safety in Ligue 1 and still without a win under Thierry Henry, Monaco are in big trouble. Saturday’s 1-0 defeat to Reims provoked a bad reaction from the team’s away support. Thirty or so Monaco fans attempted to invade the pitch and confront the players after 10th defeat of the season. “I can understand it,” Henry said afterwards.

Monaco had 72% of the ball but did nothing with it. Fragile and error-prone at the back, the team looks nervous. You would be if you hadn’t tasted victory since the opening day of the campaign and are now winless in 14 games in all competitions.

Complicating matters for this young and raw team are the mistakes made by dressing room veterans and an injury crisis that’s the stuff of nightmare. Radamel Falcao hurt himself against Strasbourg. Steven Jovetic pulled up in Brugge and Nacer Chadli had to abandon the game against Dijon. The team can’t keep a clean sheet to save it’s life at the moment. Monaco’s last one was 10 games ago. It’s the club’s worst run in 12 years.

I fancy the Belgian league leaders to end their barren spell in the Champions League and pile more misery on Monaco at the Stade Louis II. Take them to win @ [3.3].

King Carlo

Napoli v PSG Tuesday, 20:00Live on BT Sport 3

Napoli deserved to win at the Parc des Princes two weeks ago. They out-played PSG in the first half and looked like causing another upset to go with their 1-0 win against Liverpool at the San Paolo. While disappointed that a Mario Rui own-goal and a world-class equaliser in stoppage-time from Angel Di Maria denied Napoli victory, you could see afterwards that Carlo Ancelotti was confident of making amends in the return leg.

PSG’s lack of balance and the half-hearted way their attacking players track back are the reasons why. Thomas Tuchel’s side did improve in the second half after switching to a 3-4-3. The German hasn’t changed system since then and PSG look better for it. Marquinhos is playing in his natural position and the defence has greater cover. Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and Edinson Cavani only need a moment to win a game.

But Napoli appear to have broken through a glass ceiling under Ancelotti. Playing in this competition against this calibre of opposition no longer fazes them. There is no inferiority complex. On the contrary Napoli are raising their game against better resourced rivals for qualification.

The Partenopei warmed up for Tuesday’s game in the best way possible, blowing Empoli away 5-1. Lorenzo Insigne’s hot streak continues, Dries Mertens hit a hat-trick of goals, all of which came from outside the area, and even substitute Arkadiusz Milik joined in the scoring. Take Napoli to win @ [2.96].

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[eddycurrents]

For the week of 11 June 2018

Quick Bits:

30 Days of Night #6 concludes this retelling of the original 30 Days of Night story. The art from Piotr Kowalski and Brad Simpson has been great, but as the series has progressed, I’ve increasingly been wondering what’s the point? While there have been minor differences, this essentially amounts to the same story extended out further. Personally, the decompression doesn’t add a lot for me.

| Published by IDW

A Walk Through Hell #2 continues this weird and creepy horror story, with Garth Ennis, Goran Sudžuka, and Ive Svorcina giving us an ever present sense of dread with this story. It’s heavy. It’s dark. Ennis is dealing with some dark and depressing subject matter through politics, homophobia, and child sex trafficking and that’s just the backstory in the flashbacks. In the present, we get more terror and the appearance of one of Ennis’ favourite recurring story items. Also, the art is gorgeous.

| Published by AfterShock

Analog #3 takes a bit of a detour following up on Oona’s night out and the ramifications of it. I really like how Gerry Duggan and David O’Sullivan are teasing out this story, giving us glimpses into Jack’s character and supporting cast, making us really care about them and their predicaments, even while his job and being snatched by the government continue to simmer.

| Published by Image

Animosity: Evolution #6 begins the next stage in this story, as Adam continues to search down what exactly happened in the death of most of the lex animata. I love the mix of politics and thriller that Marguerite Bennett is throwing at us with this series.

| Published by AfterShock

Astonisher #8 kicks things into high gear as we approach the end of this arc. We get some impressive action sequences from Al Barrionuevo in the second half of this book, as Magnus begins to enact his plan to stop his brother’s nefarious plans and save his girlfriend from the clutches of Dr. Saperstein.

| Published by Lion Forge / Catalyst Prime

Babyteeth #11 nicely plays with conventions as Sadie trains to enter the hell dimension of the Red Realm to rescue Clark. In a typical action/horror story the hero trains and finds herself ridiculously good at everything, Donny Cates doesn’t play it like that. It’s kind of hilarious. Also, Gerry Brown shows off some impressive hellscapes as we get a little more information on the Red Realm.

| Published by AfterShock

The Ballad of Sang #4 takes an interesting turn as we focus on the Dandies capture of Sang and Lucy trying to talk some sense into the Black-Eyed Betties. This series has been over-the-top violence and fun, this issue is no different.

| Published by Oni Press

Betrothed #4 sees the crap hit the proverbial fan as the betrayal of Kieron and Tamara lies out in the open and everything goes to hell pretty fast. The action from Steve Uy is particularly nice.

| Published by AfterShock

Bloodshot Salvation #10 takes us almost in sync to when the series began, giving us a look at why Magic and Jessie were on the run, and what Ray was doing in 4002. It’s interesting how Jeff Lemire has been using time in this series.

| Published by Valiant

Bloodstrike #0 is an oddity, beginning the “Brutalists” arc that runs through this issue and then the two missing issue numbers from the original ‘90s series, #23 & #24. I’m not exactly the target market for this, as I have no real affinity towards Bloodstrike, but this is still interesting. Michael Fiffe is presenting a kind of origin story here, so you needn’t worry about having read any Bloodstrike before, but what makes it stand out is Fiffe’s approach to the artwork and storytelling. It looks and feels like an indie book out of the ‘80s, the offbeat and highly violent stuff that was out there and it has a nice appeal about it.

| Published by Image

By Night #1 is a fun debut issue, featuring all of the charm and humour that John Allison brings to Giant Days, plus some great art from Christine Larsen and Sarah Stern.

| Published by Boom Entertainment / BOOM! Box

Coda #2 is every bit as good as the first issue, possibly even better, as Hum finds himself the prisoner of an old wizard with dementia and his doting daughter. I loved Matías Bergara’s art in Cannibal, but the art here, with Michael Doig, is incredible. Bergara makes it look like he was born to draw this kind of weird fantasy.

| Published by BOOM! Studios

The Damned #10 begins “Daughter’s Danse”, with Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt kicking off Maura’s scheming. It adds another wrinkle to the already complex mess of the series’ crime drama.

| Published by Oni Press

The Dead Hand #3 keeps this thriller chugging along, with a new obstacle in an obstinate MI-6 agent trying to find his missing friend. The missing friend who, last issue, was murdered after stumbling upon the series’ mysterious test city in Russia. Some particularly nice action sequences from Stephen Mooney and Jordie Bellaire this issue, great layouts and use of colour washes.

| Published by Image

Deadpool: Assassin #1 reunites Cullen Bunn with another Deadpool mini-series, this time with some impressive art from Mark Bagley, John Dell, and Edgar Delgado in tow. Bunn writes some good Deadpool.

| Published by Marvel

Death of Love #5 ends this series in an unexpected way. Sure, some people are likely to be angry about it, but when you think about it, and read Justin Jordan’s missive in the backmatter, it makes sense. Dudebro Eros is also pretty funny. Good art from Donal DeLay and Omar Estévez.

| Published by Image

Dejah Thoris #5 is a bittersweet end to this first arc, with Dejah finding Ephysium and the source of the waters of Mars. Amy Chu and Pasquale Qualano are largely playing this as straight-forward adventures and it certainly works as that.

| Published by Dynamite

Domino #3 begins to give us some flashbacks to Neena’s childhood. I’m somewhat reticent when characters who bank on a mysterious past start to have their backstories filled in, but I trust what Gail Simone is doing here.

| Published by Marvel

Dry County #4 goes into the expected territory of an amateur detective’s professional (and personal) life suffering due to obsession with a case. Despite being expected, it’s still highly entertaining.

| Published by Image

Hunt for Wolverine: Adamantium Agenda #2 continues this bunch of New Avengers members search for Wolverine. It’s still one of the groups investigating that makes the most amount of sense, and the picture of what’s going on here comes even more into focus with a couple of other character reveals. Good stuff from Tom Taylor, RB Silva, Adriano di Benedetto, and Guru-eFX.

| Published by Marvel

Kick-Ass #5 shows again how easy it is to get in over your head when doing the wrong thing and addicted to the cheap, “easy” fix. Then everything goes to hell. Definitely like what Mark Millar, John Romita, Jr., and Peter Steigerwald have been doing with this story.

| Published by Image

The Magic Order #1 is an interesting start to this first series borne of Millarworld’s sale to Netflix. The art from Olivier Coipel and Dave Stewart is suitably gorgeous, with some really nice designs for the villain and one of the tricks to take the family off the board.

| Published by Image

Marvel Two-in-One Annual #1 is possibly one of the best things that Chip Zdarsky has written. This is an excellent character study in Doom, wrapped in revelations of bits of Victor’s past, the end to Secret Wars, and more. All with gorgeous art from Declan Shalvey and Jordie Bellaire.

| Published by Marvel

Nancy Drew #1 is a great first issue, presenting the kind of fun and exciting, beautifully illustrated mystery adventure that I’m used to seeing mostly from Boom these days. Kelly Thompson, Jenn St.-Onge, and Triona Farrell pack a lot into the initial salvo, giving us a conclusion to a goat-napping adventure, before propelling us into a personal crisis for Nancy Drew, while delivering a fairly large supporting cast. It’s fun and the art is wonderful.

| Published by Dynamite

New Mutants: Dead Souls #4 has the X-Men of all sorts coming together for Rictor’s funeral. Matthew Rosenberg and Adam Gorham put Magik through the wringer as she tries to deal with the loss and the burdens of leadership. Then the other shoe drops.

| Published by Marvel

Oblivion Song #4 has a lot of quiet moments, allowing for Lorenzo de Felici and Annalisa Leoni to really show off their chops.

| Published by Image / Skybound

Old Man Logan #41 begins another two-parter. I like how Ed Brisson is structuring these arcs, contributing pieces to the larger whole of the elder Logan’s story of his diminished healing factor, while telling discrete, entertaining stories in their own right. Also, some really nice art here from Francesco Manna and Carlos Lopez.

| Published by Marvel

Port of Earth #6 foreshadows something horrible happening at the port, as the introductory interview starts diving further into potential problems with one of the agents, looking for what looks like a target for blame. I like how Zack Kaplan is setting this up, even if the story does move relatively slowly in execution.

| Published by Image / Top Cow

Proxima Centauri #1 is some very weird sci-fi. It’s being done by Farel Dalrymple, so it should come as no surprise that there are odd visuals, strange characters, and bizarre occurrences, just as it’s rather entertaining and beautiful to look at.

| Published by Image

The Punisher #226 pivots Frank’s direction a bit to attacking Hydra. Matthew Rosenberg is layering a lot of humour into the script and it’s working very well.

| Published by Marvel

Quicksilver: No Surrender #2 continues what is an excellent character study of Quicksilver. I would argue that Pietro’s characterization of himself is a little too favourable, but don’t we always cast ourselves in a better light than we often are? Great work from Saladin Ahmed, Eric Nguyen, Rico Renzi, and Chris Brunner.

| Published by Marvel

Stellar #1 sees the return of another creation from Robert Kirkman and Marc Silvestri’s turn at Top Cow’s Pilot Season back in 2009/2010 after Demonic in 2016. You don’t need to have read the original one-shot to follow this. Joe Keatinge and Bret Blevins handle the creative and this is, well...stellar. Blevins’ artwork is amazing, with some truly breathtaking sci-fi imagery. This is a damn fine looking comic. The story of a reticent soldier trying to make amends for her horrible past is a common one, but it’s entertaining. Especially when you add the mix of possible unreliable memory and fuzzy reality. This looks like another winner for Skybound.

| Published by Image / Skybound

Thor #1 begins the third act in Jason Aaron’s epic run, turning towards the War of the Realms and the previously Unworthy Thor reclaiming his name and mantle. The various Thor series have been blessed with god-tier artists from Esad Ribić through Russell Dauterman, and this book continues that traditional with Mike del Mundo handling the main story and Christian Ward the back-up. Even if the story wasn’t exciting, with an added amount of humour that’s been missing for a bit as the last volume took a serious turn, the art alone would be worth the price of admission.

| Published by Marvel

Tomb Raider: Inferno #1 follows on from the story in the Survivor’s Crusade mini, with Lara travelling to Antarctica to discover the secret that Trinity is willing to kill to protect there. It’s nice to see Phillip Sevy doing more Tomb Raider artwork. If you like the games since the 2013 reboot, I largely consider these comics a must. 

| Published by Dark Horse

Transformers: Lost Light #18 continues this arc that, like its counterpart in Optimus Prime, is bringing all the chickens home to roost.

| Published by IDW

Venom #2 is just as excellent as the first issue, with Donny Cates, Ryan Stegman, JP Mayer, and Frank Martin building upon Eddie Brock’s legacy and adding new lore to the history of the symbiotes. Stegman is probably doing the best art of his career here, this book looks incredible.

| Published by Marvel

The Weatherman #1 is an interesting debut, bringing to mind to me some of the weird, offbeat, and humorous sci-fi like The Fifth Element. Jody LeHeup and Nathan Fox start this series off straight enough, with a future Mars mourning the loss of Earth, seemingly transfixed only by the “extreme” antics of the titular weatherman. It’s a weird premise, sure, but it’s entertaining, and gets even more so when the other shoe drops. Some really great art from Fox and Dave Stewart.

| Published by Image

Witchblade #6 sees Alex assemble her Scooby Gang to help investigate the kidnapping of her guardian demon, Asher. Caitlin Kittredge is doing a great job of building up the supporting cast, as well as giving us glimpses into Alex’s past. This continues to be one of Top Cow’s best looking books, with phenomenal art from Roberta Ingranata and Bryan Valenza.

| Published by Image / Top Cow

Xena: Warrior Princess #5 brings the first arc of this series to a conclusion. The art from Vicente Cifuentes and Triona Farrell has been a real high point for the book and this issue is no different.

| Published by Dynamite

X-Men Blue #29 jumps ahead a bit, taking us past the original five’s return to Earth and the events of Venomized, to spotlight a transformed Jimmy Hudson on the run from the team. It’s a good follow-up to the Venom event so far with some very nice art from Nathan Stockman and Matt Milla.

| Published by Marvel

Other Highlights: Accell #11, Betty & Veronica: Vixens #7, Copperhead #19, DuckTales #9, Exiles #4, The Fix #12, Invader Zim #31, Kaijumax: Season 4 #1, Mage: The Hero Denied #9, Marvel Rising: Alpha #1, Mech Cadet Yu #9, Monstress #17, Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man #305, Resident Alien: An Alien in New York #3, Rose #12, SHIELD #6, Spider-Man vs. Deadpool #34, Star Wars: Darth Vader #17, Star Wars: Thrawn #5, The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #33, World of Tanks: Citadel #2

Recommended Collections: Babyteeth - Volume 2, The Beauty - Volume 4, Dakota North: Design for Dying, Defenders - Volume 2: Kingpins of New York, Invincible Iron Man - Volume 2: Choices, Rumble - Volume 4: Soul Without Pity, Slots - Volume 1

d. emerson eddy thinks it’s probably a bad idea to eat deep fried mozzarella sticks and marinara sauce at one in the morning, but is doing it anyway. Clearly, he’s a demented rebel just asking for a heart attack.

[shadowhunters-italia]

Come al solito, Shadowhunters, questo post sarà in continuo aggiornamento – perché sappiamo che continueranno a uscire nuove notizie per giorni. XD

Iniziamo con il trailer, che vi abbiamo sottotitolato (per vedere i sub, attivateli!):

        Questo breve video è stato rilasciato durante il panel del telefilm, che il Collider ha trasmesso in streaming su YouTube. Mentre lo guardavamo, abbiamo preso degli “appunti” – eccoli:

  1 – La serie ripartirà lì dove si era interrotta la seconda stagione;

2 – “Luke è ancora ubriaco?” Isaiah dice che sta avendo dei postumi della sbornia tremendi;

3 – “[Jace e Clary] hanno un segreto che non possono rivelare [= il desiderio espresso a Raziel, l’aver riportato Jace in vita],” dicono. Ci vorrà un po’ perché le cose tra loro funzionino, ma poi avranno un peso enorme sulla storia di tutti;

4 – Secondo Alisha, alla fine della seconda stagione Maia aveva avuto un finale da favola (era stata rapita, salvata e aveva trovato fidanzato fantastico) – ma non sapeva che le cose poi avrebbero preso una brutta piega;

5 – Katherine e Alisha hanno avuto qualche scena insieme di cui non possono parlare;

6 – “Che cos’è la felicità?” Matthew pensa che Alec al momento sia parecchio felice, ma pure un po’ stressato, e sta entrando adesso nella parte più complessa della sua relazione con Magnus – e quindi, visto che questo lo stresserà ancora di più, è preoccupato per Alec (“Non preoccuparti per Alec, starà bene,” dice uno showrunner. Matthew dice che hanno venti episodi da girare al meglio, quindi non è scontato);

7 – Alec verrà riconosciuto come una delle ragioni per cui Valentine è stato sconfitto;

8 – “Giriamo lo show per voi ragazzi, e speriamo di sorprendervi ancora di più, durante la terza stagione”;

9 – “E noi li ringraziamo ferendoli e rompendo loro le dita”, dice Matthew mentre Katherine ringrazia gli stuntman per il loro lavoro e l’impegno nel creare stili di lotta adatti a ogni personaggio;

10 – “Izzy è grandiosa, più forte che mai; è la nuova maestra d’armi dell’Istituto”;

11 – Isabelle ha imparato a rispettare in maniera nuova i mondani, visto che l’hanno aiutata con lo yin fen;

12 – Chiedono della Sizzy. Todd sa di ripeterlo spesso su Twitter, ma non può che ribadire: “Pazienza”;

13 – “Sappiamo, grazie alla seconda stagione, che non è sempre una buona idea riportare in vita le persone”;

14 – Matthew sostiene che Jace sia ossessionato dal lavoro: “Vorrà prendersi un giorno libero”;

15 – Todd ritiene che nei primi due episodi la Clace sia grandiosa. Katherine aggiunge che fino a ora Jace e Clary non avevano avuto la possibilità di esplorare liberamente la loro relazione;

16 – Alisha dice che le piace il fatto che in questa terza stagione ci sia anche uno sviluppo delle relazioni, oltre che dei personaggi;

17 – Hanno preso Anna Hopkins nel ruolo di Lilith;

18 – Un attore di Hamilton, Javier Munoz, comparirà in più di un episodio della serie. Il suo personaggio si chiama Lorenzo Rey, ed è un avversario di Magnus. Javier manda i suoi saluti al fandom:

  Casting update! Magnus Bane gets a rival warlock, played by Broadway star @JMunozActor. #ShadowhuntersNYCC pic.twitter.com/o6DbO9qiHL

— Shadowhunters (@ShadowhuntersTV) 7 ottobre 2017

  19 – Hanno trasmesso il trailer;

20 – Lilith non ha mai avuto un figlio suo, quindi Sebastian è il suo bambino, il suo sangue che scorre nel corpo di Jonathan Christopher Morgenstern. È spaventosa e bellissima e sensuale;

21 – Lilith sta venendo per Jace, per vendicarsi della morte di Sebastian;

22 – Freeform ha ordinato altri dieci episodi , che andranno in onda durante la prossima estate. Nessuno ha idea di cosa sta succedendo. “Tutto ciò che so,” dice il moderatore del panel, “è che avrete più Shadowhunters!”;

23 – Matthew: “Hanno deciso dopo aver visto il trailer? Oppure per tutte le battute che abbiamo fatto su Beyond?” [NdT: gli attori hanno continuato a fare giochi di parole con “Beyond” – titolo di un’altra serie Freeform, il cui panel si è svolto prima di quello di Shadowhunters – per tutto il tempo];

24 – Matthew dice ai fan di prepararsi a una scena sexy;

25 – “Quali sono stati i vostri cambiamenti preferiti rispetto ai romanzi?”: “L’approfondimento della relazione di Maia e Simon”, dice Alisha. La scena dovrebbe essere nel secondo episodio e nei libri non esiste;

26 – “Se poteste dare un consiglio ai personaggi, quale sarebbe?”: Matthew: “Oddio… per me, direi… Rilassarsi e pensare – penso sia un consiglio adatto a tutti i nostri personaggi.”; Alisha consiglierebbe a Maia di perdonare (il perdono sarà un tema di questa nuova stagione); Katherine direbbe a Clary di fidarsi del suo estinto, di non aver paura di fare ciò che deve e di prendere il controllo; Isaiah direbbe a Luke di coprirsi gli occhi, perché non vuole vedere ciò che sta succedendo nella rimessa;

27 – Sembra che i fan di Luke adoreranno questa stagione. Tornerà anche Cleophas;

28 – “Matthew Daddario è il più adorabile di tutti o no?” La folla ha urlato;

29 – “Com’è stato entrare nel mondo degli Shadowhunters sapendo quant’era già grande il fandom?” Matthew dice di essere più grato che mai; Alisha quando ha fatto l’audizione non sapeva niente né di Shadowhunters né dei libri. Dopo aver ricevuto la parte, ha cercato tutto su Google, e ha esclamato: “Oh, figo!” Sostiene anche che non dimenticherà mai quest’esperienza;

30 – Todd aveva precedentemente detto che noi lettori resteremo soddisfatti da Jordan.

    Se dovesse saltar fuori un video ufficiale, e completo, dello streaming, ricontrolleremo i nostri appunti (la connessione a volte saltava!) ed eventualmente sottotitoleremo tutto. 🙂

  Queste sono le foto dall’evento. Si tratta perlopiù di scatti pubblicati dallo stesso account del telefilm, da quelli degli attori o da giornali/giornalisti. 🙂 Anche in questo caso, la galleria è in aggiornamento!

    #gallery-0-4 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-4 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 20%; } #gallery-0-4 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-4 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

#NYCC2017: resoconto dell’evento, video e foto! Come al solito, Shadowhunters, questo post sarà in continuo aggiornamento – perché sappiamo che continueranno a uscire nuove notizie per giorni.

[footballleague0]

Strootman will rekindle Cataldi feud as Roma travel to Benevento

Kevin Strootman will be at the centre of the action when Roma visit Benevento on Wednesday.

When Kevin Strootman lines up against struggling Benevento on Wednesday, he’ll come face to face with an old enemy from one of his most memorable moments in Giallorosso, a classic piece of Rome derby chicanery that made him a devil in the eyes of Laziali and cemented his position as a Roma fan favourite. He’ll do so as the driving force of a team looking to quickly build on the kickstart a limp Hellas Verona allowed them at the weekend, and former Lazio man Danilo Cataldi will be doing his best to stop him.

Just over an hour into a tense, tight Derby della Capitale back in December, Strootman dispossessed dawdling Lazio defender Wallace on the edge of the Lazio area before dinking the opening goal over Federico Marchetti, breaking Lazio’s resistance and sending Romanisti into raptures. As supporters celebrated and the players trotted back along the touchline for the restart, sneaky Strootman chucked water over substitute Cataldi, and the furious midfielder reacted, pulling Strootman back by his shirt. The Dutchman quickly fell to the ground in a somewhat theatrical manner, and in the resulting bedlam referee Luca Banti sent Cataldi off. A malicious moment to truly savour for the Giallorosso community.

“The goal I scored against Lazio that day was the best moment of my time at Roma up to now,” Strootman said on Monday, neatly forgetting to mention the following touchline fracas. “It was my first goal at home after coming back from injury, and to see the eyes of the supporters was incredible.”

No wonder he looks back on that moment so fondly. Not only did he open the scoring in a Rome derby, he then got away scot free with his terribly unsportsmanlike behaviour. Roma managed to get the yellow card Strootman was subsequently awarded for simulation rescinded on a technicality — meaning that he was available for matches with AC Milan and Juventus — while Cataldi’s red card stood.

Strootman further infuriated Laziali by taking an outrageous dive to win a penalty in first-half stoppage time that allowed Daniele De Rossi to level the scores in April’s return derby, but Lazio stomped to a 3-1 win that day and by that time 23-year-old Cataldi, who has been at Lazio since he was 12, had been loaned out to Genoa. Now also at Benevento on loan, this will be his last year as a Lazio player, with the southerners obliged to make his latest move permament. Being sprayed with water remains one of the most memorable moments of his 11-year Lazio career.

Strootman will line up against Cataldi, who set up Benevento’s first ever (and so far only) Serie A goal at Sampdoria on the opening day of the season, as the leading light of a rotated first 11 that, after seeing off Verona, is aiming to rattle through the minnows before travelling to AC Milan at the start of October. The Dutch international will take to the field alongside Lorenzo Pellegrini, impressive on his full Roma debut on Saturday, and new signing Maxime Gonalons, who will make his first appearance for Eusebio Di Francesco’s side in place of De Rossi, holding the fort in front of the back four.

Meanwhile Alessandro Florenzi will miss out at right-back despite looking the real deal on his return against Verona, Juan Jesus will replace Federico Fazio alongside Kostas Manolas, and it looks like Diego Perotti and Gregoire Defrel will return to Edin Dzeko’s side in Di Francesco’s attacking trident. Neither winger has excelled alongside the Bosnian up to now, and after Stephan El Shaarawy and Cengiz Under’s more dynamic performances on Saturday it will be up to them to provide the support Dzeko claimed was lacking after last week’s goalless draw with Atletico Madrid. Given that Defrel was often so far away from his strike partner because he had to drop back to support Bruno Peres, the Brazilian’s return at right-back is a worry.

Benevento are the only Serie A team yet to get a point on the board, but apart from the six-goal slaughtering they suffered at the hands of Napoli on Sunday, their matches have been evenly contested. Their last match at the Stadio Ciro Vigorito, a keenly fought 1-0 defeat to Torino, was only surrendered to an Iago Falque strike deep in stoppage time, while previous defeats at Sampdoria and at home to Bologna followed a similar pattern — dogged performance, wrong result.

Roma really need six points from Wednesday and Saturday’s clash with Udinese to cement the confidence boost the spanking of Verona gave a team that has struggled to fully express its undeniable talent, and Strootman is one in charge of making it happen.

Terry is based in Rome and is ESPN FC’s AS Roma blogger. Twitter: @T_Daley

The post Strootman will rekindle Cataldi feud as Roma travel to Benevento appeared first on Daily Star Sports.

from http://ift.tt/2xbSFGg from http://ift.tt/2xcIXU8

[giantsfootball0]

Strootman will rekindle Cataldi feud as Roma travel to Benevento

Kevin Strootman will be at the centre of the action when Roma visit Benevento on Wednesday.

When Kevin Strootman lines up against struggling Benevento on Wednesday, he’ll come face to face with an old enemy from one of his most memorable moments in Giallorosso, a classic piece of Rome derby chicanery that made him a devil in the eyes of Laziali and cemented his position as a Roma fan favourite. He’ll do so as the driving force of a team looking to quickly build on the kickstart a limp Hellas Verona allowed them at the weekend, and former Lazio man Danilo Cataldi will be doing his best to stop him.

Just over an hour into a tense, tight Derby della Capitale back in December, Strootman dispossessed dawdling Lazio defender Wallace on the edge of the Lazio area before dinking the opening goal over Federico Marchetti, breaking Lazio’s resistance and sending Romanisti into raptures. As supporters celebrated and the players trotted back along the touchline for the restart, sneaky Strootman chucked water over substitute Cataldi, and the furious midfielder reacted, pulling Strootman back by his shirt. The Dutchman quickly fell to the ground in a somewhat theatrical manner, and in the resulting bedlam referee Luca Banti sent Cataldi off. A malicious moment to truly savour for the Giallorosso community.

“The goal I scored against Lazio that day was the best moment of my time at Roma up to now,” Strootman said on Monday, neatly forgetting to mention the following touchline fracas. “It was my first goal at home after coming back from injury, and to see the eyes of the supporters was incredible.”

No wonder he looks back on that moment so fondly. Not only did he open the scoring in a Rome derby, he then got away scot free with his terribly unsportsmanlike behaviour. Roma managed to get the yellow card Strootman was subsequently awarded for simulation rescinded on a technicality — meaning that he was available for matches with AC Milan and Juventus — while Cataldi’s red card stood.

Strootman further infuriated Laziali by taking an outrageous dive to win a penalty in first-half stoppage time that allowed Daniele De Rossi to level the scores in April’s return derby, but Lazio stomped to a 3-1 win that day and by that time 23-year-old Cataldi, who has been at Lazio since he was 12, had been loaned out to Genoa. Now also at Benevento on loan, this will be his last year as a Lazio player, with the southerners obliged to make his latest move permament. Being sprayed with water remains one of the most memorable moments of his 11-year Lazio career.

Strootman will line up against Cataldi, who set up Benevento’s first ever (and so far only) Serie A goal at Sampdoria on the opening day of the season, as the leading light of a rotated first 11 that, after seeing off Verona, is aiming to rattle through the minnows before travelling to AC Milan at the start of October. The Dutch international will take to the field alongside Lorenzo Pellegrini, impressive on his full Roma debut on Saturday, and new signing Maxime Gonalons, who will make his first appearance for Eusebio Di Francesco’s side in place of De Rossi, holding the fort in front of the back four.

Meanwhile Alessandro Florenzi will miss out at right-back despite looking the real deal on his return against Verona, Juan Jesus will replace Federico Fazio alongside Kostas Manolas, and it looks like Diego Perotti and Gregoire Defrel will return to Edin Dzeko’s side in Di Francesco’s attacking trident. Neither winger has excelled alongside the Bosnian up to now, and after Stephan El Shaarawy and Cengiz Under’s more dynamic performances on Saturday it will be up to them to provide the support Dzeko claimed was lacking after last week’s goalless draw with Atletico Madrid. Given that Defrel was often so far away from his strike partner because he had to drop back to support Bruno Peres, the Brazilian’s return at right-back is a worry.

Benevento are the only Serie A team yet to get a point on the board, but apart from the six-goal slaughtering they suffered at the hands of Napoli on Sunday, their matches have been evenly contested. Their last match at the Stadio Ciro Vigorito, a keenly fought 1-0 defeat to Torino, was only surrendered to an Iago Falque strike deep in stoppage time, while previous defeats at Sampdoria and at home to Bologna followed a similar pattern — dogged performance, wrong result.

Roma really need six points from Wednesday and Saturday’s clash with Udinese to cement the confidence boost the spanking of Verona gave a team that has struggled to fully express its undeniable talent, and Strootman is one in charge of making it happen.

Terry is based in Rome and is ESPN FC’s AS Roma blogger. Twitter: @T_Daley

The post Strootman will rekindle Cataldi feud as Roma travel to Benevento appeared first on Daily Star Sports.

from https://dailystarsports.com/2017/09/19/strootman-will-rekindle-cataldi-feud-as-roma-travel-to-benevento/ from https://dailystarsports.tumblr.com/post/165514990741

[okmugello]

Un bagno di folla ha accolto Francesco Gabbani, il vincitore del Festival di Sanremo 2017 il 2 di maggio al Centro Commerciale i Gigli. Tutti in coda con il cd dell’artista per farsi fare l’autografo e scattare con lui una foto ricordo. Tra loro anche Samuele il piccolo fan di 5 anni, accompagnato dal padre edicolante di Borgo San Lorenzo, che ha atteso il suo idolo per la foto di rito e la firma della sua copia del disco “Magellano”. Il simpatico cartello tenuto in mano da samuele ha attirato l’attenzione dei fotografi presenti che si è guadagnato la pubblicazione nella fotogallery sull’articolo del Tirreno.

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Bimbo borghigiano fan di Gabbani. Lo incontra e… finisce su Il Tirreno Un bagno di folla ha accolto Francesco Gabbani, il vincitore del Festival di Sanremo 2017 il 2 di maggio al Centro Commerciale i Gigli. 

[junker-town]

Michael Porter Jr. is the superstar recruit the basketball world orbits around

Michael Porter Jr. can’t miss. Basketball’s next big thing has had a wild ride to get to this point.

CHICAGO — When Michael Porter Jr. was first offered a scholarship by Missouri, the idea of a top basketball recruit playing in Columbia didn’t seem completely out of the ordinary. At the time, the Tigers were on their way to a 30-5 season that would land them a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament.

This was the type of success Missouri had come to expect. The program was only a few years removed from a trip to the Elite Eight and in the midst of a stretch of five straight NCAA tournament appearances. It had recently produced a first round NBA draft pick in DeMarre Carroll and was watching Marcus Denmon turn in an All-American season.

So when Porter was taking jumpers in Mizzou Arena one night and was pulled aside by head coach Frank Haith, he knew he would seriously consider the scholarship that was being offered. Porter thanked the coach, but he didn’t accept it right away. That would have been entirely premature -- after all, Michael Porter Jr. was only in seventh grade.

Almost six years later, Porter finally gave Mizzou his commitment earlier this month. In the time that’s passed since, he grew to 6’10, became the No. 1 recruit in America, started dating a Disney actress and grew close with NBA stars Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant.

So much has changed for both the player and the program over those six years, but Porter’s talent has remained the one constant.

Porter heard chants of “M-I-Z/Z-O-U” as he accepted the MVP award at the 2017 McDonald’s All-American Game on Wednesday night. He just scored 17 points to lead his West team to victory in a performance that included brief flashes of his all-world talent.

For Porter, this was just another mile marker in his long coronation as the best young basketball prospect in the world. It’s what was always supposed to happen. But for the Mizzou fans that stuck around the United Center to shower their newest recruit in praise, this moment was surreal.

The dream of Porter playing in the gym where he grew up was supposed to have died long ago. Porter had committed to Washington and moved 2,000 miles from Columbia to Seattle. He just finished a perfect 29-0 senior season at Nathan Hale High School under coach Brandon Roy, the former NBA star by way of Washington who started coaching only to coach Porter Jr. He would be off the Huskies in the fall and after one season he’d be in the running for the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft.

At least that was what was supposed to happen. Instead, a major shakeup at two proud programs that had fallen under tough times threw Porter’s world into flux just when everything was expected to settle down.

“The last three weeks changed my life,” Porter Jr. said before the McDonald’s All-American Game. “Whatever happened, I knew God got me. I’ll be alright. But it was an emotional time.”

Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

There is never a boring story about how a top basketball recruit choses his college. The stakes are too high and the money is too big for that. But even in the weird world of college basketball recruiting, the circumstances that led Porter to Washington and then Missouri stand out as particularly convoluted.

For Michael Porter Jr., everything is a family affair, so that’s where the story starts.

Both of his parents stand 6’4 played college basketball, his father Michael Porter Sr. at New Orleans and his mother Lisa at Iowa and then professionally in Europe. Together they had eight children and at least half of them turned into big-time basketball prospects, none of them bigger than Michael Jr.

Michael Porter Sr. got into coaching off the talent of his children. In 2010, he accepted a job in the Missouri athletic department and later became an assistant coach as his two oldest daughters Bri and Cierra went on to play for the Tigers.

At the same time, Michael Jr. was blossoming into one of the country’s best young prospects. As his recruitment started to heat up, Michael Sr. accepted an assistant coaching job across the country at Washington under his long-time friend Lorenzo Romar, who happens to be Michael Jr.’s godfather.

The Porters would move out to Seattle and Michael Jr. would give his commitment to Washington shortly after. He would be homeschooled just as he was for much of his life, but he and his younger brother Jontay, a top-50 prospect in his own right in the class of 2018, decided to play at Nathan Hale, a school that was coming off a 3-18 season.

As the Porters came to Nathan Hale, so too did Roy. It was a perfect match: a former NBA star grooming a future one, and the results were undeniable. Nathan Hale went 29-0 and won a state championship as Porter Jr. was named national player of the year and Roy was named national coach of the year. It all should have seemed too good to be true for Washington fans, but it happened as the program was deteriorating on the court.

Washington finished 9-22 and missed the NCAA tournament for the sixth straight year. They did it with Markelle Fultz, the likely No. 1 pick in June’s NBA draft. The administration decided it didn’t need to watch the exact same scenario unfold again and fired Romar after 15 years on the job.

Suddenly, the biggest packaged deal in college basketball was back on the market.

Joshua S. Kelly-USA TODAY Sports

Mizzou had nowhere to go but up. During Kim Anderson’s three seasons, the Tigers had amassed a 27-68 record, never winning more than 10 games and finishing in the basement of the SEC every year.

Anderson was fired earlier this month and replaced by former Cal coach Cuonzo Martin. Martin came with the reputation of a man who knew how to get things done: he once got top recruit Jaylen Brown to pay his own way from Atlanta to Berkley to visit the Golden Bears after his five official visits were used up. Brown committed shortly after to join fellow five-star recruit Ivan Rabb.

The Bears would ultimately underachieve that season with a first round NCAA tournament loss to Hawaii, but Martin’s status has an elite recruiter was sealed. When he took the Mizzou job, his first move was to call Michael Porter Sr. and offer him a spot on his staff.

Seven days later, Michael Jr. announced he was coming home.

All of this happened so fast for the Porters, but they knew they were lucky to have family at their side. Not even a month removed from being caught in the center of a storm that would change their lives, both father and son are doing well to keep things in perspective.

“Michael is used to things going his way,” Michael Porter Sr. said at the McDonald’s Game. “When it happened, it through him for a loop. I’m just glad he’s going through some of this while he’s still at home with us so we can help him process it.”

For his part, Michael Jr. seems at peace. He handled every media request during McDonald’s week with thoughtfulness and grace. It’s clear he already carries himself like a professional.

As anyone who has watched him play knows, it’s only a matter of time before he’ll be exactly that.

Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Porter’s talent would have been in demand in any era, but he feels uniquely suited for the way the game has been trending recently. He’s the type of versatile, hybrid forward every team wants but so few have.

At 6’10 and 215 pounds, Porter has the size of a big man and skill set of a wing. He was draining jumpers off of dribble pull-ups throughout the two practices that proceeded the McDonald’s Game, and he did it while flashing the elite athleticism that separates him from everyone else.

Like any 18-year-old, Porter is still growing into himself and his game. Still, it’s easy to see a future star with the training wheels on. His jump shot is pure and he gets his head to rim-level for rebounds and dunks. He said he wants to be his own player, but sees parts of Tracy McGrady and Kevin Durant in his skill set. Durant sees it, too.

Durant sponsored Porter’s grassroots team Mokan Elite ahead of last season on the EYBL. The two text often. That’s not the only famous former MVP in his phone.

Porter first met Steph Curry when he was invited to his SC Select Camp for elite guards. Porter was the tallest player there, but he quickly developed a connection with the Warriors star. For two days this past summer, Porter flew out to the Bay Area to train with Curry. He said they talk every month.

If basketball is a fraternity, Porter Jr. is already a member. His talent is undeniable and his approach to his burgeoning celebrity status is developed beyond his years. He already looks and talks like basketball’s next big thing because he’s been preparing for this for years.

In between winning state championships in high school, conquering the grassroots circuit and rising up the recruiting rankings, the basketball world has learned one thing: Michael Porter Jr. can’t miss. If the everyone else doesn’t know it yet, they will soon.