Pisa Calcio

Pisa
Full name	Pisa Calcio SpA
Nickname(s)	Nerazzurri (Black-Blues),; Torri (Towers)
Founded	1909; 1994 (refounded)
Ground	Arena Garibaldi - Romeo; Anconetani, Pisa, Italy; (Capacity: 17,000)
Chairman	Luca Pomponi
Manager	vacant
League	Lega Pro Prima Divisione
2008–09	Serie B, 20th (relegated)
Home colours	Away colours

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Pisa Calcio is an Italian football club, based in Pisa, Tuscany. The club was founded in 1909 as Pisa Sporting Club and refounded in 1994 as A.C. Pisa (and registered to the Eccellenza, that is the sixth football division in Italy), after the cancellation of the old one because of economical troubles. It assumed the current denomination in 1995. The team's colors are blue and black.

Pisa has won two Mitropa Cups, in 1985 and 1988. They play their home matches at Arena Garibaldi - Stadio Romeo Anconetani, named after Romeo Anconetani, the chairman who brought and led the club in Serie A during the 1980s and the 1990s.

Pisa will play the 2008-09 season in the Serie B, after having lost to U.S. Lecce in a two-legged promotion playoff final to Serie A. The club marked its last Serie A appearance in 1991.

[edit] History

After promotion to Serie B in 1965, Pisa took three years to reach Serie A for the first time. Despite a brave effort, Pisa were relegated on the final day of the 1968-69 season.

Spending much of the 1970s in Serie C, Pisa returned to Serie B in 1979 (by which time the club had come under the presidency of the much-loved Romeo Anconetani) and were promoted to Serie A in 1982, embarking on a period of six out of nine seasons in Serie A. With Danish international Klaus Berggreen among their stars, Pisa managed a credible 11th place in the 1982-83 Serie A with 27 points and 27 goals scored and conceded in 30 games. The following season brought relegation (during which they recorded just 3 wins and 16 draws) with 10,000 fans travelling to Milan for the fateful penultimate game.

Promotion followed in 1985, and the team seemed capable of staying up until losing their last three games. The cycle was repeated in 1987, only for a side containing players like Dunga and Paul Elliott to stay up. The last promotion to Serie A was achieved in 1990, and with the talents of players like Maurizio Neri, Michele Padovano and Lamberto Piovanelli up front and Diego Simeone and Aldo Dolcetti in midfield, the side started well and was briefly atop the standings, only to suffer another relegation.

Relegation brought considerable financial strains to the club, and by 1994 they had lost a relegation play-off and were condemned to Serie C1. Bankruptcy saw Pisa reformed in the lower leagues, only to return to Serie C2 in 1996 and C1 in 1999. Pisa have since worked towards attaining Serie B status, which was achieved in 2007. Their crowds have been among the better in Italy's lower divisions owing to the dedication of their fans.

In 2005-06, the team, initially thought to be a protagonist for the promotion, were in continuous struggles, and avoided relegation after playoffs in two dramatic regional derbies against Massese. The 2006-07 season, with new boss Piero Braglia, brought Pisa back to fight for a promotion spot: the nerazzurri ended the regular season in third place, and eventually won the promotion playoffs by defeating Venezia in the semi-finals and Monza in the finals.

For the 2007-08 Serie B campaign, the first in 13 years, Giampiero Ventura was named to replace Braglia at the helm of the nerazzurri. Despite initial predictions of a mid-low table place, Pisa's impressive performances brought the team to fight for a direct promotion spot, also thanks to a forward line composed by Alessio Cerci, José Ignacio Castillo and Vitali Kutuzov which proved to be among the finest in the league.

[edit] Current squad

As of 2009-02-12^[2]

No.	Position	Player
1	GK	Davide Morello
6	DF	Trevor Trevisan
7	MF	Thomas Job
9	FW	Edgar Álvarez (on loan from Roma)
12	GK	Simone Sarti
13	MF	Daniele Degano
14	FW	Joelson (on loan from Reggina)
15	DF	Alessandro Birindelli
16	DF	Luciano Zavagno
17	MF	Silvano Raggio Garibaldi (on loan from Genoa)
20	MF	Edoardo Braiati (captain)

No.	Position	Player
21	MF	Ivan Radovanović (on loan from Atalanta)
23	FW	Giuseppe Greco (on loan from Genoa)
25	DF	Alessandro Ferri
26	DF	Patrice Feussi
27	GK	Enrico Alfonso (on loan from Inter)
30	FW	Mirco Gasparetto
32	DF	Federico Viviani
35	MF	Anthony Taugourdeau
37	MF	Emanuele D'Anna (loan from Chievo)
77	DF	Matteo Piccinni
80	DF	Andrea Guglielmi
84	FW	Mirko Antenucci (on loan from Catania)
91	GK	Daniele Balli