Salvatore Fresi and his downfall – a precautionary lesson for the Baresi-Ranocchia likening
Italy is no stranger to great defenders. The likes of http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Inter-c39567 Milan for five years (1995-2000), he was yet to reach his potential. Playing under Francesco Guidolin at Bologna seemed to have done the trick. In 2001/02 season, the defender finally hit the mark, scoring an astonishing 8 goals – for a defender – in just 25 games.
Luciano Moggi and Juventus soon came calling. The move was wildly tipped as the rebirth of the player’s career. Luciano Moggi signed him in 2002 and the player admitted that he was signed by the Vecchia Signora only because he was available on a free transfer. His stint at Juventus, for all the expectations, turned out to be an anonymous one. In the aftermath of a poor stint, where the player just made a measly 9 appearances, Fresi gave up all hope of resurrecting his career.
Though he played for Perugia and Catania before returning to his boyhood club, Salernitana, the player no longer had the same appetite for the game. Later on, he had a big dispute with the GEA footballing agency, his representatives, and at the age of 33, he retired from all forms of the game. A career that had promised so much, yet delivered so little, was snuffed out like little flames.
Fresi was groomed to win things as he won the Under-21 European Championship for Italy. However, he never got to become a full Italy international and though he was included in the Italian side on 6 occasions, he was never given a chance to show his talent on the field for the Azzurri. Now, at the age of 38, he plays golf, a game that was introduced to him by http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Alessandro-Del-Piero-c4726 while he was at Juventus.
Fresi admits that at one stage, Italy used to be the land that produced the best defenders in the world, but the conveyor belt producing prodigious talent has broken down now. Last week, while talking to the media, Fresi said that he doesn’t see many great defenders in Italy but added that there is one who can tip the balance.
“The only exception to that is http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Andrea-Ranocchia-c5708. He promises well and I think he’ll prove himself to be one of the best defenders around next season,” said the former Inter Milan man.
However, Fresi’s misfortune to become lost in the void was ignored and largely inconspicuous due to the emergence of http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Fabio-Cannavaro-c13164. The duo, easily the best defenders of their generation, made sure Fresi’s unfulfilled potential stayed a tale unheard of. Ranocchia, however, doesn’t have that luxury. He is one of the few good defenders in the Italian game. The Azzurri simply cannot put the weight of expectations on his tender shoulders. With Fresi’s case at hand, the result is not hard to predict.
People should stop drawing comparisons to Baresi whenever Ranocchia appears on the footballing field. He is just 23-years-old and has a great future ahead of him. Rather than putting extra pressure on him, he should be helped and taken care of, just like a piece of fragile glass. Italy cannot afford another ‘Salvo Fresi Catastrophe’ at this time. Should that happen, it will be a big blow to Italian football that is still searching for its true self since the 2006 Calciopoli scandal.
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