Motta presentation + Panucci mea culpa
Marco Motta, the talented 22-year-old defender formerly of Udinese, joined Roma for £3.5m late last week: “It's a dream for me to be here among so many [World Cup] Champions...to have the opportunity to train with champions of Totti and De Rossi's calibre is extraordinary.”
Motta has also been included in Roma's squad for the final stages of the Champions League: “I think about training to the best of my abilities every day. Every training session is like it were a Champions League game.” [I'm in love with his work ethic, NGL]
Couture-wise, he's already won me over.
"I hoped until the very last moment that the transfer would go through and it did, so I am really very happy."
^Airport arrival
From today's presentation:
^Motta is wearing kit #13, previously worn by Chivu, and more recently by Android Andreolli, who is on loan somewhere.
Wasting no time, boy got to work:
“To know that a team as important as Roma thought about me was an extraordinary and wonderful sensation,” Motta enthused.
“Alberto Aquilani was the only player I knew personally as I played with him for the Italy Under-21 side.”
...Mmhm, hence the bitchface. Aquilani's already rubbed off on him, you see.
Speaking of the devil, Albe's still brooding.
When asked to describe himself: “Sono un ragazzo semplicissimo di ventidue anni e come i miei coetanei mi piace il cinema,leggere libri, ascoltare musica”.
... which translates to: "I am a simple boy of twenty-two years and like my peers, I like cinema, reading books, listening to music."
Aww @ ~I'm just a boy~ So very Notting Hill.
Because the press are nosy bastards, they asked if Motta moved to Rome ACCOMPANIED, to which Motta responded: I came to Rome alone and I'm single.
... Ladies, take your cue. The boy is single and ~ready to mingle~
This is Diamoutene, who's going to be a reserve CB. Sure the young'un's practically a no-name, but as the fanboys have put it, "Nobody could be worse than Loria."
I see swagger potential!
Eat your heart out, Matteo Ferrari. There's a new badass in town.
*CLAW POSES* *CLAW POSES*
I'm only re-posting this version because of wee little Cicinho peeking at the corner there:
Marco hasn't exactly perfected the infamous bitchpose quite yet, but that's a start.
Motta still attempting the bitchpose:
I see you've met Philippe. Whatever he tells you, don't get stars inked on your neck.
"My first training session was a bit like my first day at school. My new teammates received me well, they welcomed me and I believe they are a fine group of players."
Another version with Loria un-cropped on the right there:
Philippe! Don't be adjusting your ~family jewels~ in front of the photogs like this.
Oh who am I kidding, he totally knew they were taking pics.
In other news, Panucci has formally apologized for being a brat, diva and a douche last week.
“I publically apologise to the fans, the club and my teammates,” Panucci's statement in La Gazzetta dello Sport reads. “I want to thank the fans and my colleagues for being close to me and I don't want to fail in my responsibilities or justify my mistakes.
The good ol' days when he kissed his Roma maglia, and pledged undying love for the Giallorossi:
“When I said I wanted to leave Rome I was PMS'ing, being a drama queen overreacting. I have been here eight years and I want to honour the colours until the end.”
“As I have always done in my life I take full blame and put myself back at the disposal of the club and the technical staff for the rest of the season."
Fra: Is it time to go home yet? I'm supposed to be beating Cristian in Mario Kart right now.
Oh, that's right. Scratch your head in regret, why don't you.
In truth, I'm glad he's staying. Old Man River can play two positions and is deadly on the headers. Whether Spal admits it or not, Panucci is crucial to the squad, especially now that both the other RBs (Cassetti and Cicinho) are nursing their respective injuries.
... oh yeah, Cici, too. Today, he told fans he's alright, but then again he's in denial.
Pan to Mirko: Let's just pretend nothing ever happened, alright?
Panucci: So I heard about your little bar brawl on Sunday. You kicked some Laziali ass, huh?
Mexes: Nobody talks shit about Roma and gets away with it.
Panucci: *sweats* Duly noted.
Watch Philippe's hands. Nice try to cover up those knuckle bruises from the fight, Frenchie.
*sings* Why can't we be friends? Why can't we be friends?
Despite Panucci apologizing the the Roma societa, the press were all about how his public apology NEVER mentions Spalletti's name. Hmm, curious.
Nvm, Spal doesn't care about Panucci anyway. He's only got eyes for Mirketto.
Mirko (to himself): Creep alert. CREEP ALERT! *runs faster*
Well. Someone woke up on the right side of the bed.
So did these boys:
While the boys were hard at work in Trigoria, Fra signed autographs for his bb fanboys:
How disturbing that the kid's laces are sorted out, but Fra's aren't *shakes head*
Fra scored a goal in yesterday's training and is expected to play against Genoa on Sunday after missing Reggina last week.
... which btw he came to watch with BFF and Romanista at heart, Giancarlo Fisichella.
So training session's wrapped up and the boys headed for the exit gates:
... while Philou couldn't stop bragging about his little "incident" with the Laziali on Sunday.
Philou: And so he tried to jab me with a straight upper-cut right to my eye like this, but then he missed coz I'm a karate kid like that, you dig?
Fra was so taken with Philou's anecdote, he made a human punching bag out of Pizarro:
...after which Fra tried some punching moves on Mexes as well:
Fra: *jabs*
Philou: Seriously? That was supposed to be painful?
Albe: *cries because he doesn't know karate* *wipes tears* Why am I such a girl?
Roma supporters will get their first chance to see Motta in action this weekend when the Giallorossi face Genoa at the Stadio Olimpico. | truncated from sources 1, 2