Gli Azzurri are finally about to enter a new era, one that fans have been looking forward to for months. Cesare Prandelli is coach of the azzurri and on August 10th, will lead the team in his first match in charge in a friendly against the Ivory Coast. The man himself is quiet, smart, and reserved, and might just be what the teams needs.

So for the rest of this week, every post will be about Prandelli. Today we kick it off with a look back on how he got the job to begin with: his stellar club record, where he made his name using limited resources.

Prandelli was a soccer player himself, a midfielder who spent six years at Juve amongst various other clubs. As a coach, he started out the way most do- managing youth teams. He was coach and youth coach of Atalanta for 7 years, before moving onto Lecce. Interestingly, Lecce was probably the worst point of his coaching career, where he did less than expected and was sacked. He was then hired by Hellas Verona, where his career began to rise. Over two seasons, he promoted the club to Serie A from B and then led them to a ninth place finish. Parma were quick to snap him up, and he spent two years there. The club was in the midst of financial difficulties and had to constantly sell their best players, including a ripe Marco Di Viao, but he somehow led the club to a seventh place finish. This would become a staple of Prandelli’s career- taking a club with limited resources- most of these were selling clubs- to fantastic heights.

He then joined Roma for a very short time, but had to leave to be with his cancer striken wife. He took over from Fiorentina in 2005, and never looked back. Since:

-2005-2006: Took the team from relegation battlers to Champions League qualification, although this was later stripped from them via Calciopoli. Won Panchina d’Oro for best Italian coach.
-2006-2007: Started with a 15 point deduction and ended the season in 5th place. Had they been allowed to keep those 15 points, he would’ve finished in fourth again. Secured UEFA Cup qualification ad won Panchina d’Oro yet again.
-2007-2008: Reached semis of the UEFA Cup and finally led the team to the fourth place finish that they had earned the past two years. Was awarded “Serie A Coach of the Year” at the Oscar del Calcio awards.
-2008-2009: Knocked out of the group stage of the Champions League but finished 4th in Serie A yet again.
-2009-2010: Reached the round of 16 in the CL where they were controversially knocked out by Bayern. Domestic troubles that year led to a disappointing 11th place finish.

(The one blemish on his career seemed to be last season at Fiorentina, but there are a few things to keep in mind. It was the first time that Fior were truly contending in the Champions’ League, with the year before being their first time in it, and the squad was not that deep. Taking them into the round of 16 was a fantastic achievement, and were it not for poor referees, they would’ve gone farther. The knockout against Bayern seemed to dampen the team’s spirit and cause a slump they couldn’t really get out of. Additionally, on a personal note, I’ve never seen such an unlucky team in Serie A. That year, the amount of times they hit the post/had good goals called off/ had offside goals go in against them was astonishing and sad to see.)

His accomplishments are even more impressive when you consider just how he did them. Prandelli has never been in charge of a rich club, one owned by oil tycoons or rich sheiks. Fiorentina were bankrupt in 2002, and by 2006 he had earned enough points with them to take them into the Champions’ League. He doesn’t run teams with immense squads or unlimited funds. He’s the total opposite of a Jose Mourinho, who’s success is inspired by money. Prandelli knows how to win without it.

He was allowed to speak to the FIGC in the summer of 2010 and became the Italy coach. If his club records are anything to go by, the man can take limited resources and turn a team into something special. He likes to play good attacking football and often incorporates young Italians into his team, such as Riccardo Montolivo whilst at Fiorentina. He also is quite shrewd on the transfer market and is able to see the talent that players have, not just the hype, as he proved when he brought the disgraced Gilardino to Fiorentina and turned him into one of the better strikers in Serie A.

This is the very short history of a young coach who seems destined for a brighter future and a return to Fiorentina, eventually. However his short term furture lies with gli azzurri, and next post will profile what his reign as azzurri coach should be like, based on his quotes so far.

As a side note, I’ll be on vacation till Sunday. Paul will take over posting duties, though, so no worries there.

Tags: Italy, Prandelli Week, World Cup