I can't believe I thought it would be easy (the Italian Job challenge)

[Philip Rolfe]

9.3.13

My first game with Holland in 2013 will be against Norway in Amsterdam in two weeks. So I have to make a squad selection. Youssouf Hersi is unavailable due to injury, as is Jhon Van Beukering. Two attacking players come in, in the form of B team regular Prince Raicomar of Fortuna, and Ajax's Ed Kuipers.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Holland - Saturday 9th March 2013

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

Squad

================================================================================================

No Name Position(s) Nat Born Age Caps Gls Wages Expires Value

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Bouma, Wilfried D/DM/F L HOL 15.6.78 34 85 4 £65K 12.6.14 £1.1M

- Brunswijk, Jurgen M RC HOL 1.7.89 23 4 - £10.25K 25.6.16 £5M

- Heitinga, John SW/D RC HOL 15.11.83 29 4 - £16K 28.6.15 £1.2M

- Hofland, Kevin D C HOL 7.6.79 33 79 2 £75K 1.6.16 £2.7M

- Huntelaar, Klaas-Jan S C HOL 12.8.83 29 8 3 £18.25K 22.6.15 £4.4M

- Jans, Martin M LC HOL 29.1.88 25 2 - £7.25K 16.6.15 £2.8M

- Kuijt, Dirk S C HOL 22.6.80 32 26 7 £33K 16.5.14 £1M

- Kuipers, Ed S C HOL 29.6.89 23 7 - £4.7K 23.6.16 £5.5M

- Lamey, Michael D R HOL 29.11.79 33 32 - £20.5k 2.6.15 £875k

- Mendes da Silva, David D/DM C HOL 8.4.82 30 56 4 £55K 6.6.17 £6.5M

- Oost, Tom DM RC HOL 10.2.93 20 4 - £3.3K 4.6.15 £325K

- Oude Kamphuis, Niels D/DM RC HOL 14.11.77 35 54 1 £11.25K 3.6.13 £450K

- Raicomar, Prince S C HOL 25.4.85 27 - - £9.75K 15.6.14 £80K

- Reneerkens, Jordy S C HOL 7.10.83 29 1 - £8K 28.6.14 £230K

- Robben, Arjen AM/F LC HOL 23.1.84 29 60 14 £43.5K 27.6.17 £8.75M

- Seedorf, Dennis DM RLC HOL 9.11.86 26 2 - £14K 10.6.18 £3.9M

- Seedorf, Henk D C HOL 1.8.82 30 18 - £21K 1.6.16 £1.9M

- Stekelenburg, Maarten GK HOL 22.9.82 30 13 - £22.5K 19.6.17 £3.3M

- Thijssen, Maarten S C HOL 9.2.88 25 2 - £13.25K 1.6.16 £3.2M

- Varkevisser, Cor GK HOL 14.5.82 30 - - £11.25K 5.6.17 £1.5M

- de Cler, Tim D L HOL 11.8.78 34 4 - £27K 19.6.13 £160K

- de Jong, Jaap F C HOL 8.3.88 25 9 1 £21.5K 25.6.16 £4.7M

- van Dijk, Roy D C HOL 16.6.87 25 5 - £7.25K 5.6.14 £2.6M

- van Nistelrooy, Ruud S C HOL 1.7.76 36 105 63 £29.5K 10.6.13 £240K

- van der Meyde, Andy AM/F R HOL 30.9.79 33 88 9 £70K 27.6.13 £650K

- van der Vaart, Rafael AM LC HOL 11.2.83 30 65 8 £70K 24.6.16 £7M

</pre>

[Philip Rolfe]

10.3.13

Chievo are a much tougher side to beat under Alex Del Piero. I am without Cavalcante, Doukas, and Baggio for the game, so Lombardi, Asencio, and Yepes come in, with Milton do Ó taking the captain's armband.

Varese 0

Chievo 0

A second nil all in succession, and one of three from five Serie A games. It wasn't the ideal result for a club chasing a belated European place, but it's not a defeat. It's a twelfth draw in the league! We only had one shot on goal throughout the entire match, which tells its own story. That came midway through the second half as Skalidis curled a free kick extremely close to the target. We did limit Chievo's activity too, so the game was horrible to watch. Filippo Cavallaro tested Stekelenburg once, and put the ball over the goal twice. He also hit the crossbar in stoppage time. Other than that I can say it was nothing special, but I'm pleased with Montanari's all round game after today.

Team: Stekelenburg, Milton do Ó©, Todisco, Yepes, Asara, Montanari, Lombardi, Asencio, Santos, Skalidis (Anselmi 72), Alexiou (Piras 82)

13.3.13

We travel to Leverkusen knowing that our fate is out of our hands. We have to beat Leverkusen, and hope Celtic do us a favour by beating Birmingham, and allowing us to leapfrog them. Stekelenburg is suspended, so Girardi is in, and Doukas returns.

Leverkusen 1

Balitsch 26 pen

Hinkel sent off 45

Varese 2

Alexiou 37

Doukas 90

We hit our part alright, despite it coming very late in the day. Unfortunately, Birmingham held on in the face of a Celtic onslaught to win 3-2 at St. Andrews and take their place in the quarter finals. Marcus Bent made sure Girardi was on his toes early with a curled effort, which he pushed away well. Martin Michael then made his first save of the night, from Alexiou's header. Santos then smacked a shot off the post after creating his own space. Leverkusen went ahead slightly after halfway through the half when they were awarded a penalty. Yepes crunched Krause unfairly, and Hanno Balitsch struck the ball sweetly enough to beat Girardi. To get level by half time was a real bonus, and the form it came in was a real beaut. Montanari hit a fierce crossfield pass which Alexiou met with his chest. The ball ran away a little, but from twenty yards he volleyed into the top left hand corner! Andreas Hinkel received Leverkusen's second red card of the Champions League when being dismissed for pushing Lombardi a little too strongly. We turned up the heat in the second half, with the man advantage. The goal was there for the taking, but we just could not find it. As all looked lost, in stoppage time, Doukas came up trumps for the umpteenth time. Our fans celebrated his strike, unaware that Birmingham had already won, and therefore it was meaningless. But as another European campaign comes to an end, I'm proud of some of our improvement on the continent this summer.

Team: Girardi, Milton do Ó, Todisco, Yepes, Asara, Montanari, Lombardi, Doukas©, Santos, Skalidis, Alexiou

Table

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

1 Celtic 6 4 0 2 11 5 12 Q

2 Birmingham 6 3 2 1 7 5 11 Q

---------------------------------------------

3 Varese 6 3 1 2 8 9 10

4 Leverkusen 6 0 1 5 3 10 1

</pre>

[Philip Rolfe]

Been a bit busy of late, but here's on with the update:

17.3.13

Off to Umbria and Perugia, where once again we're in need of a win (when aren't we?). Stekelenburg is back for the only change.

Perugia 2

Wysocki 45, 62

Varese 2

Alexiou 24, 81

For God's sake, another draw! We took the lead, but ended up not taking all the points and running the risk of not getting anything. Our lead came after a mixed start where the game never really settled down, and the game became niggly. Doukas delivered a free kick towards the far post. Alexiou headed it in for 1-0. Martino Caccia made two great saves from Santos and Doukas, which kept Perugia in touch, and able to draw level in first half stoppage time. Tedeschi crossed well, but Yepes cleared. Martin Wysocki hit a pot-shot of sorts, and found the inside of the net. The second half took a similar pattern, at least for the first fifteen minutes. Skalidis played a fine one-two with Alexiou, and sent a shot spinning goalwards. It clipped the post and went wide. But Wysocki hit us again, this time with his 100th career goal. Pellegrino put in an undefendable cross, and he slid the ball in. The woodwork denied him a hat-trick two minutes later. As ever though, I can rely on any combination of my Greeks to get us out of trouble, and Doukas' cross once again found Alexiou for another headed goal. We stay eighth, but the points gap to Europe is getting bigger.

Team: Stekelenburg, Milton do Ó, Todisco, Yepes, Asara, Montanari, Lombardi, Doukas©, Santos, Skalidis, Alexiou

Alexiou is back in the lead of the top league goalscorers at Varese, now with 85 to Carlos Alberto Viera Dos Santos' 84.

19.3.13

Roma's Director of Football Antonio Tempestilli places a firm offer of £6.75m for Mario Piras. I can do with the money, and I really don't use him, so I see it as a good chance to accept.

20.3.13

Seemingly it's transfer season. Willem II call up offering £3.9m for Dennis Seedorf. In a similar manner to the Piras dealings yesterday, I accept.

Piras has agreed terms, and assuming there is no breakdown financially, I'll make a £5m profit on him on July 1st.

21.3.13

Seedorf has also agreed terms, and will join Willem II. Two players leaving, and a near £7m profit. Since the Dutch transfer window is open, he leaves immediately. He's a good player, but I just don't have the room for him really.

[Philip Rolfe]

22.3.13

Jurgen Brunswijk is injured on the eve of our match with Norway. So as to not cause disruption, I decide against a replacement since he won't have time to fit into our plans.

23.3.13

Norway could pose a couple of threats today, but we really should have the class to win. From the Czech game, I make three changes. Arjen Robben returns to the team, and I give Ed Kuipers a place in attack alongside Klaas-Jan Huntelaar.

Holland 2

Kuipers 25

Thijssen 76

Norway 0

Another very satisfying win. We were fluent in attack, and never tested in defence. Tom Oost was fantastic again, proving you can come into international football at any age and play well. He shook the goalframe early on before Ed Kuipers scored his first international goal in his first game for the Oranje in three years. He gathered Robben's flick on, ran at goal, and slotted the ball past Kristiansen. The goal was the last action in front of goal in the half, and for the second period I made just the one change, giving a debut to Prince Raicomar. Eight minutes after the restart Van Der Vaart hit a shot which was always veering away from goal, clipping the post on its way. Norway had their first shot of note, through John Carew, and it was his turn to hit the woodwork with a volley that struck the crossbar. Raicomar became the third player to hit the frame of the goal in five minutes with a header which met the post. Four changes came with twenty minutes to go, and it was one of them who won the game. Maarten Thijssen dribbled away from Helstad and Ystaas, then kept the ball low with a shot to score his first goal for the Netherlands. Two new goalscorers, and another good win. All in preparation for next year's World Cup.

Team: Stekelenburg, Hofland, Van Dijk, H.Seedorf (Heitinga 72), Bouma, Oost, Mendes da Silva©, Van der Vaart (Jans 72), Robben (Thijssen 72), Kuipers (De Jong 72), Huntelaar (Raicomar 45)

30.3.13

We managed a fine goalless draw when Parma visited earlier in the campaign. We go today to the Tardini, where our record is good. Cavalcante is fit to return for Lombardi.

Parma 1

Marica 90

Varese 0

Noooooooo! A draw might have been an injustice to Parma, but to lose in the ninety-third minute is plain wrong. Adrian Mutu might be in a contractual dispute with his club, but he's still as dangerous as ever, testing Stekelenburg at an early point. Alexiou's header made Luciani decide to pull out the real stops on twenty-six, and then Adriano took a layer of paint off the crossbar. Parma were dominating to an extent, but never to a point where we were in real trouble. Mutu hit the post two mintues into the second half, but then after withholding the pressure Luciani needed to make another good save from Alexiou. Late on Santos shot over, not getting his bearings right, but as the second 0-0 drew closer, we had everything fall apart. Adriano knocked a cross on, and from a very tight angle, Ciprian Marica beat Stekelenburg. Any hopes of Europe must be over now.

Team: Stekelenburg, Milton do Ó, Todisco, Yepes, Asara, Montanari, Cavalcante, Doukas©, Santos, Skalidis, Alexiou

3.4.13

A win against Lecce is a must: any hopes of Europe will surely disappear, and for a club like us that is disappointing. We should be challenging for the title, not the InterToto Cup. Unchanged.

Varese 1

Alexiou 23

Yepes sent off 84

Lecce 1

De Crescenzo 7 pen

Damásio de Oliveira sent off 18

A strange game if I've ever seen one. We were in grave danger of losing on a large scale until Lecce were reduced to ten men. Then, we looked good and might have won. As it was, we had a red card too, and ended up with a point which does nothing for us. I'm not happy with referee Gabriele Husic, nor his assistant(s). Cavalcante was backing into Paolo De Crescenzo waiting for a seventh minute corner. Lecce appealed for a penalty, which Mr. Husic waved away. But his assistant on the near side, Sergio Arraldelli, penalised my midfielder and called for a penalty. De Crescenzo put us behind with his tenth of the season. It was all we needed. Lecce grew in confidence and looked to increase the lead. That was, until Damásio de Oliveira drove in two footed on Cavalcante and was sent off for his troubles. It allowed us to relax, and five minutes later we were level. Cavalcante passed into Doukas, who played a ball across the six yard box, inviting a touch from Alexiou. It arrived, on cue, for 1-1. Generoso Rossi made two fingertip saves before the break, and more in the second half. The numbers were evened late on when Mario Yepes was booked for a second time, the second for upending Vucinic. The first was for backing into Falanga. The draw (yet another?!) leaves us in a poor position, but it's our own fault.

Team: Stekelenburg, Milton do Ó, Todisco, Yepes, Asara, Montanari, Cavalcante, Doukas©, Santos, Skalidis, Alexiou

[Philip Rolfe]

6.4.13

I appealed again the Yepes ban, and again, it will be revoked.

10.4.13

Brescia have improved massively since we beat them 4-1 way back last year, but we should still have what it takes and more to beat them. Anastasios Skalidis hasn't scored in a while, so Escudero gets a chance. Baggio is fit to resume in central defence.

Varese 3

Alexiou 53, 56

Escudero 71

Brescia 0

It did take us a while to get ourselves going, but after the first goal we were able to really take the game to Brescia and win comfortably, although less so than the scoreline suggests. Seventeen year old goalkeeper Michele Adamo made a string of good first half stops from various Varese players, but two in particular from Santos and Escudero. Donato Salvatori had the best Brescia chances, but we, or I should say Stekelenburg, kept him at bay. The goal would come, of that I was sure. It arrived eight minutes into the second half. Santos gathered the ball on the left, and crossed for Alexiou to head home. As I predicted, it opened Brescia up, and number two was only just around the corner. Montanari slung the cross over this time, and there was Alexiou to mop up. He's done well to score fourteen, and I feel if he had not have been disrupted by an eight game ban, he would have had more, and we'd have been better off. A third was a little unfair on Brescia, but Escudero's dribble and volley was too nice to refuse to allow. It'll be really hard to make sixth, but we'll plug away.

Team: Stekelenburg, Milton do Ó, Todisco, Baggio, Asara, Montanari, Cavalcante, Doukas©, Santos, Escudero, Alexiou

11.4.13

I have to name a Dutch squad for the upcoming meeting with England. Martin Jans and Wilfried Bouma join Jurgen Brunswijk on the injury list, and coming in are Youssouf Hersi, Glenn Loovens, and Tim Slot, a fine and talented sweeper from Ajax. Cor Varkevisser is replaced by Bert Bosman.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Holland - Wednesday 10th April 2013

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

Squad

================================================================================================

No Name Position(s) Nat Born Age Caps Gls Wages Expires Value

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Bosman, Bert GK HOL 7.11.91 21 7 - £19K 2.6.16 £3M

- Heitinga, John SW/D RC HOL 15.11.83 29 5 - £16K 28.6.15 £1.2M

- Hersi, Youssouf AM/F LC HOL 20.8.82 30 52 13 £90K 10.6.16 £11.5M

- Hofland, Kevin D C HOL 7.6.79 33 80 2 £75K 1.6.16 £2.7M

- Huntelaar, Klaas-Jan S C HOL 12.8.83 29 9 3 £18.25K 22.6.15 £4.4M

- Kuijt, Dirk S C HOL 22.6.80 32 26 7 £33K 16.5.14 £875K

- Kuipers, Ed S C HOL 29.6.89 23 8 1 £4.7K 23.6.16 £5.5M

- Lamey, Michael D R HOL 29.11.79 33 32 - £20.5K 2.6.15 £825K

- Loovens, Glenn D C HOL 22.9.83 29 - - £9.75K 4.6.15 £1M

- Mendes da Silva, David D/DM C HOL 8.4.82 31 57 4 £55K 6.6.17 £5.5M

- Oost, Tom DM RC HOL 10.2.93 20 5 - £3.3K 4.6.15 £350K

- Oude Kamphuis, Niels D/DM RC HOL 14.11.77 35 54 1 £11.25K 3.6.13 £450K

- Raicomar, Prince S C HOL 25.4.85 27 1 - £9.75K 15.6.14 £90K

- Reneerkens, Jordy S C HOL 7.10.83 29 1 - £8K 28.6.14 £220K

- Robben, Arjen AM/F LC HOL 23.1.84 29 61 14 £43.5K 27.6.17 £8.75M

- Seedorf, Dennis DM RLC HOL 9.11.86 26 2 - £16K 13.6.18 £1.8M

- Seedorf, Henk D C HOL 1.8.82 30 19 - £21K 1.6.16 £1.9M

- Slot, Tim SW/D RC HOL 12.6.91 21 1 - £5.5K 19.6.15 £3M

- Stekelenburg, Maarten GK HOL 22.9.82 30 14 - £22.5K 19.6.17 £3.3M

- Thijssen, Maarten S C HOL 9.2.88 25 3 1 £13.25K 1.6.16 £3.2M

- de Cler, Tim D L HOL 11.8.78 34 4 - £27K 19.6.13 £150K

- de Jong, Jaap F C HOL 8.3.88 25 10 1 £21.5K 25.6.16 £4.7M

- van Dijk, Roy D C HOL 16.6.87 25 6 - £7.25K 5.6.14 £2.5M

- van Nistelrooy, Ruud S C HOL 1.7.76 36 105 63 £29.5K 10.6.13 £220K

- van der Meyde, Andy AM/F R HOL 30.9.79 33 88 9 £70K 27.6.13 £550K

- van der Vaart, Rafael AM LC HOL 11.2.83 30 66 8 £70K 24.6.16 £6.25M

</pre>

[Blanket Jackson]

Bloody hell didn't realise this story was still going. Excellent stuff mate

[Philip Rolfe]

Yep, it's been too long - Cheers.

14.4.13

A win over Piacenza will move us above them and into seventh. We'll be unchanged, meaning Escudero us retained.

Piacenza 1

Marras 19

Varese 0

With four games left we can really wave goodbye to Europe now. It was a pretty even match, decided by one momentary lapse in defence. Ettore Marras rose highest from Barone's corner to head his maiden goal in club football. It came after Escudero and Santos had both been wayward with chances. Escudero came back after the goal and saw his flashing effort saved by Tamboletti. Even when Skalidis came on in the second half, there was no change. Alexiou struck a half volley which missed the net by inches, if that. Spaniard striker Alonso came close to tying the win for Piacenza with a late header, but it also came to nothing. We were good enough to deserve a point, but them's the breaks. Technically, with maximum points from the remaining games, we can do it, but it won't happen.

Team: Stekelenburg, Milton do Ó, Todisco, Baggio, Asara, Montanari, Cavalcante, Doukas©, Santos, Escudero (Skalidis 59), Alexiou

17.4.13

Andy van der Meyde tore a hamstring playing for Real Madrid last night, and has to pull out of my squad. In replacement, I plump for Marco van der Geest, a very similar player.

19.4.13

Real Madrid, of all sides, arrive with a £6.25m bid for Andrea Todisco. Once again, the bid is politely rejected.

20.4.13

Not content with my refusal, Real come back with an offer of £7.5m. Again, I tell Miguel Chendo he is not for sale at any price.

21.4.13

Palermo are on the verge of relegation, and we need the win to have any chance of European football. Skalidis starts, and as Montanari has a knock, Balzaretti comes in.

Varese 2

Alexiou 17 pen, 90

Palermo 0

It was another deserved win, even if at many times the game seemed to be going the same way as so many other games we've been involved in the season. A great early start on our part saw Mario Zorzi, the Palermo captain in goal, make two saves from Santos and one more from Todisco. Getting in and about the visitors helped us take the lead, which came from the penalty spot. Asara crossed to Baggio, who was arriving, but was nudged in the back by Córdoba. Instead of Doukas, Alexiou stepped up and hammed the kick to the 'keeper's bottom right. Five minutes later, Skalidis headed in what should have been a second, but Balzaretti was given offside for the cross. While we swarmed all over the Sicilians, they still had Alexandre Chartier, who could change the scoreline at any moment. Throughout the second half, they had us worried a fair few times, despite Skalidis hitting the post. It was quite worrying, since we have tended to throw away so much recently, but in stoppage time the second goal came, and what a strike it was too. Milton do Ó played a perfect long ball to the penalty spot, and with the deftest of lobs Alexiou scored for the sixteeenth time this season. Satisfying, but I've got that end of season blues, which means we have only mid table mediocrity to play for.

Team: Stekelenburg, Milton do Ó, Todisco, Baggio, Asara, Balzaretti, Cavalcante, Doukas©, Santos, Skalidis (Escudero 79), Alexiou

The defeat relegates Palermo, along with Brescia, and Torino.

[Philip Rolfe]

24.4.13

We beat England last season in Amsterdam, and our progression since then will be shown tonight as I continue to build a strong squad. Dennis Seedorf makes a first international start, and since England are the opposition, Van Nistelrooy and Thijssen start in attack as my two most dangerous hitmen.

Holland 2

Robben 4

van der Vaart 15

Robben injured 57

van der Vaart injured 71

England 0

A goal and an injury apiece for Arjen Robben and Rafael van der Vaart meant this was a pleasure/pain experience. It was also a stunningly good win against a very strong England side. Robben started with a bang, curling in a stunning free kick after only four minutes to give us the best possible start. It got even better. Soon enough we went 2-0 ahead, as Roy Van Dijk slid a pass through to van der Vaart, and he crashed the ball high into the back of the net. England changed their tactics a little, and had immediate reward, although Alan Smith did only hit the bar. Jason Patterson did the same nine minutes later. Stekelenburg made a good save from Samba before the break, and another fine one from the same man after. Robben was the first to go off after receiving a sharp kick to the ankle, but his replacement, Youssouf Hersi dribbled all the way through but with no end product. Shortly after van der Vaart became the second scorer to go off, Tom Oost shook the frame of the goal with a seriously powerful shot from distance. It's another very impressive performance from my Oranje.

Team: Stekelenburg, Hofland, Van Dijk, H.Seedorf (Heitinga 72), D.Seedorf, Oost, Mendes da Silva©, Van der Vaart (Kuipers 71), Robben (Hersi 57), Van Nistelrooy, Thijssen (de Jong 57)

28.4.13

Let's just say I'm not looking forward to travelling to Salernitana, where we don't tend to do well. Saying that, we've won 3-1 at the Arechi on the last two visits. But without Milton do Ó and Todisco through suspension, it's harder.

Salernitana 2

Trotta 19

Marcucci 45

Varese 0

Doukas injured 41

Milan's draw with Brescia means Europe is still on, but it's another silly defeat. Salernitana deserved the win, as once again we did not turn up. Matteo Trotta was the star, and from very early on he showed his star quality, testing Stekelenburg on three minutes. On nineteen minutes he got into enough space to score the opener, before we came into the game at all. When we did, minutes later, Skalidis wasted golden opportunities to peg us back level. Stilianos Doukas would have been one man who could have got us back in the game, but when he went off injured with a thigh strain, it became harder. Even harder when Massimo Marcucci bent in a left foot shot to make it 2-0 before the turnaround. We didn't have what it took to get the one goal which might have sprouted confidence, and the game peetered out into another defeat.

Team: Stekelenburg, Montanari, Yepes, Baggio, Asara, Balzaretti, Cavalcante, Doukas© (Lombardi 41), Santos, Skalidis (Escudero 79), Alexiou

[Philip Rolfe]

5.5.13

May's here, and with it the end of season feeling, and Bologna. Nice weather, good football, and a championship challenge. Oh wait... . My defence is back in order, but Lombardi is in for Doukas.

Varese 2

Santos 76, 90

Bologna 2

Tocaymasa 42, 43

Carlos Alberto Viera Dos Santos fought back against some recent media criticism with two late goals to save our bacon, but it wasn't enough in the end to see us into Europe. A fifteenth draw in 33 games is just unacceptable. We might have been behind earlier than we were, but when Manolis Ligkos thought he had scored, the linesman's flag cut his celebrations short. António Cardoso, the visiting goalkeeper, made a good save from Skalidis, but then we really were behind. Emanuel Tocaymasa, a young Argentinian forward on loan from Salernitana, was first to a rebound when Stekelenburg could not hold on to Galli's shot. As if that wasn't bad enough, he scored with his very next touch. Ligkos cushioned a header, and Tocaymasa cracked in the second. That was supposedly it. In the second half, we didn't create much (surprise surprise) and had a lack of luck. But with fifteen minutes to go there was a glimmer of hope when Alexiou put Santos in, and he scored for the first time in a while. He was the only one likely to get us something, and get us something he did, in injury time. Montanari flicked on a long pass, and Santos drilled low and hard into the bottom corner.

Team: Stekelenburg, Milton do Ó, Todisco, Baggio, Asara, Montanari, Cavalcante©, Lombardi, Santos, Skalidis, Alexiou

7.5.13

The shortlist for voting on the FIFA World Player of the Year is released for my perusing, and I must pick one for my vote. Dominated by South Americans, I eventually pick Mattia Rossini of Inter. He's had a very good year for club and country, and in my eyes is the most deserving.

The Shortlist:

Adriano (Parma and Brazil)

Fernando Cavenaghi (Roma and Argentina)

Sidney Govou (FC Bayern and France)

Thierry Henry (Barcelona and France)

Miroslav Klose (FC Bayern and Germany)

José Antonio Reyes (Atlético Madrid and Spain)

Juan Román Riquelme (Barcelona and Argentina)

Mattia Rossini (Inter and Italy)

Roque Santa Cruz (FC Bayern and Paraguay)

Javier Saviola (Barcelona and Argentina)

[Philip Rolfe]

12.5.13

'tis the last day of the season. We can move as high as seventh with a win, but our opponents are Inter, who are in a race for the Scudetto with Napoli, Juventus, and Lazio. Balzaretti is once more in for the injury-stricken Montanari.

Varese 3

Balzaretti 15

Santos 44

Lombardi 84

Inter 1

Colombini 41

Poulsen sent off 17

A very nice way to finish a poor season. We cost Inter the Scudetto, which is nice, and handed it on a plate to Napoli, taking their first title since the days of Maradona. It started well, as just a quarter of an hour had passed when Alexiou played in Montanari for his first goal of the season. It got better when, just two minutes later, Christian Poulsen was sent off for shoving Santos over. But Inter had enough in them, knowing the prize at stake, to come back and equalise before the half time break when Colombini headed in Rosicky's cross. They weren't level when they were sucking their half time oranges though, as Santos rampaged through and buried a fine goal. We played well in the second half, and the man who pulled all the strings in that time period scored his first ever career goal with six minutes to go. Giovanni Lombardi ran past Ventola and Rossini before scoring a wonderful goal to cap a fine last day of the season. Too bad the rest of the campaign wasn't as good.

Team: Stekelenburg, Milton do Ó, Todisco, Baggio, Asara, Balzaretti, Cavalcante©, Lombardi, Santos, Skalidis, Alexiou

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Italian Serie A - Sunday 12th May 2013

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

2012/3 Table

================================================================================================

Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Napoli 34 11 4 2 30 8 9 6 2 25 11 70

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2nd Lazio 34 11 4 2 30 8 9 4 4 28 14 68

3rd Juventus 34 10 5 2 23 12 10 3 4 27 17 68

4th Inter 34 12 2 3 27 6 7 8 2 20 13 67

5th Parma 34 9 6 2 20 8 7 4 6 16 14 58

6th Milan 34 9 4 4 27 12 6 3 8 17 17 52

7th Varese 34 5 11 1 28 17 6 4 7 21 21 48

8th Roma 34 8 5 4 23 17 5 4 8 17 24 48

9th Salernitana 34 8 5 4 25 17 4 6 7 17 21 47

10th Piacenza 34 8 6 3 22 15 4 4 9 12 22 46

11th Chievo 34 7 4 6 20 16 4 8 5 14 15 45

12th Lecce 34 8 4 5 22 15 3 8 6 19 28 45

13th Bologna 34 8 2 7 27 27 3 6 8 18 24 41

14th Perugia 34 4 8 5 18 17 3 5 9 16 26 34

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

15th R Vicenza 34 3 6 8 11 21 4 7 6 16 25 34

16th R Brescia 34 2 7 8 11 27 2 5 10 11 27 24

17th R Palermo 34 2 6 9 15 32 2 2 13 10 40 20

18th R Torino 34 3 0 14 20 38 1 2 14 9 40 14

</pre>

[Philip Rolfe]

And with that, the story comes to an end. Twelve years at Varese have been documented over fifteen months, and 175,000 words in 310 A4 pages. I might have been able to continue this to an ending, but as I've lost heart in the tale it's something I really don't want to spoil by decreasing its quality. At times, I've felt I've only been writing for the sake of writing, and not for pleasure. Varese is now a part of my life - I never imagined the success I could have with them. But I have to admit failure on the Challenge front (remember that? ), which disappoints me.

I'll leave you with some Varese stats from over the years, and thank everyone who took the time to read and contribute to my tale of a small Italian side who made it big.

The Players (Total: 119)

Ahmed Yahiaoui

Alessandro Nigro

Alessandro Sbrizzo

Alfred Santos de Jesus

Alfredo Belfiore

Anastasios Skalidis

Anders Nielsen

Andrea Ferrante

Andrea Todisco

Anton Roelofsen

Antonio Cadeddu

Antonio Morello

Brian Rooney

Carlos Albero Viera Dos Santos

Carlton Cole

Charly Balepheteke

Christian Anselmi

Christian Santi

Christian Vieri

Christos Alexiou

Claudio Cavalcante

Craig Rowlands

Cristian Molinaro

Daniel Orellana

David Beckham

Davide Barsotti

Dejan Simac

Dennis Seedorf

Dioni

Domenico Asara

Domenico Zanini

Dudu

Edoardo Gorini

Edu Dracena

Edwin

Emanuele Calaio

Emiliano Dei

Federico Balzaretti

Fernando Escudero

Francesco Toldo

Francisco Pavón

Gabriel Batistuta

Gabriele Cecchetto

Gabriele Cecchetto

Gaetano Montanari

Giacomo Nincheri

Gianluca Cinquetti

Gioacchino Cavaliere

Giorgio Parisi

Giovanni Lombardi

Giovanni Sannino

Gonzalo Martínez

Graziano Gioia

Greg Lewis

Hugo Michael Enyinnaya

Ianis Zicu

Igor Tcherevchenko

Jean-Toussant Moretti

Josip Colina

Juho Makela

Kevo Gulessarian

Kim Bø

Laurent Plaquet

Leandro Rinaudo

Lennart Lynge Larsen

Maarten Stekelenburg

Marco Fuoco

Marijan Buljat

Mario Piras

Mario Tricarico

Mario Yepes

Massimiliano Vieri

Mateusz Dobek

Mattia Rinaldini

Mauro Ragatzu

Michele De Simone

Milton do Ó

Mohammed Benhassen

Neil Mellor

Neil Roberts

Nicola Legrottaglie

Nicolas Cinalli

Nikolaos Tobros

Obafemi Martins

Olof Mellberg

Pablo Asencio

Patrick Rota

Paul Gascoigne

Per Verner Rønning

Piero Ferraresso

Piotr Frankowski

Raffaele Moroni

Renzo Andreazzoli

Roberto Bandirali

Roberto Franzese

Roberto Javier Mina

Rory Allen

Rosario Majella

Salvatore Avallone

Sami Hyypia

Sandro Liberti

Sasa Jakomin

Sebastian Conti

Selim Benachour

Sergio Páez

Simone Cocco

Simone Loria

Srdjan Novkovic

Stefano Brognoli

Stefano Del Grande

Stefano Presotto

Stephen McPhee

Steven Sidwell

Stilianos Doukas

Valeri Emilov Bojinov

Vito Cozzolino

Vittorio Baggio

Vratislav Gresko

Zlatko Zebic

Records:

Highest League Position: 3rd in Serie A (2011/12)

Highest Attendance: 14,999 (first achieved vs Parma, 11.10.08)

Lowest Attendance: 1858 (vs Savona, 22.8.01)

Biggest Win: 6-0 vs Sangiovannese (26.10.03)

Biggest Defeat: 1-5 vs Cesena (18.11.01)

Highest Match Aggregate: Varese 5-6 Bologna (1.3.09)

Top Goalscorer in single league season: Marcello Campolonghi (32, 2003/04)

Most goals in a match: Gabriel Batistuta (5, vs Spezia, 9.11.03)

Most Assists in a single league season: Stilianos Doukas (28, 2010/11)

Most League Appearances for Club: Edoardo Gorini (383)

Most League Goals for Club: Christos Alexiou (90)

Youngest Player: Gianluca Cinquetti (15, vs Ancona, 10.10.04)

Oldest Player: Sami Hyypia (38, vs Rangers, 13.9.11)

Highest Transfer Fee Paid: £2.8m for Fernando Escudero, 10.7.12)

Highest Transfer Fee Received: £4.9m for Roberto Javier Mina, 28.12.11)

Total Spent: £17.5m

Total Received: £28.5m

My Overall Match Record: P550 W251 D138 L161 F945 A704

Leagues Won: 1

Cups Won: 7

Days At Varese. 4305

Varese Regens:

Andrea Todisco ---> Gianluca Lamacchi

Domenico Asara ---> Gianmarco Frezza

Gaetano Montanari ---> Giovanni Ignoffo

Vittorio Baggio ---> Giulio Falcone

Christian Anselmi ---> Antonio Langella

Giorgio Parisi ---> Bernardo Corradi

Fernando Escudero ---> Javi Moreno

Giovanni Lombardi ---> Fabio Pecchia

And with that, I bid you all farewell.

Many thanks again to all that spared their time to read

[nerf]

Congrats Juni

You might not have achieved the difficult original challenge, but it was a fine attempt and a fine tale. A haul of eight trophies isn't bad either! Lets be honest, with a team like Varese (*spit*), it was never likely to get any better

[BobBev]

Well done on an epic tale and a terrific achievement

[Guest]

It makes me sad to see you stop right now, but I do understand you got full of it. Excellent story. It was really joy to read it. You were so close.........

I think lots of people got attached to VARSE, and god forbid they play in Europe once, I don't doubt that they'll have some support

Take care,

[Philip Rolfe]

Cheers for the comments guys - HZ chose his first post to comment on it - much appreciated

[ghostwriter]

just caught up and discovered it was over

but it was a great story, entertaining reading

not bad achievements either