A tale of one city

By Paolo Menicucci

Just a week after watching their city rivals Sampdoria UC celebrate their return to Serie A, Genoa 1893, a club with one of the proudest traditions in Italy were relegated to Serie C1 following a defeat last Saturday against Triestina Calcio on the penultimate day of the Serie B season.

Proud heritage
Genoa, who share the Stadio Luigi Ferraris with Sampdoria, are the oldest club in Italy, having been founded in 1893 by James Richardson Spensley, a British doctor who came to the city to work for English shipping companies in the city's port. With Spensley as goalkeeper and captain Genoa won six of the first seven Serie A championships, and the Rossoblu also won the Scudetto in 1915, 1923 and 1924. Indeed, only Juventus FC, AC Milan and Internazionale FC have won more Italian titles.

European pedigree
Genoa have also achieved great results in the recent past, especially in 1991/92 when the 'Griphons' - so named because of their logo which features a winged monster with an eagle's head and a lion's body - finished fourth in Serie A and reached the UEFA Cup semi-finals the following year.

Famous win
Led by Osvaldo Bagnoli, the mercurial coach who shocked the Italian football establishment by winning the 1985 scudetto with Hellas-Verona FC, Genoa became the first Italian team to win at Liverpool FC's Anfield stadium the same season. Having won 2-0 at the Luigi Ferraris stadium in the first leg of the UEFA Cup quarter-finals, Genoa secured a 2-1 victory in the return match, with former Uruguayan international Pato Aguilera scoring both goals.

Entertaining lineup
Under Bagnoli, Genoa became one of the most entertaining sides in Italy, with a solid defence led by captain Gianluca Signorini - who sadly died last November of Lou Gehrig's disease - and also incuding Brazilian left-back Branco. The midfield featured Mario Bortolazzi, Gennaro Ruotolo and Stefano Eranio, while giant Czechoslovakian Thomás Skuhravy perfectly complemented Aguilera in attack. Having knocked out Liverpool, Genoa's European adventure finally came to an end in the semi-finals against eventual winners AFC Ajax.

Surprise relegation
Following that achievement Genoa were unexpectedly demoted to Serie B at the end of the 1994/95 season following a relegation play-off with Padova Calcio and have remained in the second division ever since - until Saturday's disastrous events. President Aldo Spinelli resigned in 1997 after 12 years at the club and Genoa have since had five presidents. This season, the club spent much of the season searching for a new owner, and the financial difficulties meant that key players such as Paul Codrea and Marco Carparelli were both sold during the midwinter transfer window.

Rebuilding job
New owner Enrico Preziosi has the unpleasant record of having experienced two relegations in the same season, as he was president of Como Calcio until April. Now he faces the difficult task of almost completely rebuilding the team. "I will unveil the name of the new coach after the last match of the season," Preziosi said. "We have several young and promising players, and we will give them their chance. We have to restart from them."

Struggles ahead
Genoa, who will join another famous name, AC Fiorentina, in Serie C1 next season, face a tough task to rejoin Sampdoria in Italy's top flight. The match between the two Genoa clubs, 'Il derby della Lanterna', undoubtedly belongs in the top division, and the 'Griphons' need to rediscover their pride and their history as soon as possible in order to follow in the footsteps of their city rivals and give football lovers the chance to once again enjoy one of Italy's most famous derby matches.