 Fiore in 2008 | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Stefano Fiore[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1975-04-17)17 April 1975 (age 50) | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Cosenza,Calabria, Italy | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||||||||||||||||
| Position | Midfielder | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 1992–1994 | Cosenza | 11 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| 1994–1999 | Parma | 62 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
| 1995–1996 | →Padova (loan) | 24 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| 1996–1997 | →Chievo (loan | 38 | (2) | ||||||||||||||
| 1999–2001 | Udinese | 67 | (18) | ||||||||||||||
| 2001–2004 | Lazio | 95 | (17) | ||||||||||||||
| 2004–2007 | Valencia | 20 | (2) | ||||||||||||||
| 2005–2006 | →Fiorentina (loan) | 38 | (6) | ||||||||||||||
| 2006 | →Torino (loan) | 19 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| 2007 | →Livorno (loan) | 16 | (2) | ||||||||||||||
| 2007–2008 | Mantova | 24 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
| 2009–2011 | Cosenza | 37 | (7) | ||||||||||||||
| Total | 451 | (63) | |||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||
| 2000–2004 | Italy | 38 | (2) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||
Stefano FioreCavaliere OMRI (Italian pronunciation:[ˈsteːfanoˈfjoːre]; born 17 April 1975) is an Italianfootball manager and former player, who played as anattacking midfielder or on theright wing. He was in charge as manager technical area ofCosenza Calcio.[2]
Fiore played for several Italian clubs throughout his career; he started out withCosenza in 1992, before moving toParma for a season in 1994, where he made hisSerie A debut and won theUEFA Cup. He spent two seasons atPadova andChievo, before returning to Parma again for two more seasons in 1997, where he broke into the starting line-up and won a double which consisted of his second UEFA Cup and theCoppa Italia in 1999. He subsequently moved toUdinese, where he spent two successful seasons, winning theUEFA Intertoto Cup in 2000 and thus helping his team qualify for Europe. A move toLazio ensued, where he won his second Coppa Italia in 2004, finishing as the competition's top-scorer. His performances led to a transfer to Spanish sideValencia later that year, where he struggled to replicate his previous form despite initially winning theUEFA Supercup, and he was subsequently sent back to Italy on loan toFiorentina,Torino, andLivorno during his three seasons with the club. In 2007, he returned permanently to Italy, signing withMantova for a season; after remaining inactive during the 2008–09 season, he moved toCosenza in 2009, where he ended his career after two seasons.
At international level, Fiore won 38 caps for theItaly national football team between 2000 and 2004, and scored twice. At youth level, he was a member of the team that won the1997 Mediterranean Games, while at senior level he was selected to the Italy squads forUEFA Euro 2000, in which he scored one goal as his team reached the final, andUEFA Euro 2004.
Fiore was born in Cosenza, and he began his professional footballing career withhis domestic club in 1992. He played just 11 games before moving toParma in 1994. He made hisSerie A debut with the club at the age of nineteen, in a 0–0 away draw againstGenoa, on 11 December 1994. During that season, Parma came in third inSerie A, and reached the final of theCoppa Italia. Their most prestigious success was achieved with theirUEFA Cup victory over season rivalsJuventus, and Fiore was inserted into the starting eleven by managerNevio Scala, in the return leg of the final, which finished 1–1. This allowed Fiore to gain international experience alongside his established teammates such asGianfranco Zola,Fernando Couto, andDino Baggio. His limited playing time with them persuaded him to move toPadova for the following season, where he scored one goal in 24 games. In the1996–97 season, Fiore moved toSerie B sideChievo, where he was impressive, notching up two goals and plenty of assists. This prompted former club, Parma, to re-sign the midfielder in 1997.[3] For the next two seasons he became a more permanent member of the squad; although he was mainly left on the bench during the1997–98 season, he looked far more impressive than his main starting eleven contender, the ageing Dino Baggio, when he was given a chance, and he became a member of the starting line-up during the following1998–99 season. This season was Fiore's most successful season, as Parma finished fourth in Serie A, and won theCoppa Italia overFiorentina. Fiore also won his second careerUEFA Cup with Parma that season, as they defeatedMarseille 3–0 in thefinal in Moscow. Fiore was one of the protagonists of Parma's triumphant European campaign that season, notching two goals in ten UEFA Cup appearances.
In June 1999, Fiore moved toUdinese underLuigi De Canio, originally a cash-plus-player deal in which Parma would receiveStephen Appiah andMárcio Amoroso,[4] for a combined 90 billion lire transfer fees to Udinese, Fiore priced as 15 billion and the rest as cash.
His breakthrough with the club came during the1999–2000 Serie A season, which saw him score a personal best of 9 goals in 33 appearances. His fine form earned him a call to thenational side forEuro 2000 at the expense of Dino Baggio, the man who had kept him out of the Parma team for so long. His fine form continued and he scored 9 goals in 34 games in the2000–01 season, during which he also won the2000 UEFA Intertoto Cup with Udinese, which allowed them to qualify for theUEFA Cup that season.
Eventually, Fiore did move toLazio in June 2001 along with teammateGiuliano Giannichedda, for a deal over 80 billionItalian lire.[5] Lazio had big money moves that season, they sold midfielderJuan Sebastián Verón andPavel Nedvěd that month (June), and sold strikerMarcelo Salas toJuventus for cash andDarko Kovačević. They also gotJaap Stam to compensate part of Verón's transfer fees, as well as signingGaizka Mendieta from Valencia. In his first season at Lazio, Fiore initially played under his former Italy manager at Euro 2000,Dino Zoff.
Fiore could not find his best form for Lazio during the2001–02 season, as the coach that replaced Zoff,Alberto Zaccheroni, persisted in playing him on the left side of midfield. This resulted in Fiore losing his place in the national side for the2002 FIFA World Cup in South Korea and Japan.
Zaccheroni was dismissed in 2002, and Fiore began to improve with a new coach,Roberto Mancini. Fiore seemed more at ease playing in the centre of the squad's midfield, and he guided Lazio to fourth inSerie A, thus earning them a place in next season'sUEFA Champions League, scoring six goals, and also notably reaching the semi-finals of theUEFA Cup that season, only to lose to the eventual championsPorto. Fiore was in good form for Lazio the following season, despite the loss of several key players in the summer (and thenDejan Stanković in January 2004). Lazio won the2003–04 Coppa Italia, in which Fiore was an inspirational player, finishing the tournament as top scorer with six goals in seven appearances including three goals across the two legs of thefinal againstJuventus.[6][7] His impressive showings earned him a place on the national side forEuro 2004.
Due to the financial problems which Lazio were suffering, Fiore, along withBernardo Corradi, were off-loaded to Spanish clubValencia, where he joined the Italian coachClaudio Ranieri, and compatriotMarco Di Vaio, signing a 3+1 years contract.[8] Corradi was priced at €10 million and Fiore at €6.6 million. The sale compensated the unpaid €16.6 million ofGaizka Mendieta's remaining transfer fees from Valencia to Lazio.
After a promising start, which included winning theUEFA Super Cup over Champions League winners Porto, Valencia suffered a disastrous losing streak in October, from which they never fully recovered. They exited the UEFA Champions League early, and coach Claudio Ranieri was dismissed by mid February. Fiore could not adequately adapt to the demands of Spanish football, and was often left on the substitutes' bench.
In July 2005, Fiore and Corradi returned to Serie A, with Fiorentina taking the midfielder on a loan spell.[9] They had lostEnzo Maresca and holding midfielderChristian Obodo earlier in June. Fiore linked up well with strikerLuca Toni, and together they brought Fiorentina to a higher level, guiding them to fourth in Serie A, before theCalciopoli verdicts saw them lose this place.
Fiorentina decided not to take Fiore on a permanent basis and he sealed a loan move toTorino, who were returning to Serie A, on deadline day. On 31 January 2007, the closing day of the transfer window, he was loaned toLivorno.[10]
On 11 February 2007, he played his first Serie A match for Livorno againstA.C. Milan[11]
In the summer of 2007, he failed to find a club at which to settle, until 22 August, when he signed a 1-year contract withMantova ofSerie B,[12] which he last experienced in 1997.
Successively, Fiore did not play for any team during the 2008–09, but in September 2009 he finally made his comeback into active football, agreeing a three-year contract with hometown clubCosenza, in the third-tierLega Pro Prima Divisione, where he remained until his retirement in 2011.[13]
Fiore made eight appearances for theItaly U21 national team, and three appearances for the U23 side, with which he won theMediterranean Games in 1997. He made his debut for thesenior national team during his time with Udinese, under manager Dino Zoff, on 23 February 2000, taking part in a 1–0 victory in an international friendly againstSweden, in Palermo.[14] Fiore's fine form during the 1999–2000 Serie A season soon allowed him to become a permanent and important member of the national side, earning him a place inDino Zoff'snational side forEuro 2000. He had a very successful tournament and scored what many regard as the goal of the tournament in the 2–0 victory over co-hostsBelgium, in Italy's second group match;[15] he also assisted a goal for his creative, offensive midfield teammateFrancesco Totti in the quarter-finals of the tournament, a 2–0 win overRomania, which sealed Italy's place in the semi-finals against co-hosts theNetherlands.[16][17] His fine form continued as he went on to take part in all of Italy's matches throughout the competition, as they reached thefinal, only to lose to the defending World ChampionsFrance on a golden-goal in extra-time.[18]
Under Zoff's replacementGiovanni Trapattoni, Fiore continued to be a member of the national side, scoring his second international goal on 28 February 2001, in a friendly defeat toArgentina, at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome.[19] He missed out on the2002 FIFA World Cup in South Korea and Japan, where Italy were disappointingly and controversially eliminated in the second round by co-hostsSouth Korea.
Fiore's impressive showings for Lazio during the 2003–04 season allowed him to return to the national side in 2003, and he earned a place in Italy's 23-man squad forEuro 2004. Fiore was used sparingly by coachGiovanni Trapattoni, who preferred to play the Argentine born winger,Mauro Camoranesi, only using Fiore as a substitute in the opening two group matches. When he did start, the Azzurri looked a lot more creative, with Fiore nearly scoring from a spectacular volley againstBulgaria in the final group game. Despite the Azzurri winning the match 2–1, and not losing a match throughout the competition, the two draws in the previous group games led to Italy's first-round elimination from the tournament on direct encounters, following a three-way five-point tie withDenmark andSweden, who both progressed on to the quarter-finals.[20]
Following Trapattoni's departure in 2004, due to Italy's negative performance in the European Championships, Fiore featured in certain matches under the new Italy managerMarcello Lippi. Fiore retired from the national side later that year. In total, Fiore won 38 caps for the Italy national team between 2000 and 2004, scoring two goals.[21]
Throughout his career, Fiore was usually deployed as anattacking midfielder or on the left or rightwing. A quick, combative, hard-working, and mobile player, Fiore was a talented, creative, and technically giftedplaymaker, with good vision, ball skills, and intelligence, who was renowned for his passing ability, offensive capabilities, and his eye for goal from midfield, courtesy of his powerful and accurate striking ability from distance with his right foot, as well as his ability to make attacking runs into more advanced positions; these attributes also allowed him to play as asupporting striker on occasion. He also played in several deeper midfield roles, as acentral midfielder ordeep-lying playmaker, due to his tactical versatility, physique, and defensive work-rate off the ball, as well as his ability to link-up with other players and both create or finish off chances.[22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Italy | 2000 | 14 | 1 |
| 2001 | 7 | 1 | |
| 2002 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2003 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2004 | 9 | 0 | |
| Total | 38 | 2 | |
Parma[33]
Lazio[33]
Udinese[34]
Italy[34]
Individual
Orders
Italy squads | |||||||
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