So you want to know more about Parma…

By: Francesco | October 26th, 2007

In case you don’t know much about the club that is Parma, I’ll fill you in now.

Parma was founded in 1913 and had been a lower-level club for almost it’s whole existence. The club mainly was in Serie C and B, but even went as far down as Serie D (5th Division), in the ’70s. They play at the Stadio Ennio Tardini, which is one of the oldest stadiums in Italy but it is one of the most “English-looking”, as the fans are close to the action and there is no running track. The club finally evolved into a good side in the mid-80’s with the hiring of coach Arrigo Sacchi (many of you are familiar with his work with Milan and the Italian National Team). Sacchi was succeeded by Nevio Scala, who brought the club to Serie A for the first time in 1990. Results came right away and with milk corporation Parmalat financing the club, trophies were won soon. The money from Parmalat also brought many good players to the club and achieved success. In 2003 Parmalat had a financial scandal and owner Tanzi had to flee the country to some Caribbean nation. The club weren’t attracting the players they once were, but were attracting young talents who had something to prove and avoided relegation. Last January the club went on auction and 31 year old entrepreneur Tommaso Ghirardi bought the club. He also owns Serie C2 side Carpenedolo. The club was really in bad shape in the beginning of last season, but Claudio Ranieri and Giuseppe Rossi came in and saved the day. After the jump you can read about the key players of the Parma side this season.

Here are the key players of the Parma side this season:

Luca Bucci

Luca Bucci is Parma’s 38 year old goalkeeper and a real flagship player of this Parma side. He went through the Parma youth system and the club loaned him out for a few years before he returned in 1993 and became one of the top Italian goalkeepers in Serie A. He was so impressive that Italy coach Arrigo Sacchi brought him to the 1994 World Cup as the 3rd goalkeeper. He has also been capped 3 times. Because of the wonderful debut of a young man named Gianluigi Buffon in 1997, Bucci left to find playing time elsewhere. He returned in 2005 and won back the starting job and has been a fundamental part of the Parma squad. He seems to get better with age and has the relexes of a cat.

Fernando Couto

Fernando Couto is known for being the hard man defender that really frustrates strikers. He was actually at Parma from 1994-1996 and then went on to bigger and better things at Barcelona and Lazio. Like Bucci, he also made his return in 2005 and is now the leader of the Parma backline and provides loads of experience, but sometimes he also brings loads of fouls.

Luca Cigarini

Luca Cigarini is a 21 year old midfielder who plays in the “Pirlo role” in front of the defense and dictates the tempo of the squad and basically pulls the strings in midfield. He came through the Parma youth system and played on the same teams as Giuseppe Rossi, Arturo Lupoli, and Daniele Dessena. He is considered one of the most promising young Italian talents and he is linked with a host of big clubs. He is also an essential part of Pierluigi Casiraghi’s U21 set-up.

Daniele Dessena

Daniele Dessena is a complete midfielder. He can score goals, he can pass, he can tackle, and he knows how to get into good positions for his teammates. He also went through the Parma youth system (he started at 10 years old!) and made his debut in Serie A at 17 years of age. He is also considered one of the most promising Italian talents. Because he was born in Parma and his long association with the Parma shirt he is considered by the fans as the next captain of Parma. He is also an essential part of Casiraghi’s U21 set-up.

Domenico Morfeo

Domenico Morfeo is one of the biggest examples of wasted talent in Italian football. As a young boy he was scouted by Atalanta and brought into their youth system. It was apparent that he had sublime technique and skill and he debuted as a 17 year old in Serie B. At 18 years old he became the leader of the squad and led Atalanta to promotion. The next season, at 19 years old, he scored 11 goals in 30 appearances, which is a great record for a 19 year old in one of the hardest leagues in the world. He became a Italy U21 regular and was linked with a move to big clubs. He stayed with Atalanta for one more season and he was unable to prevent relegation. Fiorentina invested in the youngster but it was here that he became known for his difficult character and inconsistency. From there Morfeo made trips all over the peninsula (Milan signed him, then Cagliari, then Verona, then Inter, and finally a loan to Parma). At Parma he finally demonstrated to be a real leader and provided some magic moments over the years. Obviously Morfeo is extremely talented (that’s the reason teams like Milan and Inter actually gave him a chance), but because of his inconsistency and personality he never became the superstar he could’ve been.

Bernardo Corradi

Bernardo Corradi is a tall, well built striker who is a big presence in the box. He got his big break at Chievo, leading them to promotion to Serie A and then impressing in their miracle Serie A season. Inter bought him but quickly relayed him to Lazio, where he did very well, gaining call-ups to the Italian National Team and considered an excellent header of the ball. From there Valencia took a gamble on him but he never adapted to the Spanish game. He was sent on loan to Parma for the 2005-2006 season and did well, scoring 10 goals in 36 games. He then moved to the EPL the next season with Manchester City, but he didn’t really fit into English football either. This summer Parma took him on loan again, and he has had an excellent start to the season. If Parma want to stay up this season, they need him to score goals.

Those are the key players this season.

Currently Parma’s manager, Domenico Di Carlo, is under fire for some recent bad results. A loss to Livorno this weekend may mean the end of his tenure and a more experienced manager being brought in.