Austrian Gull
Well-known member
I was at Lake Garda last week for a short break with the family and some friends. We had planned the trip around a game at the San Siro as my eldest's second team is Inter. Got to see them play against Fiorentina on the Saturday night. Top tier in the main stand - 14 euros each! Amazing view of the city skyline when the game got dull. I was quite impressed by the away side whose 1-0 win wasn't undeserved. Lukaku had one of his days when nothing would go in.
Perusing the next day's Gazzetta on a piazza like James Richardson back in the day, I noticed that Sassuolo were playing on Monday night against Torino. Once I'd checked that the game was within reach by car, nothing was going to stop me making a pilgrimage to our great leader's finest hour (until he came to us). First surprise for me - Sassuolo don't actually play in Sassuolo. They play 40 minutes away in Reggio Emilia. Tickets were around 30 euros for a seat along the pitch so more expensive than for Inter.
The stadium is one of only a handful that is privately owned in Italy (Juventus, Udinese) and is shared with Reggiana from the home city. It's got a shopping and entertainment centre bolted onto one of the main stands and is not a thing of beauty. The home curva was minimal with most of the noise coming from the Torino fans in the away end - we were also surrounded by Torino supporters in our stand. I would imagine it must be like a home game for the big clubs when they come. On the pitch the game ended 1-1 with Maxime Lopez (who we were linked with in the last transfer window) impressing most for the home team - defensive midfielder who can play a bit too. Berardi was good for about 15 minutes before disappearing in the second-half. He was also continually booed by the away fans - maybe for his recent performances for the national team?
It was an enjoyable evening but you can see why De Zerbi thought he had taken Sassuolo as far as he could.
Perusing the next day's Gazzetta on a piazza like James Richardson back in the day, I noticed that Sassuolo were playing on Monday night against Torino. Once I'd checked that the game was within reach by car, nothing was going to stop me making a pilgrimage to our great leader's finest hour (until he came to us). First surprise for me - Sassuolo don't actually play in Sassuolo. They play 40 minutes away in Reggio Emilia. Tickets were around 30 euros for a seat along the pitch so more expensive than for Inter.
The stadium is one of only a handful that is privately owned in Italy (Juventus, Udinese) and is shared with Reggiana from the home city. It's got a shopping and entertainment centre bolted onto one of the main stands and is not a thing of beauty. The home curva was minimal with most of the noise coming from the Torino fans in the away end - we were also surrounded by Torino supporters in our stand. I would imagine it must be like a home game for the big clubs when they come. On the pitch the game ended 1-1 with Maxime Lopez (who we were linked with in the last transfer window) impressing most for the home team - defensive midfielder who can play a bit too. Berardi was good for about 15 minutes before disappearing in the second-half. He was also continually booed by the away fans - maybe for his recent performances for the national team?
It was an enjoyable evening but you can see why De Zerbi thought he had taken Sassuolo as far as he could.
