Delfino Pescara 1936

Pescara

File:PescaraCalcio.png
Full name	Delfino Pescara 1936 SpA
Nickname(s)	Delfini (The Dolphins) Biancazzurri (The White-Light Blues)
Founded	1936 (1936)
Ground	Stadio Adriatico
Capacity	20,515
Chairman	Mohammad Laghaei
Manager	Massimo Oddo
League	Serie C Group B
2023–24	Serie C Group B, 6th of 20
Website	http://www.pescaracalcio.com/
Home colours Away colours Third colours

Delfino Pescara 1936, simply known as Pescara Calcio or just Pescara, is an Italian football club based in Pescara, Abruzzo.

The club was formed in 1936 and currently plays in Serie A. Pescara has competed in six seasons in Serie A, 1977–78, 1979–80, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1992–93, 2012–13, and is participating in 2016–17. The team's official colors are white and light blue.

History

Aside from a spell in Serie B in the 1940s, Pescara had a relatively undistinguished history until promotion to Serie B in 1974. With players like Giorgio Repetto and Bruno Nobili in the midfield, they managed to win their first promotion to Serie A in 1977 after winning the promotion play-off, but ultimately finished their first season in Serie A in last place. A second promotion after a play-off followed, but once more they would be relegated from the top flight and then descended to Serie C1 within two years.

Nonetheless, after returning to Serie B after a year, Pescara would enjoy a revival after the appointment of Giovanni Galeone as coach in 1986. His philosophy of attacking football saw the Biancazzurri promoted to Serie A as champions in 1987, where they lasted two years with players such as Júnior and Blaž Slišković among the club's star players. Galeone would return during the 1990–91 season and oversaw another promotion the following year.

After relegation, Pescara remained in Serie B side throughout the 1990s, narrowly missing promotion in 1999. Relegation to C1 followed in 2001, with promotion in 2003 being followed by two revoked relegations in a row due to bankruptcy and scandals affecting other clubs. Pescara was ultimately relegated in the 2006–07 season, with three presidential and managerial changes during the season. In December 2008, the debt-ridden club was legally declared out of business and its control passed to a bankruptcy trustee appointed by the Court of Pescara. In February 2009, a takeover from a group named Delfino Pescara 1936 was finalized with Deborah Caldora becoming the first woman to serve as chairman for the club. In the meantime, results did not improve significantly and in March, Giuseppe Galderisi was dismissed from the head coaching post with Antonello Cuccureddu being appointed as the new boss.

At the beginning of the 2009–10 season, Eusebio Di Francesco was appointed as the new coach. Pescara finished second in Girone B of Lega Pro Prima Divisione and qualified for the promotional play-offs. They defeated Reggiana in the semi-final and Verona in the final and subsequently returned to Serie B after a three-year absence. The following season started with the appointment of Zdeněk Zeman as new head coach; the Czech manager immediately brought Pescara back into national coverage thanks to his well-known all-attacking playing style that turned out to match perfectly with promising youngsters such as Marco Verratti, Ciro Immobile and Lorenzo Insigne, who guided the squad to promotion to Serie A. Pescara secured promotion to the top-level after a 19-year absence after defeating Sampdoria with a 3–1 score in an away match on 20 May 2012. In the last minute of the final game of the regular season, Pescara striker Riccardo Maniero netted the winner in a match against Nocerina to claim Pescara's second Serie B title after Torino's draw away to AlbinoLeffe.

Pescara began the 2012–13 campaign looking for a new manager after Zdeněk Zeman left the club to manage Roma. Pescara started their new season in Serie A with a 3–0 loss to Internazionale, and they would not earn their first win until the fifth game of the season, a 1–0 win over Palermo. Pescara's stint in the top flight lasted just one season, as the club ended the season bottom of the table with a record of six wins, four draws and 28 loses, also recording the fewest clean sheets in the league, with five. That season, winger and leading-scorer Vladimír Weiss was also noted for picking up two red cards.

Supporters

Vicenza and Messina are known as Gemellaggi (English: Twinning) with Pescara. It is a similar concept to having a twin or sister city between cities.

Lazio and Verona are known to be rivals with Pescara. Pescara's regional rivals are Chieti, Virtus Lanciano and L'Aquila; however, they haven't faced either team since 2002 due to financial troubles. Pescara also shares notable rivalries with regional neighbors, namely the Marche clubs such as Ancona, Ascoli and Sambenedettese.

Players

Current squad

As of 08 September 2016.

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	ITA	Vincenzo Fiorillo
2	DF	ITA	Alessandro Crescenzi
3	DF	ITA	Cristiano Biraghi
5	MF	ITA	Alessandro Bruno
6	MF	ITA	Bryan Cristante (on loan from Benfica)
7	MF	ITA	Valerio Verre
8	MF	ALB	Ledian Memushaj (captain)
9	FW	ALB	Rey Manaj (on loan from Internazionale)
10	MF	LBY	Ahmad Benali
11	DF	ITA	Francesco Zampano
12	GK	ITA	Gabriele Aldegani
13	DF	CRO	Dario Župarić
14	DF	ARG	Hugo Campagnaro
15	FW	FRA	Jean-Christophe Bahebeck (on loan from PSG)
16	MF	URU	Gastón Brugman

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
17	FW	ITA	Gianluca Caprari (on loan from Internazionale)
20	MF	ITA	Alberto Aquilani
21	MF	ITA	Simone Pepe
22	GK	ITA	Mirko Pigliacelli
23	DF	ALB	Leonardo Maloku
26	DF	ITA	Davide Vitturini
27	FW	ITA	Stefano Pettinari (on loan from Roma)
28	MF	ROU	Alexandru Mitriță
30	FW	CRO	Robert Murić (on loan from Ajax)
31	GK	ARG	Albano Bizzarri
35	DF	ITA	Andrea Coda
37	DF	SVK	Norbert Gyömbér (on loan from Roma)
44	DF	ITA	Michele Fornasier
98	FW	ITA	Ferdinando Del Sole

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	GK	ALB	Elhan Kastrati (at Piacenza)
—	GK	ITA	Simone Aresti (at Ternana)
—	DF	ITA	Antonio Mazzotta (at Frosinone)
—	MF	ITA	Gianluca Barba (at Piacenza)

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	MF	GHA	Ransford Selasi (at Novara)
—	FW	ITA	Andrea Cocco (at Frosinone)
—	FW	ITA	Marco Sansovini (at Teramo)
—	FW	ITA	Francesco Nicastro (at Perugia)

Managerial history

Name Nationality Years Edmondo De Amicis 1937–38 Pietro Piselli 1938–39 Armando Bonino 1939–40 Mario Pizziolo 1940–41 Luigi Ferrero 1941–43 Edmondo De Amicis 1944–45 Giuseppe Marchi 1945–46 József Bánás 1946–47 Mario Pizziolo 1947–48 Gino Piccinini 1948–49 Benedetto Stella 1949–50 Luigi Del Grosso 1950–53 Umberto De Angelis 1953–55 Alfredo Notti 1955–56 Alfredo Monza Renato Piacentini Orazio Sola 1956–57 Renato Piacentini 1957–58 Aurelio Marchese Mario Tontodonati 1958–59 Ljubo Benčić Mario Tontodonati 1959–61 Umberto De Angelis 1961–62 Leonardo Costagliola 1962–63 Ljubo Benčić Renato Piacentini 1963–64 Ljubo Benčić Vincenzo Marsico 1964–65 Antonio Giammarinaro Alfredo Notti 1965–66 Sergio Cervato 1966–67

Name Nationality Years Antonio Giammarinaro 1967–68 Gianni Seghedoni Mario Tontodonati 1968–69 Dante Lacorata Mario Tontodonati 1969–70 Francesco Capocasale 1970–71 Enzo Falini Vitaliano Patricelli 1971–72 Domenico Rosati 1972–76 Giancarlo Cadè 1976–78 Antonio Valentín Angelillo 1978–79 Gustavo Giagnoni Claudio Tobia Mario Tontodonati 1979–80 Aldo Agroppi 1980–81 Giuseppe Chiappella Saul Malatrasi Mario Tiddia 1981–82 Domenico Rosati 1982–84 Enrico Catuzzi 1984–86 Giovanni Galeone 1986–89 Ilario Castagner Edoardo Reja 1989–90 Giovanni Galeone Carlo Mazzone 1990–91 Giovanni Galeone 1991–92 Vincenzo Zucchini 1992–93 Gianni Corelli Giorgio Rumignani Franco Scoglio Vincenzo Zucchini 1993–94 Francesco Oddo Giorgio Rumignani 1994–95 Luigi Maifredi Francesco Oddo 1995–96

Name Nationality Years Delio Rossi July 1996 – June 97 Adriano Buffoni Maurizio Viscidi 1997–98 Luigi De Canio Francesco Giorgini July 1998 – June 99 Giovanni Galeone July 1999 – Nov 00 Tarcisio Burgnich Giovanni Galeone Delio Rossi 2000–01 Ivo Iaconi July 2001 – May 2004 Cetteo Di Mascio 2004 Giovanni Simonelli 2004 – June 2005 Maurizio Sarri July 2005 – July 2006 Davide Ballardini Aldo Ammazzalorso Luigi De Rosa Vincenzo Vivarini July 2006 – June 2007 Franco Lerda July 2007 – June 2008 Giuseppe Galderisi July 2008 – March 2009 Antonello Cuccureddu 2009–10 Eusebio Di Francesco Jan 2010 – June 2011 Zdeněk Zeman June 2011 – June 2012 Giovanni Stroppa June–November 2012 Cristiano Bergodi November 2012 – March 2013 Cristian Bucchi March–June 2013 Pasquale Marino June 2013 – July 2014 Marco Baroni August 2014 – May 2015 Massimo Oddo May 2015–

Honours

• Serie B
  • Champions (2): 1986–87, 2011–12

External links

• Pescara Calcio official website
• Soccerway Profile
• ESPN Profile