Years ago, Bohemian coach Zdenek Zeman, among the many catchphrases that contributed to the creation of his character, claimed that the derby is a match like any other. In itself and for our sporting culture, this statement is half blasphemy. If then, as in his case, it is expressed in a city like Rome, where everything is amplified, where the football-loving environment is always revved up and where the rivalry goes beyond the sporting aspect, then the phrase blazes up like wildfire. in a dry and arid bush. The derby in Rome is certainly a worthwhile match: it is worth more than the three points up for grabs, it is worth more than a position in the standings, it is worth affirming, at least on the pitch, the city’s superiority. But if the Rome derby has a very particular value, in an Italy divided in the past into fiefdoms and grand duchies, the dispute and rivalry between neighbors is a practice cultivated with passion from north to south, from east to west and precisely for Where better to transfer this comparison? In sport, in the stadium, in a sports hall, in an arena, wherever there is the possibility of competition. Italy is divided between Coppi and Bartali, Saronni and Moser, Gimondi and Merckx, how can you think that it isn’t divided between neighbors? Therefore the derby is the derby, let Zeman get over it, the Italian people may be provincial and not very learned but there is little to discuss about territoriality and identification.
In Livorno, however, the basketball derby follows tradition: lots of rivalry, the usual teasing between fans and the possibility, declared and signed, that victory gives to mock the opponent. All this until the next challenge which will shuffle the cards again.
The calendar has a hand in it, the derby is the last effort of the regular season and with the standings in hand it is a match that has no value, Pielle is firmly first in the standings while Libertas is one position behind; the two Livorno teams one behind the other are certainly the best commercial for a city that is reaching one of the lowest points in its history with football. And basketball involves, involves many families and the audience, as I have already had the opportunity to say, is the most transversal imaginable, both in terms of age and social background. Therefore in the surroundings of the Palamodi you can see everything but the two groups of fans are the masters and warm up their engines well before the start of hostilities.
The supremacy of the derby allows you to mock your opponent so we can be more than certain that the atmosphere will be tense. That the match is extremely popular is demonstrated by the numbers and the frantic rush to purchase the ticket: this evening too there was the sold out, a sign that the meeting goes well beyond the contingencies of the field. The arena looks like the usual noisy bowl, the corners are packed but even in the rest of the sectors you can perceive the desire to affect the result: as soon as the teams enter the parquet for the classic warm-up, here on one side is the forest of whistles and on the other thunderous applause and ritual chants. The building is boiling and it couldn’t be otherwise. Generally the Pielle faithful audience is larger, in the derbies this difference flattens out and even on this evening the white and blue numerical supremacy is not evident, a sign that Libertas has a good number of fans who are perhaps not very loyal, or perhaps less motivated by the results that they see them chasing, but in certain circumstances they love to be present. There would obviously be room for improvement and a possible promotion could be the push for the definitive leap in quality. With regards to the numbers, there is little to complain about on the other side, the Curva Sud can count on a large pool of fans and the organization of the support is now a well-oiled mechanism.
Pre-match characterized by the ritual skirmishes, the two corners immediately try to show their muscles and subdue their opponent, the participation is notable because even the remaining sectors do not fail to make their voices heard, the atmosphere is festive but also full of adrenaline .
We arrive at the most awaited moment of the challenge, that of the choreography and this evening there is only to applaud both sets of fans who offer two quality shows: the hosts opt to enhance the colors and monuments of the city, the project it is well designed and the creation goes smoothly, the result is excellent with the amaranth-silver cards which are perfect for giving color.
The Curva Sud, after some choreography that didn’t turn out very well, this time doesn’t let itself be blamed and offers white and blue cards with a central flag and an outline banner on the balustrade: “a tradition handed down”. Nice show, also in this case the realization is perfect. The evening, due to its warmth and colour, could also end here, the show in the stands would already be guaranteed but there is also the match and the vocal support that must accompany the match.
By now I have learned to know the “basketball” support, the intensity almost diligently follows the progress of the match and this evening on the parquet there is no story at all, Libertas immediately puts their face in front of their opponent and mistreats him for the whole match. duration of the match, the result was never in the balance, a supremacy that is difficult to predict given the caliber of the two teams. But evidently the motivations make the difference: Pielle perhaps found themselves with a belly full of first place in the standings while Libertas played the match as if it were a decisive derby and the result rewarded the amaranths. In the stands the Stragglers they coordinated a cheer that necessarily involved the entire corner, at times there wasn’t even a need to rally those present, by now everyone in the corner felt obliged to support the team and mock their opponents.
The South Curve he tried to encourage an unrecognizable team, the vocal support never failed, as the minutes passed and a defeat of considerable dimensions materialized, even if on a vocal level only the hard core remained to pull the strings. It’s a shame because as far as the glance is concerned, flags and pennants have always given a nice touch of color and from a purely aesthetic point of view, the Rebels they were able to liven up the curve perfectly.
There was no shortage of teasing banners. The two corners did not hold back on this issue, after all this is the beauty of the derby, hitting the opponent where the tooth hurts and doing it in the nicest and most colorful way there could be. In this regard, the two auction “A Fauglia solo Pielle” is the clear synthesis of that sharp and decisive Tuscan irony, some may have turned up their noses but as a disinterested spectator I can say that thinking such a phrase is not so obvious.
The end of the match slips away without too many shocks and at the final siren there isn’t even that spirited and uncoordinated invasion of the pitch by the two fans, it’s the winners who invade the parquet but with the result in the safe there isn’t even the will of making too much fun of the people across the street, who almost all remain in their seats in a mixture of anger and resignation. However, the desire to applaud a team that this evening showed the ugliest side of itself but which still finished the match still prevails. regular season first in the rankings. Great celebration for the Libertassi fans, the city’s superiority is expressed by the unequivocal result. Until the next derby, until the next challenge which will not be a normal challenge. And the atmosphere breathed in a hall of over eight thousand people proves it.
Valerio Poli
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