Salernitana
US Salernitana 1919 logo.svg
Full nameUnione Sportiva Salernitana 1919 S.r.l.
Nickname(s)I Granata (The Garnets)
Founded1919; 103 years ago (1919)
2005; 17 years ago (2005) (refounded)
2011; 11 years ago (2011) (refounded)
GroundStadio Arechi[1]
Capacity37,800[2]
CEODanilo Iervolino[3]
ManagerDavide Nicola
LeagueSerie A
2021–22Serie A, 17th of 20
WebsiteClub website
Current season

Unione Sportiva Salernitana 1919, commonly referred to as Salernitana, is an Italian football club based in Salerno, Campania. Salernitana returned to Serie A in 2021, after a break of 23 seasons, having finished second in Serie B. The club is the heir of the former Salernitana Calcio 1919[4] and there is a sports continuity also with the former Salerno Calcio in the 2011–12 season which restarted from Serie D[5] due to Article 52 NOIF of FIGC.[6]

History[edit]

From Unione Sportiva Salernitana to Salernitana Calcio 1919[edit]

Main article: History of U.S. Salernitana 1919

The Salerno-based club was originally founded in 1919 as the Unione Sportiva Salernitana. The club was known as Società Sportiva Salernitanaudax for a time during the 1920s following a merger with Audax Salerno. In 1978, the club was renamed Salernitana Sport. The club has spent the majority of their history at the Serie B and Serie C levels of Italian football.

Salernitana play their home matches at Stadio Arechi. In their early years, Salernitana competed in the regional Italian Football Championship. They played at this level for four seasons during the 1920s. Since that time the club returned to the top level of Italian football twice; they played in Serie A during 1947–48 and 1998–99.

In 2005, the club went bankrupt but was restarted by Antonio Lombardi, changing the name from Salernitana Sport to Salernitana Calcio 1919.

In 2011, the club did not appeal against a decision by Commissione di Vigilanza sulle Società di Calcio Professionistiche (Co.Vi.So.C) and was excluded from Italian football.[citation needed]

Club refoundation: from Serie D to the top flight[edit]

Salernitana-Cosenza 2014–15

On 21 July 2011, following the exclusion of the original Salernitana club, Salerno mayor Vincenzo De Luca, in compliance with Article 52 of N.O.I.F., assigned the new title to Marco Mezzaroma, brother-in-law of Lazio owner and chairman Claudio Lotito. The new club was admitted to Serie D under the denomination of Salerno Calcio.[1][7][8]

In the 2011–12 season, Salernitana was immediately promoted to Lega Pro Seconda Divisione after winning Group G of Serie D.

On 12 July 2012, the club was renamed US Salernitana 1919.[4] In the 2012–13 Lega Pro Seconda Divisione season, Salernitana finished first in Girone B, and was promoted to Lega Pro Prima Divisione. This was the second consecutive promotion for the team. Finally Salernitana won Group C of Lega Pro and returned Serie B in 2014–15 season.

After several seasons at Serie B level, Salernitana won promotion to Serie A at the end of the 2020–21 Serie B season under the tenure of head coach Fabrizio Castori, finishing in 2nd place behind champions Empoli. Promotion was secured with a 3–0 victory over Pescara on the final matchday. Salernitana's return to Serie A however required Lotito and Mezzaroma to sell the club, due to Italian football laws not allowing two clubs from the same owner to play in the same league.[9] On 7 July 2021, the FIGC Federal Council approved the trust of Salernitana to take control of the club, meaning it was officially enrolled in Serie A for the first time in 23 years.[10]

Return to Serie A: 2021–present[edit]

Salernitana's first match in its return to the top flight was a 3–2 defeat against Bologna on 22 August 2021.[11] After a poor start to the season, earning only one point from the first six matches, the club picked up its first Serie A victory against Genoa on matchday seven, winning 1–0 due to a goal from Milan Đurić.[12] In October, the Salernitana board fired Castori after a 2–1 loss to Spezia had left the club at the bottom of the table, with four points from their opening eight league games. Stefano Colantuono was named as his replacement, returning for a second spell as head coach having previously led Salernitana from December 2017 to December 2018.[13]

Colours, badge and nicknames[edit]

Salernitana's original kit.

Salernitana originally wore light blue and white striped shirts, known in Italy as biancocelesti.[14] The blue on the shirt was chosen to represent the sea, as Salerno lies right next to the Gulf of Salerno and has a long tradition as a port city. In the 1940s, the club changed to garnet coloured shirts, which has gained them the nickname granata in their homeland.

During the 2011–12 season their kit colours were striped blue and deep red, resembling F.C. Barcelona. The symbol of St. Matthew, patron saint of Salerno, was also a part of the redesigned kit.[15]

Since renaming the club US Salernitana 1919, however, their home colours have again been the traditional garnet.[4]

The 100th anniversary logo was announced on June 24, 2019, and appeared on their 2019–20 season kits.[16]

Honours[edit]

Winners: 1946–47 (Group C), 1997–98
Runners-up: 2020–21
Winners: 1937–38; 1965–66; 2007–08; 2014–15
Runners-up: 1989–90; 1993–94
Winners: 2013–14 against Monza Calcio[17]
Runners-up: 1980
Winner: 2012–13
Winners: 2012–13
Winner: 2011–12 (as Salerno Calcio)

Divisional movements[edit]

Series Years Last Promotions Relegations
A 3 2021–22 - Decrease 2 (1948, 1999)
B 30 2020–21 Increase 3 (1947, 1998, 2021) Decrease 6 (1939, 1956, 1967, 1991, 2005✟, 2010)
C
+C2 		55
+1		 2014–15 Increase 7 (1938, 1943, 1966, 1990, 1994, 2008, 2015)
Increase 1 (2013 C2)		 Decrease 1 (2011✟)
89 out of 90 years of professional football in Italy since 1929
D 1 2011–12 Increase 1 (2012) never

Players[edit]

Current squad[edit]

As of 27 June 2022

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Italy ITA Vincenzo Fiorillo
2 MF Senegal SEN Mamadou Coulibaly
4 DF Poland POL Paweł Jaroszyński
5 DF Albania ALB Frédéric Veseli
6 DF Norway NOR Stefan Strandberg
7 MF France FRA Franck Ribéry (captain)
8 MF Italy ITA Andrea Schiavone
10 FW Italy ITA Simone Verdi (on loan from Torino)
11 FW Bosnia and Herzegovina BIH Milan Đurić
12 GK Italy ITA Antonio Russo
13 MF Brazil BRA Éderson
14 MF Italy ITA Francesco Di Tacchio (vice-captain)
15 MF Norway NOR Emil Bohinen
No. Pos. Nation Player
16 MF Serbia SRB Ivan Radovanović
17 DF Argentina ARG Federico Fazio
18 MF Mali MLI Lassana Coulibaly
22 MF Nigeria NGA Joel Obi
23 DF Slovakia SVK Norbert Gyömbér
24 DF Tunisia TUN Wajdi Kechrida
28 MF Italy ITA Leonardo Capezzi
30 MF Italy ITA Pasquale Mazzocchi
31 DF Sweden SWE Riccardo Gagliolo
55 GK Italy ITA Luigi Sepe
63 FW Italy ITA Edoardo Vergani
87 FW Brazil BRA Mikael

Other players under contract[edit]

As of 27 June 2022

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— GK Italy ITA Alessandro Micai
— DF Croatia CRO Luka Bogdan
— DF Italy ITA Valerio Mantovani
— DF Italy ITA Mirko Esposito
— DF Italy ITA Gioacchino Galeotafiore
— DF France FRA Sanasi Sy
— MF Netherlands NED Reda Boultam
— MF Spain ESP Kaleb Jimenez Castillo
— MF Italy ITA Michele Cavion
No. Pos. Nation Player
— MF Italy ITA Agostino Del Regno
— MF Italy ITA Carmine Iannone
— MF Italy ITA Edoardo Iannoni
— MF Italy ITA Francesco Orlando
— MF Italy ITA Gaetano Vitale
— FW Italy ITA Filippo D'Andrea
— FW Norway NOR Julian Kristoffersen
— FW Nigeria NGA Simy

National team players[edit]

These current and former players have recorded starts for their respective national teams.

Players from the Italian national football team:

Players from other national football teams:

Managers[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Codice promozione SNAI Maggio 2021 - "SNAIMAX17" | Tutte le promo". Codice promozione SNAI.
  2. ^ "Biglietteria – US Salernitana 1919 | Sito ufficiale della U.S. Salernitana 1919".
  3. ^ https://www.gazzetta.it/Calcio/Serie-A/Salernitana/31-12-2021/cessione-salernitana-430706322916.shtml. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  4. ^ a b c "UFFICIALE. Da adesso chiamatela U.S. SALERNITANA 1919 – Salernitana – Resport". Resport.it. Archived from the original on 18 February 2013.
  5. ^ "Salerno Calcio, c'č l'iscrizione Oggi la presentazione dello staff – Corriere del Mezzogiorno". Corrieredelmezzogiorno.corriere.it.
  6. ^ "Modifica dell'art. 52 delle Norme Organizzative Interne della FIGC (Titolo sportivo)". Civile.it.
  7. ^ "Lotito, show a Salerno "Torneremo in alto"". Repubblica.it.
  8. ^ "E' nata la nuova Salernitana Il Salerno calcio sarà "blau-grana" Lotito: non è un satellite della Lazio" (in Italian). Ilmattino.it. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
  9. ^ "Il paradosso della Salernitana" (in Italian). Il Post. 11 May 2021. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  10. ^ "Official: Salernitana are officially returning to Serie A after 23 years". Football Italia. 7 July 2021.
  11. ^ "Bologna 3-2 Salernitana: De Silvestri double rescues Rossoblu". Football Italia.
  12. ^ "Salernitana 1-0 Genoa: Granata finally get first win". Football Italia.
  13. ^ "Salernitana appoint Colantuono after Castori sacking". Reuters.com.
  14. ^ "La Storia: 1910–1919" (in Italian). Salernitana.it. 24 June 2007. Archived from the original on 27 February 2008.
  15. ^ "Sarà "Salerno Calcio" il nome della nuova società calcistica della città. Lotito e Mezzaroma hanno presentato i loro progetti" (in Italian). 12mesi.it. 26 July 2011. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
  16. ^ Il logo ufficiale della Salernitana per la stagione numero 100 (in Italian)
  17. ^ "Festa Arechi nel nome di Ago, alla Salernitana la Coppa Italia". Ilmattino.it.
  18. ^ "Francesco Di Jorio". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 31 July 2012.

Further reading[edit]

External links[edit]