Fútbolita

There’s something about Iaquinta that kinda reminds you of the Pippo Inzaghi “cool uncle” type. Yes, the sort who listens to Tokio Hotel in order to better fit in with his nieces! Nevertheless, if he had some, they’d be proud of his performance against Bari yesterday where he scored a double. Lippi would’ve taken notes… except Iaquinta has already won the World Cup, va bene!

Anyway, the Italian pressies are getting overexcited again because apparently Zaccheroni and Prince Piero had a heated “clash” during the game. “There is nothing to clarify,” insisted Zac. “We are two civil people. There was a bit of distance between us, so we had to raise our voices to make sure we were heard.”

Did you HEAR that?! They had to raise their voices!

via Gettyimages

The Dame of Turin himself, Del Piero played his 445th game for Juventus yesterday but all he got was a lousy shirt. Even Roberto Bettega knew that they printed that out at Uncle Corioni’s shop in exchange for Panini stickers! For 445 games, they should have held a massive concert and thrown gold confetti with his name on it. Everyone from Tiziano Ferro to Al Pacino would’ve paid their tributes to him because Del Piero is L’UOMO! But it seemed that the captain himself took matters into his own hands and scored TWICE. Sorprendente – this is how you do it, Ashley Cole!

Well, at least Amauri’s hair didn’t ruin the party and he too got his name into the score sheet. You know he quickly went home to check if Dunga sent him a Hallmark card with the words “You’re Invited…” at the front. Aah, que pena…

via Reuters, AFP

Despite Wolverine Piero’s efforts at goal and Uncle Ciro’s new replacement, Juveeee could only manage a draw against Lazio last night. But ascoltare, they’re getting somewhere. The man in the hot seat, Alberto Zaccheroni, is now tasked to pick up Juve from the garage like a battered up Maserati after a 92-hour jungle trek. He’s yet to find the ignition because it’s being blocked by Camoranesi’s hair but you’d better hope he will soon or Diegoooo may never get to see the South African morning sky.

via AP, Gettyimages

For a moment, Diego forgot about the team he was playing for (“Boa gol, Dinho! grande abraço!”) Then, he caught Felipe Melo giving him the evil eye on the pitch – and that was it! 3-0 to Milan, and you don’t even know if Juve bothered to turn up at their own stadium at all.

To be fair, neither side was doing much in the first ten minutes, but despite the Rossoneri’s inadequacy - including Ambrosini’s “speed”, Beckham’s disappearance and Pirlo’s bad corners – UncleDude Nesta pulled one for his side while The Dinho (yes, we told you everyone will be scrambling to show off this year) netted in a double!! El Pato was out fretting over his injury on the roller coaster ride, so perhaps their attacking prowess was a little tamed. But in the second half, Milan actually improved and controlled the game – and although they weren’t at their best, Juventus and Amauri proved that they were indeed, better off prawn fishing

Poor Ciro. Now the Italian press are sharpening their pencils and ready to attack! “I don’t feel in danger of losing my job, I am very concentrated. I am trying to put my energy into the team. It is not my decision to make if they sack me or not, and if I am sacked I will accept it,” said tio Ferrara after the game.

via Reuters

So Werder Bremen thrashed Freiburg 6-0 last night in the Bundesliga (See, they don’t even need Diego aka Survivor Contestant No. 91255 these days). As for Hugo Almeida, we’ve not heard from him for a while so it was finally nice to see the Portuguese striker helping himself to a double.

Also, did you know that Almeida is lovely family man who he doesn’t travel anywhere without a photo of his two daughters, Marianna and Matilde? His wife, Andreia added that he doesn’t go anywhere without his “mobile phone, computer and PSP” either. Ah, isso é muito típico ... She added that the ‘most difficult time’ for the family was when Hugo had to go play at the Euro 2008.

“Once, he forgot his phone in Viseu and I had to go all the way there to collect it for him,” Andreia recalled. Now now, isn’t that what a mulher is for? We’re off to find a broom now….

So the star of the Serie A this weekend is Diego after cara scored a double against Roma last night. Felipe Melooooo added in a third in the 66th minute to steer the team to a 3-1 victory away from home. Bom Trabalho, rapazes!

Buffon couldn’t help himself from praising his teammate after the game. “Diego does things that only a few players can do, but we don’t launch any challenge to anyone. He must improve day by day. Roma? They put their heart into the match, but with such a reduced squad, they suffered when playing their fourth game in 10 days.”

via GettyImages

Meanwhile, things aren’t looking very sunny in Milanello after Inter’s 4-0 thumping of Milan. Ah, pessimo! We’re speechless. The man at the centre of the storm is Leoooonardo who admitted that Botox Berlusconi and Uncle Fester held crisis talks with the players after the game.

Remind us again why Diego looks like he should be on Survivor : Palmarola instead of the pitch? No matter, though – he’s helping Juve to sell their shirts, with his name at the back!

According to Tuttosport, the Brazilian has become a marketing phenomenon at the club. Bianconeri product sales have increased by 40% since his arrival. His shirt is the most sought after item by fans. Bem feiiiiito….!

“For each Del Piero shirt sold today, Diego sold two,” said the owner of the Juventus Official store. Looks like mano is becoming a cut favorite in Turin. Maybe he can convince Amauri to return to Brazil. Ha-ha-ha.

In addition, Diego will be the poster boy for a new cosmetics company who’re also sponsoring the club.

via JUVENTUS FC

So good ol’ Felipe Melo decided to snub Gilberto Silva’s invite for the dry winters of Turin instead. Yes, he was officially unveiled as a Juventus player yesterday after a medical check-up at the Fornaca Clinic and the Centro di Medicina dello Sport. This, despite previous reports that he was interested in a move to Arsenal. Melo’s price? A cool €25 million to be paid over three years.

“I am very happy to join Juventus and can’t wait to start working. I believe very much in this team that (has been) reinforced and that (it) can compete with anybody in an attempt to reach all the goals in Italy and in Europe,” Melo declared.

It’ll certainly be an interesting spectacle to watch in midfield next season as newly-signed Diego will also be dictating the squad’s play. We can all look forward to a Brazilian Show in Juuuuuve!

Uh, that’s certainly not something to drink to, Mrs Doubtfire! Anyway, we’re sad to announce that Claudio Ranieri has resigned from his post as Juventus coach after two years of service to the team.

“From today, the team will be directed by Ciro Ferrara. Juventus would like to thank Claudio Ranieri for the work he did in the last two years. We would like to wish success to the new coach,” the club announced.

Ferrara is a former defender with Napoli and Juventus and was part of the technical staff that won the 2006 World Cup with Italy. He will now take over as interim coach and attempt to be kind to Del Piero.

As for Ranieri, he needs to find a casting agent presto – preferably for a film involving surviving clowns. It’s a sad day because he was supposed to be in Survivor : Claudio Ranieri with Amauri and Diego, but Juve ruined our entire two-hour pilot special!

No…. you can’t pull Diego away from Werder Bremen!

Anyway, the potential Survivor Tocantins contestant has confirmed that he has ‘agreed personal terms’ with Juventus which paves the way for a move to the Serie A next season. Why Juventus, though?! They’re pretty big D-BAGS to work with, in our opinion. Still, in terms of reviving the squad, we can see where all this is going.

“There’s still nothing official, but there’s really little (that’s) missing (in the deal). It is a matter of detail,” Diego told La Stampa yesterday.

He added : “The Italian Championship has long fascinated me and it is one of the most difficult, with exceptional players. It will be a great challenge.”

Anyway, Diego will look pretty good standing next to Amauri. Survivor Claudio Raneri, anyone?

Diego has confirmed that Juventus have indeed made attempts to sign him. But sorry direttores, he’s not interested. Instead, you can watch him and his ferosh beard on Survivor : The Cayman Islands next season.

“The truth is that there is a proposal from Juventus and the other teams in Europe. A change of clubs would be a step forward in my career, no doubt. But I am very happy here in Werder, where I am living well both professionally and personally,” he said.

“I don’t get involved in these matters of negotiation. I trust in the leaders of the club who will decide at the end of the season. Like any player, I admire Juventus. It is one of the biggest clubs in the world like Inter Milan, Milan, Real Madrid and Barcelona among others.”

In recent call-ups for the Brazilian team, Dunga also left the midfielder out of his squad. However, Diego thinks there will always be a chance for him to play if he works hard.

“I’ve been playing in the selection for a long time. But I do not get upset (about not being called-up) as this (has) always been the biggest goal of my career and I will continue looking for my space,” he said.

A restaurant in Bremen found a pretty good way to get rid of their old plates. Instead of throwing them away, they invited a few of the Werder players to sign it for a charitable cause.

The money raised went to Kinderhospiz Löwenherz, an institution for children who are in the terminal stage of illness. About 200 fans attended. Naldo, Mesut Özil, Sebastian Boenisch, Claudio Pizzarro and Hugo Almeida were among the players who signed the plates.

“I am very happy when I can help those who need. A few dedicated hours can make a difference for these children,” Diego said.

What a family! Galvão Bueno’s roaming cameras visited Ronaldinho Gaucho in the latest episode of his TV show. And The Dinho’s nephew, Diego, along with Romario’s son, Romarinho, were also featured.

Both niños said that they was already ‘getting used’ to the cameras. Diego even explained that he had to face photographers with his ‘back turned’ while training at Internacional!

Of course the show focused mainly on The Dinho, who confessed to Galvão that football is the only thing that can make him sad today. He also expressed his pride at still being the idol to Brazilian children everywhere.

Diego’s double (check out his second goal… sheer brilliance!) and Almeida’s neat strike was enough to earn Werder Bremen a 3-1 victory over Udinese in the UEFA Cup last night. Yes… it was supposed to be Milan’s tournament this season, but you know how things don’t turn out sometimes.

Bremen have to be careful in the return leg, however, as the away goal rule can be very tricky.

When was the last time you went for a beard trim, Diego? This ain’t ‘Survivor Schleswig-Holstein’!

At least the Brazilian steered his side to a comfortable 4-0 win over Stuttgart. He opened the scoring in the 34th minute and set up two others. Markus Rosenberg’s two goals also sealed the game.

Bremen haven’t been doing very well as of late – only managing three goals in their last six matches. Jens Lehmann looked very disappointed after the final whistle. Can’t blame him. It’s just amateur football for the mann.

Former Juventude player, Naldo scored the winning goal in Bremen’s 1-0 victory over St Etienne last night, thanks to a back-heeled pass from Diego Ribas. Oh, the Brazilian connection!

Anyway, their trainer, Thomas Schaaf is unhappy that his players allowed St-Etienne backed into the game at various intervals.

“We didn’t show in the game what we are capable of. We sat back too much and kept letting St-Etienne into the game and that wasn’t necessary,” he said after the game.

Well, at least they didn’t throw the game away like Milan did a couple of weeks back. Now, that was a nightmare!

In the end, Pippo scored but so did Diego. Beckham decided to give his shirt to a supporter and there are numerous topless photographs of him in the cold, as a result. What a sacrificial act on his part!

Pato did not start the game so Inzaghi played all 90 minutes. Of course, the Offside King was caught doing what he does best on a number of occasions but finished well in the 36th minute thanks to Flamini’s pass. Bremen dominated the attack from the first minute and looked dangerous but Diego saved the day by chesting down the ball into the bottom right corner of Dida’s net.

“We played very well,” said Diego after the game. “I’m glad to have scored the goal to help my team. But we wanted to go (all) out with a victory. Now we (will) try to (win) in Milan, because we want to go far in this competition.”

Diego Ribas is excited about returning to Bremen for the start of training after the holidays. Finally! A player who doesn’t blame late returns on the ‘club’s failure to book a ticket home’ (Adriano) and ‘airport runway problems’ (Messi). Entusiasmo, people!

“I feel very well returning because I did not neglect physical training during the year-end holidays, when I held races and participated in recreational games,” he said.

Again, bonus points for Diego’s professionalism as an athlete.

Brazilian midfielder Diego Ribas recently went on a vacation to Florianopolis.. and of course, the ever-omnipresent Globo were able to acquire some interesting photos.

He even found the time to play some footie with Internacional’s striker, Nilmar and enjoyed the sights of the beaches of Santa Catarina…

But seriously though, all alone?!

Diego is expected to return to training with Werder Bremen on January 3.

Bremen midfielder Diego Ribas has been fined R $64000 (€19,000) by the German Football Federation (DFB) for his alleged ‘attack’ on rivals in the match against Karlsruher SC.

Peruvian attacker Claudio Pizarro, who was also involved in the same incident, has to pay €15,000.

“Fines show (that) we consider these acts as serious misconducts and not as small errors,” said Bremen’s sporting director, Klaus Allofs.

Pizzaro received his marching orders after attacking Martin Stoll while Diego grabbed the neck of another player – an action that went unnoticed by the referee.

What is 19,000 euros to Diego anyway? Well, he can make out his Citibank cheque to Klaus himself. Even the DFB is feeling the throes of the global recession..