Delusions of Grandeur

San Marino

San Marino Names Unheralded Frenchman as New Manager

San Marino today announced that their new National Manager would be Marcel Doun. Doun, a 43 year old who had managed several smaller sides in France, was a surprise choice over several native coaches vying for the position. Reportedly, the infighting among San Marinen candidates eventually caused the selection committee to look beyond the borders. Apparently the selection committee was impressed Doun's ability to transition clubs from older players to younger ones- and he still maintain a level of success while doing so.

***

I don't know what I really thought when they told me they would like me to manage San Marino. I had put my name into the application process- never expecting to get the position- mostly because I wanted to be able to say that I had applied for managing several smaller Nations' Clubs. I had really believed I would eventually find another position in the National. Still, the challenge was there- the offer was there- and now I badly wanted to accomplish something with them. I knew it wouldn't be easy- after all, my last club in the National could likely have easily beaten them. Still, life is all about hope- and I had plenty of hope with me in taking the job.

MD note- I had originally intended to start unemployed to begin a story in France, but when doing the setup and looking at the option to add players- the idea of managing San Marino took hold. In all the times I had managed the San Marino club in Italian football, I had wondered what it would be like to actually manage the National side- now I can, so the story sprung from that.

San Marino

San Marino Names Unheralded Frenchman as New Manager

San Marino today announced that their new National Manager would be Marcel Doun. Doun, a 43 year old who had managed several smaller sides in France, was a surprise choice over several native coaches vying for the position. Reportedly, the infighting among San Marinen candidates eventually caused the selection committee to look beyond the borders. Apparently the selection committee was impressed Doun's ability to transition clubs from older players to younger ones- and he still maintain a level of success while doing so.

***

I don't know what I really thought when they told me they would like me to manage San Marino. I had put my name into the application process- never expecting to get the position- mostly because I wanted to be able to say that I had applied for managing several smaller Nations' Clubs. I had really believed I would eventually find another position in the National. Still, the challenge was there- the offer was there- and now I badly wanted to accomplish something with them. I knew it wouldn't be easy- after all, my last club in the National could likely have easily beaten them. Still, life is all about hope- and I had plenty of hope with me in taking the job.

MD note- I had originally intended to start unemployed to begin a story in France, but when doing the setup and looking at the option to add players- the idea of managing San Marino took hold. In all the times I had managed the San Marino club in Italian football, I had wondered what it would be like to actually manage the National side- now I can, so the story sprung from that.

Good luck with this one

Quite a task ahead of you

Is this going to be the story with the you-know-whats? Don't want to give anything away if you're still thinking of using the idea

Have fun with the minnows

Tyrone- Thanks, I think I will need every ounce of luck I can find

Dave- No, this isn't the you-know-whats, that will come sometime this summer as I received some more information for a project I am working on for The Wargamer and trying to make sure my approach jibes with this information. This one is more of a lark than anything, no real goals other to try and keep the job and maybe get a good result or two along the way

***

Our World Cup Qualifying Group 7 doesn't look very kind to us. The others in our Group are Spain, Belgium, Bosnia, Serbia & Montenegro and Lithuania. This means that virtually every one of those will *need* to beat up on us- as goals could well be a deciding factor in the Group play. Nevertheless, we will try to play a controlled match and lean heavily on Federico Gasparoni in net.

>>Our 26 man roster going into our first qualifier-

GK- Federico Gasparoni, Marco Pelliccioni, Michele Ceccoli

DEF- Alessandro Della Velle, Mirko Gennari, Carlo Valentini, Matteo Andreini, Roberto Selva, Luca Gobbi, Ivan Matteoni, Simone Bacciocchi

MID- William Guerra, Ermanno Zonzini, Damiano Vannucci, Andrea Mosconi, Riccardo Muccioli, Lorenzo Moretti, Peirangelo Manzaroli, Alex Gasperoni, Michele Marani, Nicola Bacciocchi, Marco De Luigi

FOR- Andy Selva, Nicola Ciacci, Andrea Ugolini, Paolo Montagna

Before my debut as Manager- hosting Serbia & Montenegro in our first World Cup Qualifying Group 7 draw- there is a lot of discussion in the San Marino press about my inclusion of many youngsters on the National side. My thoughts on this are that to have some hope of developing some of the youngsters- we will need to give them a chance.

4.9.04

San Marino (0) Serbia & Montenegro (2)

San Marino- None

Serbia- S.Milosevic 24 D.Stankovic 60

MOM- Savo Milosevic, Serbia

We made a worthy start, but were able to put little pressure on Serbia offensively as we lost 2-0. There were encouraging signs as we played quality, determined defense throughout the match, but their pace advantage was a severe problem for us in the match as we failed to win many loose balls, nor were we able to really try and stretch out their defense. Likely the most encouraging aspect of our defense is that they failed to score from inside the area. Our scrambling coverage in the area worked well enough to thwart some good chances on their part. The flip side of that is that they scored on a 30 yard blast from Savo Milosevic and a 25 yard rocket from Dejan Stankovic. Though Federico Gasperoni played very well overall, it was disappointing that he didn't make saves on those two shots. Our only good chance came on a throw-in as Andrea Ugolini fired a shot that was grabbed off by their keeper.

8.9.04

Lithuania (5) San Marino (0)

Lithuania- R.Viejeikis 27,36 E.Jankauskas 53,69 W.Guerra 79-OG

San Marino- None

MOM- Edgar Jankauskas, Lithuania

A much more disappointing performance for us in our trip to Vilnius. We managed three good scoring chances in the first 10 minutes of play and looked to be playing better- then the wheels came off. Carlo Valentini insisted on hanging on to the ball after he intercepted a throw-in. It was taken away from him and one good cross later- we were trailing. The next goal has to be laid at Federico Gasperoni's feet as he mishandled an easy shot and it was promptly driven past him. Jankauskas had an easy time scoring his 2nd goal when Luca Gobbi wandered up the pitch- away from the rest of our backline- and left him unmarked to walk in and fire it home. The last two goals were more of the same for Gasperoni in net- in both cases he mishandled easy shots and the second time Willem Guerra pushed it past him for an own-goal to cap our 5-0 defeat. Our manhandling caused a stir in the press- but in reality it points out the grim fact that unless Federico Gasperoni does a solid job in net, we are very liable to be blown out.

***

The loss to Lithuania has me reconsidering how to set our tactics. We need to find something that allows us to play adequate defense in front of Gasperoni, which has me leaning toward anything with a 4-man backline, since we have enough defenders to hopefully provide support. It would be easy to believe that a 451 might be the approach to take- except that we have three decent forwards and a severe lack of quality midfielders. So, we will try to play a defensive, ball control 433 and see if we can improve both defensively and offensively.

What a challenge... Do you happen to know if San Marino ever got a point from a qualifying match?

Goodluck

eli- I am not sure to be honest with you- though I did look at their history awhile ago

***

It will likely cause a bigger stir as we approach our trip to Serbia next month, but I handled the roster changes quietly. For our match against Serbia we will be featuring two 17 year old starters- which will no doubt shock the press. In all, we added 8 new players to the 26 man roster (we had been carrying only 24 for the first two matches). Joining us as starters are 17 year old SC Matteo Valli and 17 year old MR Nicola Cavalli. Also joining the National side are 22 year old GK Federico Valentini, 23 year old DR Nicola Albani, 20 year old DC Matteo Gorini, 27 year old DC Federico Pelliccioni (also moving into the starting lineup), 22 year old AMRLC Raffaele Moroni and 20 year old SC Manuel Marani. Why the drastic change? Simple. A quick look at our roster showed exactly ONE player on the roster with an International Goal. Given the beating we took at Vilnius, we might as well start seeing if our younger players hold more promise than our 30-somethings who haven't accomplished anything. Experience is a great thing- if it gives you something in return. It sure didn't seem the return was there for the experienced players on the club.

***

Due to an injury to Paolo Montagna, I am calling up another first-timer- 24 year old SC Michele Lisi. Lisi likely won't play, but at least will get some valuable training exposure.

***

After official announcement of the squad for the Serbia match, I was surprised that the criticism was a bit muted. Perhaps the press and fans were as fed up as I was after the performance against Lithuania. The only real dissension was the inclusion of Lisi- which didn't bother me since he won't be dressed against Serbia.

***

...From the mouths of babes. It was interesting to see an ex-International player touting our chances as we travelled to face Serbia. I was heartened to see 17 year old Nicola Cavalli offering caution- a sign of his maturity in my estimation.

13.10.04

Serbia & Montenegro (5) San Marino (3) World Cup Qualifying Group 7

Serbia- D.Stankovic 5 Z.Vukic 8-P,67-P S.Milosevic 10 P.Djordjevic 87

San Marino- M.Valli 57 A.Selva 65 N.Ciacci 90

MOM- Savo Milosevic, Serbia

There was some bad- and also some good to take away from our 5-3 loss to Serbia & Montenegro at Belgrade. The bad was we fell behind 3-0 in the first ten minutes as we completely failed to execute. The first goal I could write off to Dejan Stankovic being a world class player (starts for Inter) and he used his superior pace to burst around Nicola Albani at right back before making a good shot past Federico Gasperoni. The next two goals- the ones that really killed us- were directly attributable to Lorenzo Moretti's poor play. A ill-timed challenge in the area gave them a penalty and Zvonimir Vukic converted it easily. On their 3rd goal, Moretti passed directly to Milosevic and he raced past our stunned defenders before rocketing a shot home. We did get a break though- as Veljko Paunovic earned a pair of yellow cards and was off at 29 minutes. We failed to take advantage of this in the first half and went to halftime outshot 14-1 and trailing 3-0. The second half is the kind of half that gives me hope we are on the right track. An excellent passing sequence saw us find enough space for Mattia Valli to blast a shot inside the left post to score in his International debut. Valli and Nicola Cavalli both played well and proved they belong today. We drew back within 3-2 when Andy Selva scored his 5th International goal after Raffaele Moroni played a wonderful pass to him. Our hope of a comeback lasted less than a minute though as Ivan Matteoni was whistled for tripping Darko Kovacevic in the area and Vukic converted that penalty as well for his 2nd goal. We went down 5-2 as we got caught pressing forward and Kovacevic's cross was headed home by a diving Predrag Djordjevic. I was cheered when Cavalli made a superb pass down the right sideline that resulted in Nicole Ciacci overpowered keeper Dragoslav Jevric and pushed his shot into the open net for his 1st International goal. The press commented afterward that we had never threatened to upset them- but when we had gotten back to 3-2, I know we had them a bit worried.

***

In analyzing the match, it was clear we can not play a 433. We got badly overpowered in the midfield. We have no height to speak of and this is also a problem as it was clear that Serbia bombarded us with high balls. Besides Valli and Cavalli having nice debuts- the surprise of the match was Raffaele Moroni. He showed both that he was the fastest player on our club and that he has good ability to create offensively- something we had been sorely missing. We will have to find a way to try and take advantage of that in our next match- a friendly at Qatar next month.

eli- Answer to your question is that San Marino managed a draw against Turkey in 1993 and also managed a draw against Lithuania in 2001. They have lost all their other qualifying matches.

Fantastic story Faramir, I'll stay tuned for this!

Radiomen- thanks, glad you like it and are tagging along...

***

13.11.04

Qatar (3) San Marino (1)

Qatar- S.Medjbel 44 S.Ballan 63 M.Al-Moobarki 67

San Marino- A.Selva 6

MOM- Salman Ahmed Ballan, Qatar

It was a performance to build on at least, but we lost again 3-1. The lesson that I hope we take from this match is that we have to play a full 90 minutes of determined football. We lost because the club didn't put forth enough effort at a key moment in the match. We started quickly in the match and took the lead with a beautiful, textbook passing sequence that saw Andy Selva free to drive it in for the goal. We survived a penalty kick when Federico Valentini, making his debut in the net, stopped the penalty and then jumped on the rebound. They managed to get back to even just before halftime when we lost coverage on Medjbel and he had time to blast past Valentini from close in. We had other good chances in the first half and second half, but just couldn't get the second goal. They scored the second goal, a real backbreaker, when we botched a throw-in on their end and they sent the ball into space on the right. I was absolutely furious as only one defender of the backline made it back and was left trying to challenge the man on the ball, which left two Qatar players unmarked in front- with obviously painful results. Then the backline didn't do enough to clear the ball and they scored on a rebound to make it 3-1 shortly after. We played a very good first 45 minutes, but a terrible second 45. There were encouraging signs, but the result was still another loss.

17.11.04

San Marino (1) Lithuania (2) World Cup Qualifying Group 7

San Marino- M.Marani 79

Lithuania- E.Jankauskas 16,76

MOM- Dainius Lapeikis, Lithuania

We gave ourselves a chance against Lithuania, but our backline play killed us once again. We played fairly well in the midfield and up front, but watching Jankauskas score his two goals was enough to give me a bad case of heartburn. Jankauskas just turned on the speed and easily split Ivan Matteoni and Federico Pelliccioni before firing a shot past Federico Valentini to score his 1st goal. We managed some decent chances in the first half, but their strong tackling inside the area thwarted our best opportunities. Jankauskas' 2nd goal left me furious. Despite instructions to stay back, Mirko Gennari (starting at leftback because Alessandro Della Velle was suspended for a match) and Alex Gasperoni both went far forward and then neither even tried to come back when we lost possession on a throw-in. This resulted in virtually a repeat of the Qatar 2nd goal- Nicola Albani trying to cope with two attackers and unable to and the Valentini was left all alone against Jankauskas- with predictable results. It was even more damaging when we scored moments later as Manuel Marani scored in his debut on a nice header (he had come on for an ineffective Mattia Valli). The loss leaves me going back to the National pool to see if I can find any defenders that might be able to actually play. Nicola Albani has played pretty well at right back, and Alessandro Della Velle is a competent left back- but our problems in the middle are huge. I also need to try and find a midfielder 'stopper'- someone who can tackle and play well enough positionally to help the backline. I hoped that Ermanno Zonzini could do this- but his complete lack of pace is another problem- and I don't believe I can afford to play him because of that.

Our first match of 2005 will be a daunting trip to face Spain in another World Cup Qualifier match. After looking long and hard- we don't have any defenders that are better than the ones on the squad at present, so we will just have to cope as best we can. In comparing back to some of the French sides I have managed, only 3 players on this National side would even have been considered for their lineups- Alessandro Della Valle, Andy Selva and Mattia Valli. Possibly Nicola Cavalli might have seen time, but for comparison purposes most of this National roster is not even up to the quality of some of the French non-league sides.

***

9.2.05

Spain (6) San Marino (0)

Spain- Raul 4,8,45 A.Luque 6,55-P D.Villa 43

San Marino- None

MOM- Raul, Spain

True to predictions in the press, Spain dominated us in an easy 6-0 win for them. Our backline had absolutely no ability to handle Raul today. We missed tackles, failed to cover, and failed to clear loose balls. Because of that Spain's forwards ran rampant against us. Raul overpowered Federico Pelliccioni several times and it sure seemed like we didn't win a ball in the air all day- though that is exaggerating. The only encouraging thing that I took from the match was that occasionally we were able to move the ball up the pitch. Our passing attack is slowly getting better and more effective, but we continue to be doomed by poor backline and keeper play. Federico Gasperoni had no excuse for missing a 40 yard shot from David Villa- and I will have to think hard about whether to keep using him. Gasperoni made a couple good reaction saves early in the match, but really mishandled several balls and didn't help his backline out with his inconistent play. Nicola Albani's handball in the area gave them a penalty in the second half and none of the backline- Albani, Alessandro Della Velle, Pelliccioni or Ivan Matteoni played anywhere close to a respectable match today. It was a long flight home after this rout.

The injury to Luca Gobbi allowed me to make a move I had been considering, as I added 18 year old DMC Andrea Dominiconi to the National side. Considering our lack of midfielders who even have the potential to be stoppers, the time to take a look at the youngster is now at hand.

***

30.3.05

San Marino (0) Belgium (3)

San Marino- None

Belgium- W.Sonck 4 L.Pieroni 34 M.Mpenza 90

MOM- Gregory Dufer, Belgium

It may look like a better performance than the Spain match on paper, but in reality we didn't play any better- they just missed more shots. Our backline couldn't cover a buried rock is my studied conclusion after today's performance. The first two goals they scored were down to the fact that we have virtually no height- Sonck headed in a cross from Bart Moor and Pieroni headed in a cross from Gregory Dufer AFTER Alex Gasperoni just quit on the play. It looked like the ball might go over the backline and Gasperoni just stopped, which allowed Dufer to reach the ball just before it crossed the line. Their last goal was due to Federico Pelliccioni and Simone Della Balda (on for injured Matteoni) looking at each other as a loose ball rolled between them. Mbo Mpenza never stopped and burst between them to pick off the loose ball and he fired it past Federico Valentini to cap the 3-0 win. Sonck and Walter Baseggio each missed other good scoring chances as the final score could easily have been much worse.

After the latest performance, I made the decision to bring more youth on to the National side. The new additions were 17 year old DLC Nicola Chiaruzzi and 19 year old DC Nicola Ranocchini. If we are going to keep getting beaten in the middle with our experienced players, it is time to give the youth a try. This means I am planning on starting a 'kiddie' backline against Bosnia in June- Della Velle, Chiaruzzi, Ranocchini and Carlo Valentini. It can't be any worse in my eyes and if we start now with this group together- possibly they can develop together into a cohesive unit that may pay dividends in the future. Critics are going to have a field day with this though...

***

Chiaruzzi picked an imopportune time to injure his neck. He will be out a month, so I will have to put Ivan Matteoni into the starting backline spot- to hopefully settle the youngsters. Michele Marani also was injured and Michele Moretti was my choice to replace him.

4.6.05

San Marino (0) Bosnia (2)

San Marino- None

Bosnia- E.Bolic 24,90

MOM- Elvir Bolic, Bosnia

Another match of missed chances for a possible better result. Elvir Bolic scored both their goals on corners, where he overpowered our defenders. The first one saw him create space due to lousy marking on our part and he headed home a cross. The second one saw him swoop in from outside the area and drive past Raffaele Morini to blast the clincher past Federico Gasperoni. We had a few good chances, but none as good as the penalty kick that could have evened the match at 1-1 at 75 minutes. Instead Kenan Hasegic made the save against Alessandro Della Velle and it was just another thing that went wrong for us. To their credit, the backline played a bit better today, but it was the midfield who kept giving the ball away on bad passes that hurt us the most. It will be scary if we can ever put together a match where all the elements of our play come together.

Keep your chin up faramir.

This is one of the ultimate underdog stories. I played a game with Luxembourg for an unsuccessful couple of seasons. Hard work.

I went San Marino once, I think we got a draw with Spain or something. Its a thankless task, good luck doesnt even cover it

haze- It is going to be difficult to get a good result, but I knew that going in- trying this is mostly for fun, not for results- so mostly just enjoying the experience

PM7- If you got a draw against anyone with them- you are doing pretty well

***

As we held our first training camp of the summer in early July 2005 (a mini-camp for 7 days, since club training will be starting soon), we introduced a few more new faces to the club. This was our current roster at that point:

GK

Federico Gasperoni (28)

Federico Valentini (23)

Michele Ceccoli (31)

DEF

Alessandro Della Velle (23)

Nicola Chiaruzzi (17)

Paolo Cupi (20)

Carlo Valentini (23)

Nicola Albani (24)

Nicola Ranocchini (20)

Ivan Matteoni (34)

Simone Bacciocchi (28)

Federico Pelleccioni (28)

MID

Alex Gasperoni (21)

Raffaele Moroni (23)

Nicola Cavalli (18)

Andrea Domeniconi (18)

Lorenzo Moretti (25)

Ermanno Zonzini (31)

Damiano Vannucci (27)

Marco De Luigi (27)

Andrea Mosconi (19)

FOR

Andy Selva (29)

Matteo Valli (18)

Nicola Ciacci (22)

Manuel Marani (21)

Antonio Cardinale (19)

3.9.05

San Marino (1) Uzbekistan (2) Friendly

San Marino- A.Isomoilov 54-OG

Uzbekistan- A.Akbarov 38 M.Shatskikh 89

MOM- Maxim Shatskikh, Uzbekistan

Another loss for us and it was another one of our own making. The first goal came when Paolo Cupi deflected a long Aziz Akbarov shot enough to change the direction past Federico Gasperoni to give them the lead. They gave us an own-goal back to even the match, but if their defender hadn't put the ball into his net- then Matteo Valli would have because he was right next to him. We turned a draw into a loss when Niccola Ranocchini tussled trying to challenge Maxim Shatskikh for the ball- and lost. Shatskikh moved past him and put a pretty shot just inside the right post for the late match winner. We played without several injured players- including most importantly for us our best player Andy Selva. The youngsters played ok in the match, but I would have preferred a better result.

7.9.05

Belgium (4) San Marino (0)

Belgium- L.Pieroni 12 W.Sonck 20,54 G.Dufer 33

San Marino- None

MOM- Wesley Sonck, Belgium

We may have lost worse in this match than in our match at Olimpico, but I was actually pleased with portions of our play. Our young backline played- and covered for each other- the way I have been trying to get the club to play since they awarded me the job. The midfield offered some glimpses of good play and we generated three top drawer scoring chances- but their keeper came up big to keep us off the scoreboard. We lost because they simply overpowered us with their pace, their skill and their ability in the air. Their first goal came when Federico Gasperoni made a terrific reaction save on a deflected ball, but Luigi Pieroni was much quicker to the rebound than Niccola Ranocchini. Wesley Sonck overpowered us for his pair of goals- we simply don't have anyone that can match up with him. Despite that, I was very pleased Paolo Cupi's play- even with an early yellow card- he was willing to challenge and he came up with some big tackles in our area. Dufer scored when he alertly picked up a loose ball at the edge of the area and made a good shot to score with it. The signs of improvement were there, but we have to get better in all aspects of our play AND play a consistently determined entire match to have a chance against a club of this caliber, and we just aren't there yet.

8.10.05

Bosnia (2) San Marino (0)

Bosnia- R.Moroni 45-OG, E.Bolic 77

San Marino- None

MOM- Zlatan Bajramovic, Bosnia

We may have lost by the same margin, 2-0, to Bosnia but I have to say this was a good performance by us. The backline worked extremely well together and I am a lot more confident that this foursome will help carry us into the future. I was impressed by their coverage today and we made some superb tackles to blunt their offensive efforts. We gave up an own-goal to ruin the first half when Raffaele Moroni made a mistake. They finally managed to score one of their own when Elvir Bolic deflected a corner past Federico Gasperoni. The one element we were missing today- and cost us a better result- was bad passing by our midfield and forwards as we got into their area. We moved the ball down the pitch very well at times, but then were very hesitant inside their area and that kept us from getting more chances. It doesn't bode well for our final Group 7 match against Spain that we lost Federico Gasperoni, as his twisted knee will keep him out of the match and off the roster.

12.10.05

San Marino (0) Spain (3)

San Marino- None

Spain- I.Helguera 17-P R.Baraja 20 Xavi 35

MOM- Xavi, Spain

The score today was indicative of our overall improvement in play, but it could have been even closer. Their first goal came on a disputed penalty kick after Carlo Valentini was whistled for pushing Fernando Torres in the area. Their second goal was a 35 yard blast that Federico Valentini had no business not stopping. He had a clear view of the shot and time to react- but never did. Their last goal came courtesy of a nice pass and the backline didn't close quickly enough to stop Xavi from blasting away just inside the area. We didn't generate too many chances as we rarely won the ball in the air, saw them continually quicker to the ball, and their tackling was just generally very effective. I was glad to see this World Cup Qualifying Group play finally end- there were no clubs in our Group that we really had a chance against, though we did play a few good matches. With the defense looking much more in tune now- I desperately need to find a midfielder who can create some chances for our forwards. I had been hoping Raffaele Moroni would do this- but he continues to be ineffective when we need him to assert himself.

As we approach our last pair of friendlies to close out the year, the press are having a field day with the perceived situation between Roberto Selva and myself. I tried to call Roberto up after an injury for the Bosnia and Spain matches, but he refused the call up saying "I am not anyone's 2nd choice." The press asked me about his refusal and comments, but I chose not to offer any comments on the matter. Now, with him not being called up this time- they have taken the whole situation to an entertaining degree of discussion. The truth of the matter is that I don't think Roberto is one of the top 26 players- and I didn't call him up both because of that and because we are also trying several other new players in this pair of friendlies. They also made a big deal of Federico Gasperoni not being called up, but that is simply because I know he isn't quite healed up from his injury- and I wanted to take a look at Riccardo Daniel Ceccoli, a 17 year old who has seen Under-21 playing time. A lot of the press have derided Ceccoli's call-up, but those were the same ones who said that Andrea Domeniconi didn't have a place on the National side.

12.11.05

Poland (5) San Marino (1)

Poland- M.Zurawski 2,37 J.Kowalczyk 20 A.Wichiniarek 71 R.Kaluzny 83

San Marino- M.Valli 7

MOM- Jacek Kryznowek, Poland

We played well in first stages of the first half, battling back to 1-1 after they scored in the opening moments. After that, the superiority of their players showed as they executed well in finishing us off 5-1. Until late in the second half, Riccardo Daniel Ceccoli played well for his debut. The goals they scored against him were well earned- except for the last one that came on a corner where he wound up a bit out of position. We also featured more youngster's debuts- 17 year old AMLC Stefano Gioia, 17 year old SC Felice Gusuele and 20 year old MC Andrea Bollini. The result was expected but did give me more insight into the youngsters we are playing. With Gioia injured, I recalled Federico Gasperoni to play goal in our other friendly as we host Cyprus.

16.11.05

San Marino (0) Cyprus (0)

San Marino- None

Cyprus- None

MOM- Federico Gasperoni, San Marino

I believe our fans and our federation were cheered by the scoreless draw, but we didn't play all that well and could have won the match if we had played better. They went a man down early in the first half after Theodoras Katsiaris drew two yellow cards. We did not take very good advantage of the advantage though as our passing wasn't very effective. Our backline play was pretty solid for the match, but we wasted many outlet passes that could have helped the midfield get going. Despite being a man down, they were a much pacier club than us and we just weren't finding the space we needed to really get some good scoring chances. At this point, the draw was a welcome result, but I remain disappointed that we squandered a good chance for a win.

The draws were announced for European Championship 2008 qualifying and it will be another difficult Group for us to gain a good result. With us in Group 3 are:

Russia

Italy

Poland

Lithuania

Scotland

At the least- with Italy we won't have far to travel for our match with them. We have already seen how tough Poland has become and both Lithuania and Scotland have done moderately well in World Cup qualifiers- this could be another long road through qualifying for us.

Good story as always Faramir. Btw, how are your San Marinos youngsters doing? Any new superstar in the making?

Yay well done on the point! I think you can mibbe take something from Lithuanian and Scotland with a bit of luck, but indeed it's going to be another tough group.

Just need to get that backline sorted now and you'll be able to move onwards and upwards.

Good Luck!

Uffe- you will soon see more mention of the youngsters

PM7- Thanks for the encouragement, but I was really hoping for at least one other minor club in the draw

Supa- Backline and a few other things...

Thanks guys for the comments

***

8.2.06

San Marino (0) Ethiopia (1)

San Marino- None

Ethiopia- S.Hagemann

MOM- Rajeev Mikaeili, Ethiopia

It was an interesting display of two clubs trying to play ball control with limited attacks. Neither side really attacked all that well as both sides were putting up a good effort on defense. Ethopia scored the only goal of the match when Svyjatoslav Hagemann outleaped two defenders and then scored on a fluke header as he misjudged his placement and looped it just over Federico Gasperoni. Our best chances saw their keeper Jamal Flavius stop Andy Selva and Matteo Valli from just inside the edge of the area. With Raffaele Moroni again ineffective, I had a chance to try Andrea Bollini and he played pretty well in the midfield. Neither side was crisp in their passing and that led to a dearth of scoring chances.

29.3.06

Cape Verde (2) San Marino (0)

Cape Verde- P.Cupi 57-OG S.Faneca 74

San Marino- None

MOM- Jeronimo Portugal, Cape Verde

We had the wind taken out of our sails when Paolo Cupi directed his header past Federico Gasperoni for an own-goal. The match to that point had been a spirited battle, with them having the better of chances and us showing a dogged defense. We had a few chances of our own, but our shooting wasn't on target today- something very wasteful when you consider we don't get a lot of chances anyways. I have yet to really discover a midfield grouping that can flourish together and that is really been a problem. We just can't get the quick passing flow we need to generate better scoring chances. We might make one or two good passes, but then we tend to give the ball away. We are still very much a work in progress, but I am gaining more confidence in our backline with each match and the unit of Luca Della Velle- Paolo Cupi- Nicola Ranocchini- Carlo Valentini continues to demonstrate the determination and hard work that is needed of them. If we can cobble together enough of a midfield to give the ball to our forwards in places to shoot- we may surprise somebody yet.

MD note- For those of you following along on my Harrow Hill story (A Harrowing Misadventure), a quick comparison of Harrow Hill and San Marino would yield that Harrow Hill should beat this club 7 out of 10 matches. The Harrow Hill keepers are much better than San Marino, the backline is a shade better, the midfield is significantly better, the forwards are a bit better and Harrow Hill has a lot more speed (pace and acceleration) than San Marino. That fact makes my task of gaining a favorable result all the more satisfying, well if I ever get one that is

***

With both Carlo Valentini and Nicola Cavalli out with extended injuries, newcomer Marco Domeniconi (22 year old MRC) was called up from Under-21 side and Roberto Selva will make his reappearance on the National roster. It will hurt us badly losing those two to injury as they have provided solid right side play for us since I made them both starters.

6.9.06

San Marino (0) Lithuania (0)

San Marino- None

Lithuania- None

MOM- Federico Gasperoni, San Marino

We finally earned a point in European play as we survived a late scrare to score a well-earned scoreless draw against Lithuania. It helped that our Lithuanian nemesis- Edgaras Jankauskas- wasn't on the squad. Our best chances to score came twice in the first half when Matteo Valli was set up nicely by Andy Selva- but he missed over the net on both chances. They had one good chance over the net in the first half, but their golden chance came in second half injury time. Andrea Domeniconi went to the sideline for treatment and the flow of play meant that we couldn't bring a sub on for him. Deividas Galeckas momentarily escaped Nicola Ranocchini's marking and was in free on Gasperoni, but Gasperoni made a great save to preserve the draw for us. Given our injury problems for the match, the draw was a very good result for us.

Injuries came in bunches in advance of our trip to face Russia. Losing Marco Domeniconi wasn't too bad- I didn't expect to play him. Losing Roberto Selva hurt a bit- since he had filled in admirably for injured Carlo Valentini in the draw with Lithuania and that had earned him another starting nod- that he won't be able to take. The worst by far was the loss of Nicola Ranocchini who has rapidly become one of the linchipins of our young backline. We will be hard pressed to replace his backline leadership.

***

7.10.06

Russia (3) San Marino (0)

Russia- R.Gusev 12 D.Alenichev 15 A.Kerzhakov 90

San Marino- None

MOM- Alexandr Kerzhakov, Russia

The press was pretty much correct in stating the 'Minnows were overpowered by the Russians.' Still, we gave a pretty good effort and didn't give up- though the last goal at the end disappointed me. We did managed to get three excellent scoring chances during the match, but Vacheslav Malafeev was equal to each chance and kept the clean sheet. The Russians first goal saw them execute a play nicely on a free kick. The ball went to Ruslan Gusev on the far side and after Luca Della Velle missed the tackle in the area, Guslev beat Gasperoni with a shot to the far side of the net. Minutes later, Della Velle was beaten on the dribble by Guslev again, but this time he crossed sharply to Dmitry Alenichev, who snapped a rising shot past Gasperoni. We played solid defense in staying down only 2-0, but they added a late marker when Gasperoni made a good save on a blistering shot by Sergey Semak, only to see unmarked Alexandr Kerzhakov pound the rebound into the net to finish off the 3-0 win for Russia.

11.10.06

San Marino (0) Italy (3)

San Marino- None

Italy- F.Miccoli 7,21 A.Gilardino 90-P

MOM- Fabrizio Miccoli, Italy

Italy outclassed us by quite a margin at Olimpico and easily won 3-0. Fabrizio Miccoli was too slippery for us to stop when he scored his first goal after slipping coverage by Paolo Cupi. Miccoli added a 2nd goal with a booming 25 yard free kick midway through the first half. We played pretty solid defense from that point on, but never really threatened offensively. I would have been happy with a 2-0 defeat, but was instead frustrated by Alessandro Della Velle holding Alberto Gilardino in the area for a late penalty. Gilardino had little problem beating Federico Gasperoni on the penalty to cap their 3-0 win. I remain encouraged by our improving showing defensively, but we won't manage much until we figure a way to generate at least a little offensively- like we did in our match in Russia.

27.10.06

For our November friendlies against Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan we will bring another couple youngsters on to the National roster for the first time. 18 year old DMC Fabio Guerrera and 19 year old Fabio Guidi were overjoyed to be included in the training. Not only the training, but I expect to take first looks at both of them during these friendlies.

***

As expected there was a lot of comment on our squad of youngsters. My approach at this point is try to look at marginal youngsters in the friendlies, so I can at least gain an idea if they might belong in the future. We have a pretty set lineup (barring injuries) for our Qualifying matches, but I need to discover where (or if) we have much depth at all. The older players not included in the roster- ex. Roberto Selva- are not happy, but at this point I have seen them play and most of them just aren't going to be able to contribute to how we want to play. The ones that can are already regulars on the National Roster.

One key aspect I continue to explore is if Matteo Valli can fill the role of the forward playing behind the strikers. He hasn't performed particularly well in past trials, but he also remains the best fit of abilities for the role. The problem we have is that we don't (or I haven't found yet) have true midfielders who seem suited for the role. Raffaele Moroni is the only midfielder we have with any whit of the abilities needed, but he also hasn't played well in trials there. Despite many questioning his inclusion on the roster- I need to look at Nicola Mularoni as a central defender. Fabio Guerra likewise drew many comments, but he is absolutely the most tireless and strongest player of any available- because of that I need to get a sense if he can play our defensive mid role- because if he could it would give our defense another leg up on dealing with some of the overpowering forwards we have been seeing.

Is it not a hopeless task really, as in reality there is nothing you can do as national team manager to improve the standard of player coming through?

Well done anyway on perservering, many would have given up. Makes an interesting change from the normal, We won, we won, we won that most stories seem to be

PM7- Well, what you are saying has a lot of truth- in that I have little influence on player's developing. What I do have some influence over- and haven't been shy about- is to include some non-signed players on the club (if I think they might be worth seeing in the future). For example Raffaele Moroni was unsigned until he showed a couple good performances for the National side- then there were several clubs bidding for his services and that ultimately has helped him develop somewhat.

As to success, well you know as well as I that good stories aren't always about success. I had no expectations going into this- it was just something I have wanted to do for awhile and am writing about

***

With an injury to keeper Federico Valentini, I stunned the press by calling up 15 year old keeper Andrea Moroni. Moroni, currently just in his first professional season, has impressed me and I think it is very possible he is the keeper of the future for the National side. I don't believe I will play him in the friendlies- this is more just an opportunity to give him exposure to the training and players of San Marino.

***

The injury to Nicola Cavalli means another first timer- Andrea Toccaceli- will be on the squad. Toccaceli is a 19 year old AMC who had been under consideration for inclusion, but hadn't made the final selection. I am not sure if I will start him yet or not.

***

Nicola Chiaruzzi, our young DLC, was also injured. To replace him, I chose versatile 26 year old DRLC Gianluca Bollini. Bollini hasn't yet capped and I might give him the opportunity in the friendlies.

11.11.06

San Marino (0) Azerbaijan (0)

San Marino- None

Azerbaijan- None

MOM- Federico Gasperoni, San Marino

Our reputation as scrambling defensive side may have grown with the scoreless friendly against Azerbaijan, but it really shouldn't have because it wasn't deserved- for this match at least. They had much the better of chances, and it was more down to their poor shooting keeping them off the scoreboard than our defensive work. As I expected, our lineup didn't play as well together as the one we have generally been featuring. Their pace advantage yielded some excellent scoring chances, but the ones that they put on net were soaked up by Federico Gasperoni. We only managed a couple good scoring chances and we weren't able to put our shots on net either. The draw was a decent result for us- given that we didn't play to our best. Alex Gasperoni injured his leg, so I called up 25 year old AMC Michele Moretti as his replacement.

***

Moretti was injured the day after being called up, so I brought up 24 year old AML Luca Bonifazi to take a look at. Bonifazi had seen Under-21 action, but had not yet been on the National roster

15.11.06

San Marino (0) Kazakhstan (2)

San Marino- None

Kazakhstan- Y.Guseinov 12-P K.Martyanov 37

MOM- Victor Kusainov, Kazakhstan

It is hard enough for us to stay close in matches, let alone when we give chances away. Still, I can't fault Paolo Cupi, who appeared to cleanly head away a throw-in, only to be whistled and the penalty awarded when they said he jumped into Kirill Martyanov in the area. Yuri Guseinov had an easy time converting the penalty kick to give them the lead. Their second goal came when we lost defensive coverage while retreating into our end following a botched throw-in down in their end. Martyanov was left unmarked at the edge of the six yard box and blasted a shot past Federico Gasperoni. Offensively, we were disappointing as we had no ability at all to move up the pitch. We couldn't get the backline to make a good outlet pass to get us going and we wasted many passes out of bounds. It was a match best forgotten as we take a break until 2007 when we return to Qualifying play.

***

My conclusions remain the same as we end the year. We are making strides defensively, but still will go only as far as our keeper takes us. If any of our keepers play bad, you might as well stick a fork in us. Offensively, we just haven't found the players to really make much go. There is a bit of talent, but most of our midfielders are woefully overmatched by the National sides we are facing.

7.2.07

Moldova (0) San Marino (1)

Moldova- None

San Marino- A.Gasperoni 75

MOM- Andrea Domeniconi, San Marino

A WIN!!

It may not have been a qualifier- but we got a win! I had scrapped my 442 diamond approach to go back to flat midfield 442 counterattacking approach- I had come to the conclusion we just didn't have the personnel to play my preferred tactic. It paid off today as it was not a cheap win, but a win well earned. Federico Valentini got the call in net and he was superb today. They came close several times in the first half, but either Valentini got his hand on the shot, or they missed high over the net. We had a few chances of our own, but wasted the best ones by hanging on to the ball too much in the area. The lone goal came when Alex Gasperoni struck a scorching 30 yard free kick that sailed just inside the left post. What was even better is how we played when we had the lead in the late stages- we tackled well, and we also got a couple nice counterattacks out of it- but we couldn't gain the clinching goal. It was a great trip back to Italy with a lot of celebrating on the plane as we had earned a road win.

A win

Excellent, well done

Thanks PM7- but now back to reality *sigh*

***

Bad news, very bad. Carlo Valentini injured his ankle and will miss at least a month if not longer. With his loss, it means I will again include Roberto Selva on the National side.

***

Fabio Guerra will be out for the Scotland match, so I recalled Marco Domeniconi to the squad.

***

24.3.07

Scotland (5) San Marino (0) Euro Championships Qualifier Group 3

Scotland- J.McFadden 2,71 B.Ferguson 31 M.Wilson 65 S.Whitaker 82

San Marino- None

MOM- James McFadden, Scotland

The bloom of our win disappeared quickly as Scotland showed its class in handily defeating us 5-0. We were in trouble right away when we blew the coverage on a corner and James McFadden drilled his shot past Federico Valentini. Barry Ferguson added to our woes when his 40 yard shot dipped right into the net past a stunned Valentini. We kept the match close for awhile and though we didn't get any good scoring chances, we were able to move the ball a bit offensively. The roof caved in in the second half. Marc Wilson drilled a 25 yarder past Valentini and McFadden escaped marking again to volley a winner into the left side of the net for his 2nd goal of the match. We failed coverage on another corner and Whitaker deflected it past Valentini to finish off the loss. Our backline didn't play particularly well, but Valentini didn't play well at all and his poor play was a major reason the match wasn't closer.

28.3.07

San Marino (0) Angola (1)

San Marino- None

Angola- Mawete Junior 32

MOM- Rui Correira, Angola

We may have lost the friendly to Angola, but it was a good match and I was mostly pleased with the way we played. We generated enough offense that their keeper earned MOM honours because he made four excellent saves to keep us off the scoresheet. Defensively, we played ok, but the one goal was directly the fault of the backline as they couldn't clear a loose ball out of our area and they finally made us pay when Mawete Junior rapped it past Federico Gasperoni. It is clear we are improving, but we still have little room for error and today was a demonstration of that.

2.6.07

Poland (5) San Marino (0) Euro Championships Qualifier Group 3

Poland- K.Kosowski 7 A.Neidzeilan 9 E.Smolarek 16 M.Zurawski 29,39

San Marino- None

MOM- Maciej Zurawski, Poland

We played terribly in losing to Poland 5-0. They scored five first half goals as we could not defend our end and Federico Gasperoni didn't play well in net. Poland pressed their huge height advantage as they bombarded us with balls in the air and we paid dearly as they scored on 4 headers. It was just a bad match all around and we will have to play much better as we continue on the road and now face Italy next.

Another injury blow as we lost Raffaele Moroni on the eve of our match with Lithuania. I called up 24 year old AMC Luca Mariotti who is making his first appearance on the National roster. I am not sure who we will use in his place, but our midfield is now lacking two of our best talents- Alex Gasperoni and Moroni.

***

6.6.07

Lithuania (3) San Marino (0) Euro Championships Qualifier Group 3

Lithuania- A.Shirmelis 25 M.Cesnauskis 45-P D.Lapeikis 77

San Marino- None

MOM- Dainius Lapeikis, Lithuania

It was a loss, but one of those where we can build off of it. We managed little offensively, only a couple good shots when trying to rally from our 2-0 deficit, but we did move the ball up the pitch at times and that was encouraging given missing the midfielders that are hurt. Defensively, all three goals they scored were correctable mistakes (well, the penalty looked like a bad call- but nothing we can do about that). The first goal was caused when Nicola Cavalli tried to cover too much defensively- instead of sticking to his right wing. He ventured into the middle closing down and they swung the play down his wing which gave Andrius Shirmelis a wide open chance from just inside the area. It was one of those plays you cringe at when coaching, because you see it coming when a player abandons the carefully planned defensive scheme. Nicola Gasperoni made what looked to be a very good header to clear away a cross, but was surprised to be handed a yellow card and penalty kick for it. Trailing 2-0 after the penalty, we tried to press the tempo a bit in the second half and we did have Lithuania scrambling back a bit more. Their last goal was just an unfortunate one as two of our players just plain missed heading the ball away on a corner and Lapeikis was camped unmarked on the far corner of the net. The match was another example of how physically outmanned we are by most any other side- we lack height/heading ability so we rarely win headers offensively and we are almost always at a severe disadvantage pace wise which means we have a difficult time pressing the other side, while all too often we are pressed quickly on the ball. The player I was most disappointed in was Andy Selva- for being our highest valued player he has not contributed much to us of late.

Seems the win has made your team worse! Keep going, im enjoying this story