Food For Thought: De-Hunchbacking The Hunchback - A Florentine Ritual

Hunchbacks, Juventus And Fiorentina - A Strange Tale

Juventus are by far the most successful and most popular football club in Italy and while there are several reasons for the Old Lady's success, according to the Fiorentina fans they are successful only because they are lucky.

In Italy hunchbacks are seen as lucky and Juventus, according to those from Florence, have been historically immensely lucky. Which is why Fiorentina supporters purify a player of his 'Gobbi' soul when he moves from Juventus to Fiorentina.

Juventus and Fiorentina foster a massive rivalry but this did not stop the two clubs from striking a deal that saw Felipe Melo move from Florence to Turin while Marco Marchionni moved in the opposite direction.

Marchionni Is No More A Hunchback

The Gigliati supporters performed a ritual called the ‘degobizzazione’ on Thursday afternoon after the training session and 'de-hunchbacked' (symbolically of course) Marchionni. 

The player has now been purified of his 'Gobbi' (hunchbacks) soul and is now ready to integrate into the Fiorentina unit.

Adriano Galliani's AC Milan Takeover - Is It Feasible?

There is no doubt that AC Milan are financially weak and that they cannot garner the funds that would see them sign some of the best players in the world. Their inability to cough up more than €14 million for Sevilla's Brazilian international striker Luis Fabiano testified the problems that the Rossoneri are immersed in at the moment.

As it usually happens when a club goes through financial difficulties, Milan have been linked with a takeover. No, this time the person supposed to rejuvenate Milan is not a billionaire from Russia but the club's very own vice-president Adriano Galliani.

'Uncle Fester' is reportedly interested in buying the club from Silvio Berlusconi and would be heading a group of Israeli businessmen.

Galliani, of course, has refuted such claims but the question now is whether Berlusconi should indeed sell his 'baby'. Milan has always been a familial member for Berlusconi, a child whom he had developed with his own hands from the 1980s through the 1990s to the 21st century. Although there are reports that Berlusconi's family wants him to sell the club, the Italian Prime Minister is reluctant to let go of his passion that is Milan.

How Long Can The Smile Last?

But at the same time Berlusconi is unable to sustain Milan's lofty ideals and stature. Milan have not won the scudetto since 2004 and the last time they won anything major was the Champions League in 2007. Since then Milan have gone horribly off the rail and even had to sell their most prize asset - Kaka - this summer in order to ease their financial woes.

And with no superstars set to join the Rossoneri this summer and the team requiring urgent reinforcements in several departments, many are predicting a horrible 2009-2010 campaign for Leonardo's side.

So is it time for Silvio Berlusconi to let go of AC Milan?

Subhankar Mondal