Chievo Season Preview 2015-16: Mighty Maran to pilot Flying Donkeys

Date: 18th August 2015 at 2:00pm
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Chievo will look to launch their upcoming campaign in Serie A in the same manner they ended the previous – carefully and cautiously.

Pellissier - Cesena v Chievo

Fighting for survival for the most of last season, the club turned it around following the winter break. Just four losses in 17 league games since February 11 propelled Chievo to a respectable 14th position in the Serie A table.

The orchestrator of this turnaround was Rolando Maran, Chievo’s coach. Brought in as a replacement for Eugenio Corini as early as in October, Maran stabilised the Flying Donkeys defensively, making them hard to breakdown.

As the new season approaches, the team will need more of the same if they are to firstly, comfortably avoid relegation and secondly, fight for a mid-table finish.

Transfers

The Gialloblu have made some effective yet frugal signings in the summer transfer window. Topping the list is Simone Pepe. The former Bianconeri midfielder joined the club on free transfer, after spending five years in Turin. Although injuries prevented his development with the Old Lady, Pepe will be now looking to rejuvenate his career at the age of 31.

Another important free transfer signing is Parma veteran and left-back Massimo Gobbi. The 34-year-old, well known for his defensive attributes will make the Gialloblu a more solid defensive unit.

Other additions include winger Lucas Castro, signed from Serie B side Catania for a fee of around 3 million and defender Fabrizio Cacciatore signed on loan from Sampdoria.

Nevertheless, Paul-Jose Mpoku is perhaps the player to watch out for – signed on loan from Standard Liege, he spent the second half of last season with Cagliari.

Paul-Jose M'Poku Standard Liege

On the other hand, there haven’t been many prominent departures from Chievo. Left-back Ervin Zukanovic has moved to Sampdoria for a fee of 2.5m whereas Diego Farias, who played on loan at Cagliari last season, has signed with them permanently in the Serie B for a fee of around 1m.

The Coach – Rolando Maran

With over 250 appearances for Chievo during his time as a player, Maran is clearly a fan favourite and truly one of Chievo’s own. The 52-year-old made a name for himself as a coach with Catania after he took the club to a 8th place finish in the 2012-2013 Serie A season.

Maran not only lays strict emphasis on defence but he also likes to play with two up top. At Chievo, he usually prefers the pairing of Alberto Paloschi and Sergio Pellissier or Alberto Paloschi and Riccardo Meggiorini.

His sides do not play an out-and-out attacking style of football. Rather, his players adopt a cautious approach to the game and depend a lot on counter-attacks to get forward.

Moreover, Maran will find no reason to change his tactics after a pretty impressive start so far at Verona.

Season Expectations

There’s no reason why the Gialloblu fans can’t ‘dare to dream’ this season. Of course, the last thing anyone associated with the club would want is fighting for survival.

Rolando Maran

That said, such a situation appears unlikely this time around as the club has strengthened and is looking a lot more balanced than last season thanks to some intelligent signings.

More importantly, the board has done a wonderful job in retaining the players highly integral to the team like Paloschi and Valter Birsa. And under the guidance of an enthusiastic and passionate coach such as Maran, a mid-table finish is well within reach.

Prediction

The renewed enthusiasm in and around the football club is likely to bode well with the ambitions of the club. The transfer window signings not only look promising but also add the much-needed depth to a fragile squad. This way Chievo can comfortably rotate their squad and also match up to the likes of the bigger teams like AC Milan and Inter.

Not to forget the motivation and leadership Maran brings into the fold that is sure to mould Chievo into a stronger and more resilient unit.

Expected finish: 17th (NB: this is not necessarily Ganesh Loosupenne’s opinion but the average of our editors’ predictions.)

 

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