Fiorentina striker Alberto Gilardino will miss his club’s next two games in the Champions League, owing to a ban imposed by UEFA. The Italy striker was sent off for elbowing Jeremy Toulalan of Lyon during their matchup in France.

Losing ‘Gila’ comes at a critical time for la Viola, since the next match is against Liverpool in Florence. The absence of the attacker will leave coach Cesare Prandelli with no option but to line up emerging talent Stevan Jovetic and Romanian forward Adrian Mutu upfront.

The Gigliati have struggled to score goals this season and will clearly miss the services of the 27-year-old hitman, since Mutu has been dealing with off-field distractions stemming from his legal problems with former club Chelsea.

According to the club’s official website, UEFA’s Disciplinary Commission decided to suspend Gilardino for the next two Champions League games, meaning he will make his return on the European stage during early November, in a home game scheduled against Hungarian club Debrecen.

Rami Soufi, Football Italiano

Roma captain Francesco Totti was disappointed after the club’s supporters threw back his shirt following the 3-1 victory over Fiorentina. The Giallorossi talisman said that he was not sure if he will throw his shirt to the fans again in the future.

Speaking to Corriere dello Sport, the former Italy forward made clear his feelings were hurt by the incident. He said that initially he did not notice the incident and he was told about it over the phone.

‘Er Pupone’ has been in contract discussions with the club to extend his term for five more years, and his popularity with the fans has taken a hit in recent times. Yet the tifosi have confirmed that their action was a response to the dismal start to the season for i Lupi.

Totti scored the equaliser in the away match against Palermo from the penalty spot, and it remains to be seen if this will ease the frustration of the supporters.

Rami Soufi, Football Italiano

Juventus will be given a stern test to check their 100 per cent record, since Genoa are a very strong team at home. The fact that they are coming out of a defeat against Chievo will only spur the Rosoblu to quickly get back on track following the hiccup that has caused them to lose some ground in the league.

Outsmarting il Vecchio Balordo will be a tough ask even for a team as strong as Ciro Ferrara’s charges, since they will be without the services of Alessandro Del Piero, Momo Sissoko, Hasan Salihamidzic, Fabio Cannavaro, and most importantly, Diego, as all the aforementioned players are still licking their wounds.

Should the tower of Turin emerge triumphant at Marassi, they will have sent out a serious message to the rest of the title contenders, as they would have slipped past Inter to sit atop the Serie A.

Football Italiano