Football Season Guide

After making the top 10 of Serie A for 3 consecutive seasons, with new coach Di Francesco at the helm, Sampdoria hoped to make the quantum leap needed to fight for a European spot again in the past campaign. Reality bites, though, and the Blucerchiati were severely bitten as, at the beginning of November, they found themselves sitting at the bottom of the table. Coach Ranieri, who replaced Di Francesco in all haste, eventually managed to turn the tide, and Sampdoria achieved quiet safety in the end. Thanks to the results obtained quite against all odds, Ranieri was blessed with an extension of the deal tying him to the club, and he will be given the opportunity to build his own team right from the start of the new season. Truth be said, Sampdoria's transfer campaign has been far from exciting thus far. In fact, apart from signing 20-year-old midfielder Damsgaard, they limited themselves to acquiring permanently some of the players who had been lent to them in the past campaign. Among them, centre-back Yoshida and left-back Augello are certainly the ones who stood out. Moreover, Verre and Murillo returned to base after being loaned out last season but they should only be considered as back-ups. If they were not particularly active in terms of new signings, Sampdoria only lost 1 main pawn in Linetty, who preferred to quit for Torino. He could end up being seriously missed if no replacement arrives. Maroni and Bertolacci also left but they had never managed to impose themselves during the campaign. Sampdoria are currently looking for a back-up goalkeeper, a couple of midfielders and a prolific striker, considering that last season their top scorer and top assist-man was once again Quagliarella, who is 36 but managed to bag 11 goals and serve 5 assists.