Cellino Doing It His Own Way. Again.

Massimo Cellino has always been a unique sort of club owner, one who delights in going against public opinion but who, it has to be admitted, does get a number of decisions right.

This past season must have been particularly pleasing for him as he shut up a lot of people. Cellino was portrayed as a madman when he decided not to offer a contract to Davide Ballardini, the man who had saved Cagliari from the drop against all odds, and instead plumped for Massimo Allegri who up till that point had only managed in the Serie C.

He even went against his own nature and granted Allegri time when Cagliari started the season in disastrous fashion by getting just one point in their opening seven games. And he was proven right because, as soon as the team settled and got more comfortable with Allegri’s tactics, they were transformed into one of the most entertaining sides in the Serie A.

That success has fuelled his taste for a gamble, which explains why he has decided to replace Roberto Acquafresca, a key player these past two seasons but who was recalled by Inter, with Nene from Portuguese side Nacional.

Yet even by his standards the reason behind his choice of the Brazilian are bizarre. “I heard his name and I liked it: it intrigued me. So I looked him up and noticed that we share the same birthdate. I thought to myself that this was a sign of fate and decided to sign him up.”

Who needs scouts, eh?

This compilation from last season shows that Cellino's views aside, Nene is not a bad player:

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