Obviously the true bargains won't be known for some time, but there were a few transfers which caught the eye before the participants had even put on their new shirt. Eliminating loans made sure somebody has actually bought up the entire contract this summer, and everyone of these guys happened to come in at under [.

Italian soccerstar Antonio Cassano reported in relationship with 17-year old Carolina Marcialis, who is playing water polo at Diavolina Nervi. Cassano said to the Italian magazine that he loves Marcialis so much.

"Carolina has changed my life. I love the girl, I'm happy.

News today is that Antonio Cassano has (with the help of writer Gianluigi Pardo) authored his first autobiography, entitled "Vi Dico Tutto" (I'll tell you everything). And as always, Cassano does indeed tell us everything. We'll have to wait for the book to actually be released (it will be on Italian bookshelves next week, November 19 to be exact) to read everything but some excerpts were released and they are quite amusing and interesting.

Since I'm in an "uploading-pictures" kind of mood, here are selected snapshots of Euro 2008's France vs. Italy match two days ago. Emphasis on "selected" (i.e. by me, because I thought they were funny and because I just can). Also, since every self-respecting picture should include a caption, I have provided two for each.

Partizan - Sampdoria 08_09 UEFA Cup. 17 Cassano Antonio
Originally uploaded by photoreti Antonio Cassano jugador italiano, conocido por sus excesos dentro y fuera de la cancha, ha sacado un libro y aquí una de las frases que mas han sonado en la blogosfera:

"A Capello le dije que era más falso que el dinero del Monopoly"
"He tenido aventuras.

Italian sports newspapers Gazzetta dello Sport rated the Azzurri players at the end of their European adventure. Along with Gigi Buffon, positive scores were obtained by Chiellini and Grosso. All the strikers flunked the test, while some midfielders could have done better. The overall form however, was never great.

Unfortunately for fans of the Azzurri, Italy´s EURO 2008 campaign is now little more than a distant and shabby memory. While the nation licks its wounds, our resident Italian football correspondant Henry N. consoles himself by taking one last look back at the 2007/2008 Serie A campaign and compiling his Team of the Season: GK: Sebastian FREY (Fiorentina)

So, the results are in and now it is time for the Final Round of Serie A's Ugliest Footballer. The footballers with the top 10 votes have made it to this round and now we will vote to see who is definitely the ugliest! Results and new poll after the jump.

Here are the top ten ugliest Serie A footballers, voted by you:

1) Giuseppe Mascara - 39 Votes
2) Sulley Muntari - 31 Votes
3) Zlatan Ibrahimovic - 30 Votes
4) Rodrigo Taddei - 29 Votes
5) Ronaldinho - 25 Votes
6) Rubinho - 15 Votes
7) Emerson - 15 Votes
8) Ivan Juric - 14 Votes
9) Antonio Cassano - 12 Votes
10) Stevan Jovetic - 11 Votes

I think everyone that deserved to be there is there, so that's good.

Today Italy play Belgium in their only friendly before the Euro's start.And the three questions of prominence for me are can Zambrotta stay healthy? He'll be at outside back and i hope he can endure.
Question two. Will Cassano implode? Sad question to ask about one of the best in the world.

Yup, you've read that right. Spain vs. Italy is in two days, and everyone prepares differently at "Casa Azzurri". Maybe Talentino has a "Hand of God" prepared for Sunday and wants the picture to look good... . Daniele De Rossi juggling: . Gigi Buffon Goalkeeping drills: . Alessandro Del Piero vs.

Week-End Reviews . Italy.TheOffside.com week 12 review . Italian Calcio Blog week 12 review . Gazzetta in English week 12 review . The biggest match of the week-end of course, was La stracittadina of Rome: an always explosive Roma vs. Lazio that left no empty seat at the Stadio Olimpico. For derbies, team form means usually very little and Sunday's fixture serves as [.

The first piece of news that I have courtesy of ESPN is about Sampdoria possibly placing a bid for Andrei Shevchenko. I think this would be an excellent move for Shevchenko as he would be able to team with Antonio Cassano and be the focal point of the attack for Sampdoria. It would be a great team for him to go to and and would also be a great move for that club.

Big rumor from TuttoSport today (which is a Turin-based paper) claiming that Juventus have struck a deal with Sampdoria to bring Antonio Cassano to Torino this summer. Cassano has always been linked with a move to Juve (Bari had given Cassano two options, Juve or Roma, and Cassano chose Roma because it was a better city) and then the Bianconeri have always shown a certain interest in El Pibe di Bari the past few years.

If you find yourself watching the Serie A game of your choice this Sunday and start yawning (not due to tiredness but due to the boredom of the game), try and find a way to switch over to Napoli-Sampdoria. With Ezequiel Lavezzi leading the Partenopei and Antonio Cassano leading the Blucerchiati, there should be fireworks.

Week-End Reviews Here are the results and summaries for matchday 37. Full Video Highlights here. Italian Calcio Blog week 37 review Gazzetta in English week 37 review MILAN, 11 May 2008 - Those who thought everything had already been decided were in for a surprise today: we will have to wait to the last round to know who wins [.

Chris at http://italy.worldcupblog.org/euro-2008/blue-tinted-news-notes.html wrote this week that Roberto Donadoni's selection of Antonio Cassano was both courageous and suprisisng. Chris was funny in that he described Cassano's appointment like this. Here's the byline.
The Don Names The Squad, Batshit Crazy Phenomenon In Tow
After laughing i began to smile in that i was happy for Cassano.

Here are a few quips and quotes from the Azzurri who arrived at Coverciano to begin training.For the Italian press Cassano was the star of the day.
" Then, emphasising his words, he reminded journalists that Cassano "is only a lad, don't turn him into an alien." Donadoni to media who are questioning Cassano's selection to the national squad.

In accordance to the UEFA-imposed May 28 deadline, Italian coach Roberto Donadoni has made his final roster selection for Euro 2008: the 23 players who will representing the Azzurri this Summer have been picked and as many expected, Fiorentina midfielder Riccardo Montolivo was the player discarded from the manager's Pre-selection list.

Good thing that despite their big slap in the face on Monday, the Azzurri's morale hasn't dropped too much. The video below shows the Azzurri's latest practice Wednesday afternoon. Passing, juggling, a few keep-ups... nothing extraordinary. Minute 2:30 gets pretty entertaining though, when Alessandro Del Piero and Antonio Cassano start exchanging passes in the air.

In the final part of the preview, we finish off with Sampdoria, Siena, Torino, and Udinese, along with some predictions for the coming season.

SAMPDORIA

Sampdoria were a really fun team to watch last year. Manager Walter Mazzarri, who is one of the best up and coming tacticians in Italy, took charge of the Blucerchiati.

After the delusion that was the Olympic games, the Azzurrini returned to the pitch to continue qualifying for the UEFA 2009 U21 Championships. The big story was the debut of Mario Balotelli, who after receiving Italian citizenship a few weeks ago was finally eligible to be called up. The Azzurrini needed a win to guarantee first place in the qualifying group, but anything less meant they would have to conquer qualification on Tuesday in Croatia.

This Saturday our beloved Nazionale takes on Bulgaria in World Cup 2010 qualifying. Italy has a positive record vs. Bulgaria, playing 14 matches in total, winning 7, drawing 5, and losing 2 and have scored 25 goals vs. Bulgarian defenses. Our last loss vs. Bulgaria goes back to the Vicini era, losing 2-1 in Sofia.

Antonio Cassano is set to remain at Sampdoria in the future. The Italian striker has a history of falling out with his clubs and managers but in Sampdoria, he appears to have discerned the perfect home. Goal.com reports that Sampdoria are eager to sign the player on a permanent basis after the one-season loan agreement [.

On May 28, 2006, Chelsea signed AC Milan's long-time goalscorer - Andriy Shevchenko. The fee was a massive £30 million. Now, two years later, if you look back at the deal you can understand why Chelsea fans had a gripe with this transfer. 50 games later - and only 9 goals - Shevchenko could be on his way out of Stamford Bridge in a surprising loan move to Sampdoria.

Italian teams made 4 out of 4 in the UEFA Cup Thursday night. Indeed, in the round just before the Group Stage all four Serie A sides in action recorded first-leg victories, some welcome news after the difficulties Roma and Fiorentina encountered in the Champions League. Uefa.com reports. Partial video highlights here.

Tuesday morning in a press conference in Rome, the Azzurri coach announced his pre-selection for Euro 2008: 24 players (4 less than what everyone anticipated, and 1 to be trimmed down before May 28) which will be representing Italy in this Summer's great European tournament.  So without further ado, here are the "elected": .

Franck Ribéry and Luca Toni were right: Tuesday's match between France and Italy has all the marks of a grand final. On paper, two of the strongest teams in the footy world. Mutual respect, but also a great history and rivarly extending throughout the years: epic battles lost & won, the most recent of which took [.

Cassano with the great Roberto Baggio in happier times
There are so many Antonio Cassano Anecdotes about the brilliant but mercurial 25 year old. Antonio Cassano may suffer from some form of psychosis.
A psychosis can be defined as People experiencing psychosis may report hallucinations or delusional beliefs, and may exhibit personality changes and disorganized thinking.

Secondly in Group C we come to reigning World Champions and fair-play specialists, the stylish sophisticates of Italy.
Italy
Official coach slogan - The sky is always bluer!
Unofficial coach slogan - The Azzuri always win when the year ends in scandal.
Coached by the surprise choice to replace the experienced World Cup winning Marcello Lippi, prematurely greying ex-midfield tyro Roberto Donnadoni, the Italians will be one of the red hot favourites for EURO 2008 glory, despite being reacquainted with France and thrust into the GROUP OF DEATH also containing the dangerous Dutchies and the ruthless Romanians.

It was an outstanding performance for Italian football in the first round of UEFA Cup action, as all four Serie A clubs registered first-leg victory.  AC Milan adjusting to a non-Champions League season are full steam ahead winning 3 - 1 over FC Zürich.  This triumph couldn't have come at a better time for Rossoneri manager [.