“Noi Abbiamo I Grigi Nel Cuore
Grigio Nero e Nostre Colore”
– L’Inno ‘Forza Alessandria’
Underdog. Giant-Killer. Cinderella. These are the names attributed to those who achieve unpredictable success amidst the most insurmountable odds. Rare victories that are forever remembered by adoring fans who cannot help but fall in love with a real-life sports fairy-tale. The stories of smaller regional clubs slaying the mighty top-flight gladiators never die. They continue to be told by the locals who were lucky enough to witness their versions of a calcio miracle. They hold those memories as close to their heart as possible because they know that in this day and age, the chances of them reoccurring are minimal.
Today’s footballing universe is dominated by massive transfer fees, foreign investments, excessive television deals and increasing disparity within domestic leagues. The likelihood of lower division clubs achieving continuous success over clubs with higher payrolls and top-flight permanence, has become extremely slim. However, every year we continue to be gifted with at least one remarkable story that flies under the radar, getting lost in the shuffle between the transfer gossip and media firestorms that dominate our headlines. This year, Unione Sportiva Alessandria Calcio, who ply their trade in Lega Pro Girone A (3rd tier of Italian football), are the authors of a magical run in the Coppa Italia where they hope to write another chapter in their journey, at the start of 2016.
Nicknamed I Grigi, Alessandria are from the region of Piemonte where post-bankruptcy in 2003, have made their way up the ladder from Eccellenza to Lega Pro. Under current manager Angelo Gregucci, a former Alessandria defender from 1982 to 1986, they have caught the attention of all of Italy during their ongoing ride in this season’s Coppa Italia. Italy’s main domestic cup competition has a long-standing reputation of favoring Serie A clubs via tournament seedings and home field advantage. The top 8 clubs from the previous Serie A season only make their entrance in the Round of 16 while the remaining top-flight clubs enter in the 3rd Round. With this format, it is such a rare occurrence that a Lega Pro side such as Alessandria survives up to the Quarter-Finals that the last Lega Pro club to achieve this feat was Bari in 1983-1984, over 30 years ago.
Alessandria, along with 26 other Lega Pro clubs and 9 Serie D clubs, began their Coppa Italia adventure in the 1st Round where a 2-0 victory over AltoVicentino guided them to the 2nd Round for the second consecutive year. After defeating Pro Vercelli (2-1) and Juve Stabia (1-0), the Piemontese club had now booked themselves a 4th Round date vs Palermo. This is where Alessandria’s storybook run was supposed to end. Traveling away to the Stadio Renzo Barbera in Palermo, the odds of them pulling off a monumental upset was slim. By the 2nd half, Alessandria were up 2-0 and the dreams suddenly felt like they would morph into reality. In the 82nd minute, leading 2-1, Gianluca Nicco had likely sealed the improbable by extending their lead to 3-1. Although Gilardino cut Palermo’s deficit to one goal in the 85th, a courageous Alessandria squad had secured a massive 3-2 upset that even sent Palermo’s President, Maurizio Zamparini, into his own rage of fury. Their reward? A trip into the Round of 16 versus another Serie A regular, Genoa.
Aleksandar Trajkovski of Us Citta di Palermo in action during the TIM Cup match between US Citta di Palermo and US Alessandria at Stadio Renzo Barbera on December 2, 2015 in Palermo, Italy.
Once again, the narrative remained the same. There were very little expectations that Alessandria could do the double and shock another Serie A club. By the end of the first half, Alessandria were up 1-0 but heartbreak would later catch-up to them. In the 92nd minute, Leonardo Pavoletti slotted home an injury-time equalizer that would send the game into Extra-Time. Maybe this was the beginning of the end of a tremendous run that captivated an entire region. Thankfully, Alessandria had no plans to pack their bags just yet. With 6 minutes remaining in the 2nd half of Extra-Time, Riccardo Bocalon suddenly became a Piemontese hero, scoring the go-ahead goal. At the final whistle, jubilation and excitement. Alessandria were on their way to the Quarter-Finals.
Whether they win or lose against Spezia, this journey will forever be etched in the history of the club. It may be overly ambitious, if not borderline crazy to dream of Alessandria hoisting the Coppa Italia and earning an unthinkable spot in the Europa League but so far, they have defied the odds on more than one occasion. For now, all we can do is sit back and watch as Alessandria continue to paint the town grey.
The post A Road Paved in Grey: Alessandria’s improbable run in the Coppa Italia appeared first on IFD.
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