Many joys, but also difficult moments and an ending that leaves a bitter taste in the mouth. On Monday morning, president Alessandro Brunelli took stock of the season just ended and of these years at the helm of Ravenna FC. A final act as president, before the announced agreement that will lead Ignazio Cipriani, nephew of the entrepreneur Raul Gardini, to purchase the Giallorossi club. A step that should be completed in June with the necessary notarial deed.
Brunelli therefore leaves Ravenna after 10 years as president and a previous role as sporting director. Years made up of fluctuating results which ended with one of the most brilliant seasons in the recent Giallorossi sporting history: “A pleasure tainted by the final outcome”, Brunelli comments on the 2023-24 season, taking up Mr. Gadda’s considerations, “Ravenna has won the championship, he richly deserved it.” The ending, however, with the exclusion of Pistoiese from Serie D, led to “an almost paradoxical situation – continues the president – unfortunately what happened happened, and whoever was supposed to take measures pretended nothing had happened”. However, Brunelli reserves applause for the players and staff for “a championship that was over the top, the numbers speak for themselves, the performances of the players – he added – A group that deserved direct promotion on the pitch”. On the difficult relationship with the fans, the president maintains: “A couple of episodes were misinterpreted. I think I tried in every way to do justice to these misinterpretations. There was no will to accept this, so I believe that the issue was exhausted in this way, what happened is part of the world of football.”
The outgoing president then looks back at the years spent at the top of the company. “Since 2012 I began to deal with the necessary reconstruction in Ravenna. They have been 12 years of passion, of pain, even of injustice”. The memory goes not only to the recent championship final, but also to “the algorithm that forced Ravenna to the playouts in the year of Covid – continues Brunelli – 12 years that have given me so much”. Now, however, we look to the future with the sale of the company to Cipriani’s group: “At the beginning of our adventure we wanted to look for someone capable of taking Ravenna ever higher, and naturally with the firepower to be able to do so. never tried not to sell Ravenna – explains Brunelli – We were looking for a definitive solution that was the best. The arrival of Ignazio Cipriani created the conditions we were looking for, a very welcome transition, as a fan I can only be pleased.” A transition, which as per agreements, should now be completed by June. “We leave behind a functioning organization and structure with everything needed to set up an adventure like the one Cipriani intends to start.”
However, it is difficult to outline the future of the team which still hangs on the last hopes of promotion via repechage. There are few possibilities regarding the ruling relating to Forlì’s appeal, which in theory would lead Ravenna to win the championship. Defining the way in which the issue relating to the exclusion of Pistoiese was handled as “embarrassing”, Brunelli stated that he was not very confident about the conclusion of the matter. On the repechage front, with Ravenna FC having won the playoffs, we will have to wait for the ranking of the National Amateur League.
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