Domenico Berardi's year in Serie B
Sassuolo have been promoted to Serie A a year after going down to the second division and there was one man at the heart of it all...
I write this newsletter mere minutes after Sassuolo were confirmed as going up to Serie A. Mantova had just secured a 2-2 draw at home to Spezia, which was enough to take Sassuolo over the line. It’s been a matter of ‘when’ not ‘if’ for numerous weeks now but I imagine that the Sassuolo players and fans were getting a little antsy to return to the big time. And I imagine none more so than their talisman, Domenico Berardi, who’s been a sought-after talent by bigger Italian clubs for some time.
“This is my second family, and it’s not a clichée.” This was what he said after their relegation and some injury problems that kept him out of football for some time, including the Euros with the Azzurri. He’s always been ambitious, too, telling Sassuolo he’d leave for a Champions League club in January if he was back fit. Fast forward from their relegation to then, and he remained at the club.
Regardless of his flirting with leaving the club, Berardi is a hero in Sassuolo and will be forever. Starting his career there, he joined Juventus on a co-ownership deal but remained at Sassuolo and scoring 31 league goals between 2013 and 2015, keeping Sassuolo in the Serie A and going on to become integral in the club’s European journey as they reached Europa League.
His time at Sassuolo is one of those that is steeped in romance, especially from an outsider looking in. He’s had ambitions to play Champions League football, which haven’t come for whatever reason. But what he’s done at Sassuolo should not be tutted at. “I had a different career (to Maldini, to Totti), and I have no regrets.” And it’s those regrets, or not having them, that’s key to his story.
In Serie B this season, he has played below his level to take the club back to where he, and many others, feel they belong. Fabio Grosso at the helm and Berardi on the pitch, the Neroverdi returned within the first time of asking. And whether or not you think Sassuolo in Serie A is good for the lega, Domenico Berardi back is certainly brilliant.
Maybe I’m overly romantic but something like this is just wonderful to see. Away from the context of it all (and the fact it’s them), but when Juventus played in Serie B and the likes of Gianluigi Buffon and Alessandro Del Piero remained, it made my old romantic heart full.
Anyways, to avoid getting emotional about a club and a player I have no affiliation too, congratulations to Berardi and Sassuolo on their return to Serie A. The league is better for having Berardi in it. But, thanks to allure of it, I’ll always enjoy the story of this season. Forza calcio, indeed.