A family affair
Gaining a professional sporting contract is a difficult prospect for any young aspiring athlete and it is on the very rare occasion more than one member of a family are successful in doing so in the same sport.
Luca Rigoni made a name for himself battling for Vincenza in Serie B before moving on to Chievo to become a regular first team player. The 31-year-old’s time with Genoa has not been the most successful, but has been consistent enough to start every match in 2016. Younger brother Nicola has given most of his playing career so far to clubs in Serie B and following in older brother Luca’s footsteps, but after a switch back to his parent club Chievo, has edged his way into the squad on occasion.
This week, the pair completed an achievement not seen since September 2003, both scoring during the same round. The last set of brothers to achieve the feat were Simone and Filippo Inzaghi.
Sassuolo back on the rise
The team from the small town of Sassuolo will have enjoyed their football over the past five seasons, spending three relatively successful ones in Serie A and two at the top of the Serie B. The most impressive feature of their rise has been the number of Italian players the Neroverde have been able to field on a regular basis.
Sassuolo began the season in a positive fashion and at one stage found themselves in the top four, however a small fadeaway saw them winless in eight and with plenty of work to do to keep in touch with a European spot. Three consecutive victories puts them in seventh position with some breathing space and only three points away from catching Milan. Protecting the goal for 200 consecutive minutes of football has been key to the victories and with an upcoming fixture against Juventus, they will need to do much of the same to get a result.
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