Today’s edition of “Il Giornale di Sicilia” focuses on Palermo’s long history of consecutive defeats at Renzo Barbera.
The Palermo is experiencing a decidedly complicated season, with echoes of past difficulties that date back to the distant 1996/97 championship. In that season, the team suffered seven defeats in Serie B and finished second to last, with a painful relegation to C-1. This year, the negative trend seems to be repeating itself, albeit with a much greater margin of safety compared to the relegation zone.
The history of that Palermo of the 90s is bitterly remembered for the long period without a win at home in the second half of the season, which extended from February to June. The comparison with the recent 2016/17 season, the last in Serie A before the current one, also reveals a high number of home defeats there, twelve, which significantly contributed to the relegation.
During that disastrous season, Palermo saw the alternation of five coaches: Ballardini, De Zerbi, Corini, Lopez and Bortoluzzi. Even today, despite the 16 point gap from the relegation zone, the balance remains critical compared to the initial expectations of the season. The recent change of coach has not yet managed to reverse this negative trend.
Palermo’s current situation calls for rapid and effective change to prevent the “championship of dreams” from becoming a “championship of regrets”. The goal is to find stability and results, hoping that the team can quickly move away from the ghosts of past seasons and find a trajectory that leads to the much desired success and serenity.
