Serie A will have to wait another year

By European Football
May 14 2005

20 years ago, this year Verona won the Serie A championship, I got very drunk and ditched a girlfriend in order to return to England to live, seemingly safe in the knowledge that my beloved Hellas could look after themselves, while I got on with the important business of worrying about Newcastle.

We were champions, we would build on it, but frankly years of mismanagement, short sightedness at board level and a willingness to let every player of any talent leave has led to season after season of disappointment.

This season was to be it though, we would return to the promised land of Serie A, I would have to beg the wife for various afternoons away to stand in the curva, and hate the opposition, for at least ninety minutes (but in the case of Juventus a great deal longer).

But that’s it, like some old slut that’s willing to kick you in the teeth at every given opportunity, Hellas have done it again. Promotion is looking less and less likely, and the riots that followed the defeat to Perugia could cost us dearly.

There was something that should have been written in the stars, headlines should have read 20 years on, the miracle returns and other such poetic nonsense.

But baring a miracle it is not to be for another year, if there is a God, all I can think of is he must be a Juventus fan.

One small crumb of comfort I am willing to take from all this, is Chievo might get relegated.