Author Archive
July 19th, 2010 | 
Author: Bentornato my friends!
Let me start off by giving you the kindest of hellos, since my good-bye to the end of the 2009-2010 campaign was non existent. Similar of course to the team we love and follow. Truth be told to go to Rome in April and witness Il Derby Della Capitale will be next to nothing in terms of life-long experiences. The greatest 45 minutes of my life, followed by the worst 45 minutes of my life. Unfortunately the latter 45 weighed on my voglia desire to continue this project of the North Curve. But now a new sun has dawned, a new season, new problems same scum of the earth Lotito. A lot of confusion surrounds our fans of La Lazio to start the 2010-2011 season. Reports saying the Curva Nord is being abandoned in response to the Tessera del Tifoso ID cards for fans. Too much to discuss so little time to really analyze everything. Thus I’ve brought in some-what of an expert on La Lazio as a whole. The real man behind the microphone, Lazio Fever moderator and creator of LazioLand.com and most importantly the announcer of Lazio home games: Signore Paolo Peroso joins us to explain what all the fuss is about with regards to La Tessera del Tifoso and also lets us in on some news from Auronzo di Cadore in Veneto where our beloved Lazio is currently training.
Be smart, put an L over your heart.
-Love “The Show” Di Mascio
Posted in 
So after becoming fed up with Youtube, Movie-Maker, and any other video recording software to try and finish editing the conclusion of my one-on-one interview with Jovan Tikvarovski (Jofo) on the lazioforever forums I found salvage in pod-casting the episode in its entirety via mypodcast.com
This will allow me in future to post more frequently episodes that have taken place most recently. This however doesn’t mean I will stop the video blog aspect of the show. It just allows me more options depending on how much time I have between work and the radio show I do weekdays.
Be Good To Your Nonna’s,
Tags: 
A light flickers from the end of the tunnel. A light that resembles the one you hear about in movies and TV shows, the one’s the supporting actor asks you to chase away as you fight for your life. Truth be told, the circumstances that plague the protagonists of film are the same that afflict a team that we call our own in SS Lazio. To say “call our own” is also a term that can’t really be thrown around loosely since its plain to see that this squad can’t co-exist nor has the proper leadership to be steered in the right direction. After today’s shocking loss to Bari, and I use shocking because of the way we controlled the possession of play and lack of tempo only to be hit time-and-time again on the counter-attack. Lazio can no longer hide behind the arrogance of their 110 year history and just know that they’ll survive this. 2 points above the relegation zone and the bright lights of Serie B are upon us. This situation is more serious than a heart-attack. I have no answers for what plagues this team. According to my eyes I saw XI players without any idea…Forget creativity this team was lost from the word go. Even after a lifeline by referee Rizzoli who to be fair was more than willing to allow Lazio a chance back into the game. (Penalty shot, 5+ mins of added on time) The whole situation is disheartening and every Sunday I find my mood hampered by the string of defeats which seem to have no end. To make matters worse this quality people speak of that this team has that will pull us out of these times is non-existent. Aside from perhaps Stendardo who played his usual rough-em up no nonsense defense, this team looked worse than ordinary and in truth down-right awful. No more hiding behind injuries, player exclusions, Lotito etc. The onus now falls on the 11 men who walk out onto that pitch. For some more than others they should feel the threat of playing for a Serie A contract. This goes beyond pride for the Eagle and its history, something that was thrown out way back at the beginning of this season and seasons past with the pig-head in charge. From top-to bottom this team is in serious jeopardy and can only look to each other to save themselves. In closing “I still haven’t seen the quality that I was expecting from this side before I came here.” Were the words expressed in disillusion by current manager Edy Reja. In all honesty I don’t believe that quality was every there in the first place.
On a lighter side, I want to extend my sincere gratitude to the patience shown by Jovan Tikvarovski (JOFO) from the Lazio Forever Forum. Jovan took part in my episode 11 look at Lazio a few weeks back. Unfortunately the perils of windows movie maker and other computer set-backs have slowed down the process of putting out episode 11 part deux with the continuation of Jovan’s commentary. Stay tuned for that however. I also have to look to my daily venture on the radio as another distraction to releasing fresh new North Curve content on the regular. This however doesn’t mean that the Serie A talk is dormant. Each and every Monday afternoon I hold via my sponsors of American Express through AM1220 here in the G.T.A a Serie A round-up. Going through each game, the results, and all it had to offer from the past weekend. My friends, you are all welcome to join in on the fun and commentary that each Monday brings. Should you care just to listen from around the globe the website is: http://www.radiouno.ca/play.php
Should you feel like expressing your own thoughts and feelings give me a call at the station @ area code: 905-856-4440.
Stay tuned for Episode 12 of The North Curve as Well as I’m prepared to drop a bomb on all of you that could just very well save Lazio’s season.
Moreover, enjoy if you’ve missed it Part 1: of 2 with my sit-down with Jovan Tikvarovski from Macedonia.
watch?v=AkAX4fM2ViI
You know things are bad when; The President of your favorite soccer team is resigned to throwing his hands up to another person to steer the sinking ship that is SS. Lazio. Some can say what they want but a combination of poor results and constant pressure from fans has left Claudio Lotito no choice but to reshuffle the coaching duties. “We chose Reja when it became clear the team needed a radical change of direction to find the strength and hunger to fight. Reja is experienced and a great Coach. Unfortunately this was a necessary choice, but Ballardini remains without doubt a wonderful tactician and a good man.” Wonderful tactician? Hardly! Then again, Lotito was the one who put Ballardini in charge with specific orders not to play specific people, *cough: Ledesma, Pandev, Stendardo, Firmani, Manfredini, and on and on. Surely he had to come up with some nice parting words for the ever so loyal spine-less excuse for a coach.
Thus, we turn the page on one of the darkest chapters in our 110 year history on to a man whose last name rings of foreign land yet speaks in the tongues of the Romans.
Meet our new coach “Il Mister” Edoardo “Edy” Reja. (pronounced R-e-y-a). Hailing from one of the most northern parts of Italy in the province of Gorizia (Boarders with Slovenia) , Edy is a returning ‘newcomer’ I guess it’s fair to say after only coaching in Serie A for 2 seasons previously with Napoli. Reja however is no stranger to the lower levels and the fight for survival, which is something we desperately need. His accolades are few yet throughout his first week in the capital many colleagues from around the peninsula are praising Lazio for swooping Signore Reja from his contract in Croatia. From former manager Dino Zoff to Palermo Fire-cracker President Maurizio Zamparini, Edy’s admirers are on the up-and up. (Now let’s hope for the same in results) It’s important to note that Reja left his post with club Hajduk Split who are languishing in the middle of the pack of the Croatian League.
Like his predecessor Ballardini (Arrigo Sacchi School of Hard Coaching) Reja comes from a successful coaching background in Fabio Capello. The two played together first and foremost in Serie A before Reja called it a career in 1975 and 125 Serie A appearances later.
At this point accolades and warm wishes will only get this blog — this far. We the Canadian Lazio Supporters Community would like to extend our warm wishes to our new trainer yet the honeymoon will only last until Sunday. Like Lotito said we are in a results business and Lazio is desperate for a result against Parma…Badly. Our survival counts on it. With 14 weeks to go, from here on end every match will be like a final for the Bianco-Celeste. Like we’ve done up until now remains the same, Pray and then talk badly when the results don’t arrive. New coach? New results? Speriamo (I hope so)
With so much drama with the bianco-celesti it’s kinda hard being a Tifosi…
Poetry it’s what I do for you. At this point any fun that can be poked at Lazio is welcomed. On a day to day basis we’re a joke. Enough said. From transfer clamoroso’s with our Golasa friend in Israel, to the revolving court door that continues to blow the wind of Claudio Lotito in and out times are excruciating to say the least. If it wasn’t raining in Rome already it surely is pouring now, and we can all be meteorologists and say “we told you so” but when a pompous, arrogant, Haughty. Yes I just used the word haughty, Is in charge your set for a recipe of disaster. If he wasn’t so clueless yet outspoken I wonder if we would hate him as much. According to the almighty Lotito not to surprise anyone but he reaffirmed that he’s at Lazio for life. Ballardini our ace of a coach we can’t be as sure. What we do know is as he’s definitely on a different level of a joke than “C.L.”. His rep didn’t get any help from injured Matuzalem who spoke out about the confusion Davide has instilled in the minds of the boys with his constant tactical changing. One thing is for sure, he better have the right wizard cap on for tomorrow’s game which all of a sudden is more important than a traditional “big match” versus a Milan or a Juventus like last week. Catania sit two points behind us and can leapfrog us with a win. On the positive side of things some of our new debutantes will make appearances in tomorrows match while Catania have only won one game on the road this season. The first 15 minutes will be absolutely crucial in instilling a winning mentality by taking the game to the Sicilians. Although nothing is confirmed the formation Ballardini has been rolling with in training looks like this: Lazio (4-3-1-2)
86 Muslera; 87 Diakitè, 25 Biava, 26 Radu, 11 Kolarov; 4 Firmani, 33 Baronio, 15 Hitzlsperger; 5 Mauri; 20 Floccari, 10 Zarate. A disp: (88 Berni, 28 Stendardo, 80 Dias, 6 Dabo, 2 Lichtsteiner, 74 Cruz, 9 Rocchi) All. Ballardini
Indisponibili: Foggia, Matuzalem, Brocchi, Bizzarri, Del Nero, Meghni
Squalificati: nessuno
Diffidati: Foggia, Firmani, Baronio
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Now onto the fun stuff,
This past week saw a congregation of some of Toronto’s finest Lazio fans join together to witness the refereeing hypocrisy that was Saccani against Juventus. In The North Curve Episode 10 I welcome some past guests and some debut’s as well. Some might be familiar with their work from the Lazioforever forum. In no particular order meet David (Aquile89), Adrian DiDomenico, Julian McNaughton who put in a spectacular job with his camera work, Joseph Ieraci, Davide Ferrara (PiaFidelis), Emanuele DeDonno (CurvaNord), Paolo Barba, and Pietro Cioffi. Together they give some post-match comments, our individual views on the transfer market, and the state of The Biancoceleste
Enjoy and Forza Lazio.