2003–04 U.S. Città di Palermo season

U.S. Città di Palermo played the season 2003-04 in the Serie B league and Coppa Italia.

U.S. Città di Palermo

2003-04 season
President	Maurizio Zamparini
Manager	Silvio Baldini (Until 26 January 2004) Francesco Guidolin
Serie B	1º (promoted to Serie A)
Coppa Italia	Eightfinals
Top goalscorer	League: Luca Toni (30) All: Toni (30)
Home colours Away colours Third colours
← 2002-03 2004-05 →

Summary

Ambitious Palermo, for the first time since 1973, failed to gain promotion to Serie A in the previous season following a 3-0 away defeat in the final match against Lecce, which were promoted at Palermo's place.^[1] That dramatic defeat was also the last appearance in his playing career for team captain Antonino Asta, who seriously injured during the match and did not manage to recover; he was part of the first team squad in the season 2003-04, without however making a single appearance. Following the events, Palermo made a number of prominent signings in the summer market, such as Eugenio Corini, Andrea Gasbarroni and Luca Toni;^[2] in addition, Palermo-born star Gaetano Vasari agreed to join the rosanero with a salary based on the number of appearances he would have made in the season. Silvio Baldini was appointed as new boss to replace Nedo Sonetti. Several football pundits suggested Palermo to be the real favourite team to win the Serie B league because of the quality of its roster.

The team made a very impressive start by defeating Gianfranco Zola's Cagliari Calcio, and managed to be always in the promotion spots. However, following a surprising 3-1 home defeat to Salernitana that brought Palermo down to third place, Baldini heavily criticized club chairman Maurizio Zamparini^[3] who consequently fired him and appointed Francesco Guidolin at his place. On the last day of the January transfer market, three new notable signings were made: Antonio Filippini, Emanuele Filippini and Fabio Grosso. Palermo later returned to top the table and eventually won the league, ending with the same points than Cagliari, but being crowned as Serie B champions due to head-to-head matches and promoted to Serie A after 31 years in the lower divisions.

Squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK   ITA Gianluca Berti 2 DF   ITA Paolo Cotroneo 3 DF   ITA Francesco Modesto^[4] 4 DF   ITA Gianluca Atzori 5 MF   ITA Eugenio Corini 6 DF   ITA Christian Terlizzi 7 MF   ITA Gaetano Vasari 8 MF   ITA Daniele Di Donato 9 FW   ITA Luca Toni 10 MF   ITA Lamberto Zauli 11 MF   ITA Salvatore Masiello 12 GK   ITA Nicola Santoni 13 DF   ITA Pietro Accardi 14 MF   CMR Frank Oliver Ongfiang^[5] 14 DF   ITA Rocco D'Aiello 16 FW   ITA Pietro Balistreri 17 FW   ITA Antonino Asta 18 FW   ITA Franco Brienza^[6] 18 DF   ITA Fabio Grosso^[7] 19 DF   ITA Daniele Zito

No. Pos. Nation Player 20 FW   ITA Simone Pepe 21 MF   ROU Paul Codrea^[8] 21 DF   ITA Giuseppe Biava^[9] 22 MF   ITA Massimo Mutarelli 23 MF   ITA Ighli Vannucchi^[10] 23 MF   ITA Emanuele Filippini^[11] 24 FW   NGA John Olufemi 25 DF   SLE Kewullay Conteh 26 MF   ITA Antonio Filippini^[12] 27 MF   ITA Michele Trionfante 29 DF   ROU Valentin Năstase 30 FW   BRA Jeda^[13] 32 MF   ITA Marco Fina 46 MF   ITA Andrea Gasbarroni 51 MF   ITA Vincenzo Giannusa 79 MF   ITA Evans Soligo 81 DF   ITA Michele Ferri 82 MF   ITA Nicola Milano 84 GK   ITA Paolo Comi

Transfers

In
Pos.	Name	from	Type
GK	Gianluca Berti	Empoli
GK	Paolo Comi	Monza
DF	Michele Ferri	A.C. Milan
DF	Gianluca Atzori	Empoli
DF	Christian Terlizzi	Cesena
MF	Evans Soligo	Venezia
MF	Ighli Vannucchi	Empoli
MF	Andrea Gasbarroni	Juventus
MF	Eugenio Corini	Chievo Verona
MF	Gaetano Vasari	Cesena
FW	Simone Pepe	A.S. Roma
FW	Franco Brienza	Ascoli	loan ended
FW	Luca Toni	Brescia Calcio

Out
Pos.	Name	To	Type
GK	Vincenzo Sicignano	Parma
DF	Alessandro Lucarelli	Fiorentina
DF	Oscar Brevi	Ascoli
DF	Matteo Pivotto	Modena
DF	Leandro Rinaudo	Salernitana	loan
MF	Valentino Lai	Salernitana	loan
MF	Manolo Pestrin	Cesena
MF	Frank Oliver Ongfiang	Cesena
FW	Filippo Maniero	Brescia Calcio
FW	Cristian La Grottería	Padova

Winter

In

18	DF	ITA	Fabio Grosso (from Perugia)
21	DF	ITA	Giuseppe Biava (from AlbinoLeffe)
23	MF	ITA	Emanuele Filippini (from Parma)
26	MF	ITA	Antonio Filippini (from Brescia)
30	FW	BRA	Jeda (from Vicenza)

Out

3	DF	ITA	Francesco Modesto (to Reggina)
18	MF	ITA	Franco Brienza (on loan to Perugia)
21	MF	ROU	Paul Codrea (on loan to Perugia)
23	MF	ITA	Ighli Vannucchi (to Empoli)

Competitions

Serie B

Main article: 2003–04 Serie B

League table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Promotion or relegation
1	Palermo (P, C)	46	22	17	7	75	39	+36	83	Promotion to Serie A
2	Cagliari (P)	46	23	14	9	80	51	+29	83
3	Livorno (P)	46	20	19	7	75	45	+30	79
4	Messina (P)	46	21	16	9	71	45	+26	79
5	Atalanta (P)	46	19	20	7	59	36	+23	77

Source: Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head goals scored; 5) goal difference; 6) number of goals scored.
(C) Champion; (P) Promoted

Results by round

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40	41	42	43	44	45	46	47
Ground	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A
Result	P	D	W	W	D	L	W	D	W	W	D	W	D	W	W	D	W	D	W	D	D	L	W	L	L	D	D	L	D	W	W	W	L	W	W	D	W	D	L	W	W	D	W	D	W	D	W
Position	-	7	3	1	5	7	5	7	3	3	3	3	2	2	2	2	1	2	2	2	2	2	1	3	3	3	3	3	3	2	2	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

Source: Competitive matches
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss; P = Postponed;   = Leader, Serie A;   = 2004–05 Serie A;   = Promotion playoff to 2004–05 Serie A

Matches

Avellino v Palermo

11 September 2003 3	Avellino	0-0	Palermo	Avellino
20:30		Report		Stadium: Partenio Referee: Bergonzi

Palermo v Cagliari Calcio

14 September 2003 4	Palermo	1-0	Cagliari Calcio	Palermo
20:30	Corini   53' (pen)	Report		Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Nucini

Palermo v Ternana Calcio

20 September 2003 5	Palermo	2-1	Ternana Calcio	Palermo
20:30	Brienza   14' Mutarelli   83'	Report	92' Kharja	Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Rosetti

Salernitana v Palermo

23 September 2003 1	Salernitana	1-1	Palermo	Salerno
20:30	Tulli   49'	Report	94' Gasbarroni	Stadium: Stadio Arechi Referee: Girardi
Note: Match re-scheduled from 23 August 2003 due to issues against the expansion of Serie B to 24 squads.

Torino v Palermo

27 September 2003 6	Torino	2-1	Palermo	Torino
20:30	Ferrante   24' (rig.), 43'	Report	59' (rig.) Corini	Stadium: Delle Alpi Referee: Trefoloni

Palermo v Delfino Pescara

4 October 2003 7	Palermo	2-1	Delfino Pescara	Palermo
20:30	Corini   11' (rig.) Pepe   85'	Report	55' (aut.) Di Donato	Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Bolognino

Palermo v Piacenza Calcio

8 October 2003 2	Palermo	1-1	Piacenza Calcio	Palermo
20:30	Toni   64'	Report	90' Beghetto	Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Cruciani
Note: Match re-scheduled from 7 September 2003 due to issues against the expansion of Serie B to 24 squads.

Como Calcio v Palermo

12 October 2003 8	Como Calcio	0-1	Palermo	Como
15:00		Report	57' (pen) Corini	Stadium: Giuseppe Sinigaglia Referee: Gabriele

Palermo v Fiorentina

15 October 2003 9	Palermo	2-0	Fiorentina	Palermo
20:30	Corini   29' (pen) Di Donato   33'	Report		Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Dondarini

Venezia F.C. v Palermo

18 October 2003 10	Venezia F.C.	1-1	Palermo	Venezia
20:30	Liendo   77'	Report	94' Toni	Stadium: Penzo Referee: Rizzoli

Ascoli Calcio v Palermo

25 October 2003 11	Ascoli Calcio	1-2	Palermo	Ascoli Piceno
20:30	Bonfiglio   29'	Report	28' Toni   56' Mutarelli	Stadium: Stadio Cino e Lillo Del Duca Referee: De Santis

Palermo v Atalanta B.C.

2 November 2003 12	Palermo	0-0	Atalanta B.C.	Palermo
15:00		Report		Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Gabriele

Catania Calcio v Palermo

9 November 2003 13	Catania Calcio	0-2	Palermo	Catania
15:00		Report	7' (pen) Corini   65' Zauli	Stadium: Massimino Referee: Paparesta

Palermo v S.S.C. Napoli

16 November 2003 14	Palermo	4-0	S.S.C. Napoli	Palermo
15:00	Ferri   27' Toni   37', 60' Zauli   48'	Report		Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Racalbuto

Treviso v Palermo

20 November 2003 15	Treviso	1-1	Palermo	Treviso
20:30	Centurioni   50'	Report	92' Corini	Stadium: Tenni Referee: Rodomonti

Palermo v Hellas Verona

23 November 2003 16	Palermo	3-1	Hellas Verona	Palermo
15:00	Toni   27', 52', 72'	Report	23' Papa Waigo	Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Palanca

Genoa C.F.C. v Palermo

28 November 2003 17	Genoa C.F.C.	1-1	Palermo	Genova
20:30	Colacone   56'	Report	79' Corini	Stadium: Luigi Ferraris Referee: Racalbuto

Palermo v U.C. Albinoleffe

7 December 2003 18	Palermo	2-1	U.C. Albinoleffe	Palermo
15:00	Toni   14' Di Donato   39'	Report	30' Biava	Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Romeo

Vicenza Calcio v Palermo

14 December 2003 19	Vicenza Calcio	0-0	Palermo	Vicenza
15:00		Report		Stadium: Romeo Menti Referee: Rizzoli

Palermo v Messina

21 December 2003 20	Palermo	0-0	Messina	Palermo
15:00		Report		Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: De Santis

Triestina Calcio v Palermo

6 January 2004 21	Triestina Calcio	1-0	Palermo	Trieste
15:00	Moscardelli   82'	Report		Stadium: Nereo Rocco Referee: Tombolini

Palermo v Livorno

11 January 2004 22	Palermo	4-1	Livorno	Palermo
15:00	Zauli   22', 71' Toni   49', 84'	Report	48' C.Lucarelli	Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Brighi

A.S. Bari v Palermo

18 January 2004 23	A.S. Bari	2-1	Palermo	Bari
15:00	Cordova   29' (pen) De Rosa   41'	Report	35' Corini	Stadium: San Nicola Referee: Collina

Palermo v Salernitana

25 January 2004 24	Palermo	0-2	Salernitana	Palermo
15:00		Report	59', 84' Bogdani	Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: De Marco

Piacenza Calcio v Palermo

2 February 2004 25	Piacenza Calcio	2-2	Palermo	Piacenza
20:30	Lucenti   42' Beghetto   89'	Report	49' Toni   81' Nastase	Stadium: Garilli Referee: Paparesta

Palermo v Avellino

8 February 2004 26	Palermo	1-1	Avellino	Palermo
15:00	Toni   42'	Report	70' Stroppa	Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Brighi

Cagliari Calcio v Palermo

15 February 2004 27	Cagliari Calcio	3-2	Palermo	Cagliari
15:00	Abeijon   42' E.Filippini   79' (aut.) Langella   87'	Report	49', 67' Gasbarroni	Stadium: Sant'Elia Referee: Ayroldi

Ternana Calcio v Palermo

22 February 2004 28	Ternana Calcio	1-1	Palermo	Terni
15:00	Zampagna   41'	Report	8' Toni	Stadium: Liberati Referee: Rizzoli

Palermo v Torino F.C.

29 February 2004 29	Palermo	2-1	Torino F.C.	Palermo
15:00	Gasbarroni   39' Jeda   40'	Report	8' Tiribocchi	Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Racalbuto

Delfino Pescara v Palermo

4 March 2004 30	Delfino Pescara	0-2	Palermo	Pescara
20:30		Report	5' Toni   77' Jeda	Stadium: Adriatico Referee: Girardi

Palermo v Como Calcio

7 March 2004 31	Palermo	2-1	Como Calcio	Palermo
15:00	Toni   71' Corini   89' (rig.)	Report	83' De Francesco	Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Rizzoli

Fiorentina v Palermo

12 March 2004 32	Fiorentina	2-1	Palermo	Firenze
20:30	Di Livio   34' Vryzas   92'	Report	20' Toni	Stadium: Artemio Franchi Referee: Bolognino

Palermo v Venezia F.C.

18 March 2004 33	Palermo	4-0	Venezia F.C.	Palermo
20:30	Toni   20', 82' E.Filippini   39' Gasbarroni   61'	Report		Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: De Marco

Palermo v Ascoli Calcio

21 March 2004 34	Palermo	1-0	Ascoli Calcio	Palermo
15:00	Corini   50' (pen)	Report		Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Rizzoli

Atalanta B.C. v Palermo

28 March 2004 35	Atalanta B.C.	0-0	Palermo	Bergamo
20:30		Report		Stadium: Atleti Azzurri d'Italia Referee: De Santis

Palermo v Catania Calcio

4 April 2004 36	Palermo	5-0	Catania Calcio	Palermo
15:00	A.Filippini   7' Biava   30' Toni   57', 73' (rig.) E.Filippini   70'	Report		Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Messina

S.S.C. Napoli v Palermo

10 April 2004 37	S.S.C. Napoli	1-1	Palermo	Napoli
15:00	Dionigi   28'	Report	40' A.Filippini	Stadium: San Paolo Referee: Rodomonti

Palermo v Treviso

17 April 2004 38	Palermo	2-3	Treviso	Palermo
20:30	Corini   31' (rig.) Jeda   43'	Report	19' A.D'Agostino   61' Bianco   81' Ganci	Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: De Santis

Hellas Verona v Palermo

23 April 2004 39	Hellas Verona	1-2	Palermo	Verona
20:30	Adailton   11'	Report	28', 88' Toni	Stadium: Marcantonio Bentegodi Referee: Rizzoli

Palermo v Genoa C.F.C.

1 May 2004 40	Palermo	3-1	Genoa C.F.C.	Palermo
20:30	Toni   5', 52' E.Filippini   44'	Report	72' Milito	Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Ayroldi

U.C. Albinoleffe v Palermo

8 May 2004 41	U.C. Albinoleffe	1-1	Palermo	Bergamo
20:30	Raimondi   81'	Report	59' Biava	Stadium: Atleti Azzurri d'Italia Referee: Tombolini

Palermo v Vicenza Calcio

15 May 2004 42	Palermo	3-0	Vicenza Calcio	Palermo
20:30	Gasbarroni   10' Toni   25' Di Donato   65'	Report		Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Pellegrino

Messina v Palermo

22 May 2004 43	Messina	1-1	Palermo	Messina
20:30	Sosa   80'	Report	75' Biava	Stadium: Giovanni Celeste Referee: Rodomonti

Palermo v Triestina Calcio

29 May 2004 44	Palermo	3-1	Triestina Calcio	Palermo
20:30	Toni   31', 41' E.Filippini   83'		63' Mantovani	Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Dondarini

Livorno v Palermo

5 June 2004 45	Livorno	1-1	Palermo	Livorno
20:30	C.Lucarelli   71'	Report	69' Toni	Stadium: Stadio Armando Picchi Referee: Saccani

Palermo v A.S. Bari

12 June 2004 46	Palermo	3-0	A.S. Bari	Palermo
20:30	Toni   31' Grosso   45+1' Vasari   89'	Report		Stadium: Renzo Barbera Referee: Farina

Statistics

Players statistics

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		Serie B		Coppa Italia
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK	ITA	Berti	43	-35	42	-35	1	0
18	DF	ITA	Fabio Grosso	21	1	21	1	0	0
13	DF	ITA	Pietro Accardi	35	0	31+1	0	3	0
26	MF	ITA	Antonio Filippini	21	2	20+1	2	0	0
25	DF	SLE	Kewullay Conteh	34	0	31+1	0	2	0
81	DF	ITA	Michele Ferri	39	2	35+1	1	3	1
8	MF	ITA	Daniele Di Donato	39	3	28+11	3	0	0
22	MF	ITA	Massimo Mutarelli	44	2	41	2	3	0
5	MF	ITA	Eugenio Corini	43	12	38+2	12	3	0
46	MF	ITA	Andrea Gasbarroni	41	6	26+13	6	2	0
9	FW	ITA	Luca Toni	47	30	45	30	2	0
12	GK	ITA	Santoni	8	-10	4	-4	4	-6
21	DF	ITA	Giuseppe Biava	19	3	19	3	0	0
23	MF	ITA	Emanuele Filippini	20	4	18+2	4	0	0
10	MF	ITA	Lamberto Zauli	24	4	17+4	4	3	0
4	DF	ITA	Atzori	18	0	17	0	1	0
6	DF	ITA	Terlizzi	15	0	12	0	3	0
11	MF	ITA	Salvatore Masiello	22	0	9+9	0	4	0
29	DF	ROU	Valentin Năstase	19	1	9+7	1	3	0
7	MF	ITA	Gaetano Vasari	30	2	8+18	1	4	1
	MF	ITA	Franco Brienza	18	1	8+10	1
30	FW	BRA	Jeda	17	3	8+9	3	0	0
20	FW	ITA	Simone Pepe	24	3	5+14	1	5	2
	MF	ROU	Codrea	8	0	5+3	0
79	MF	ITA	Evans Soligo	13	1	3+6	0	4	1
	MF	ITA	Ighli Vannucchi	8	0	3+5	0
	DF	ITA	Francesco Modesto	1	0	1	0
84	GK	ITA	Comi	0	0	0	0	0	0
17	MF	ITA	Antonino Asta	0	0	0	0	0	0
82	MF	ITA	Nicola Milano	1	0	0	0	1	0
24	FW	NGA	John Otuagomah Olufemi	1	0	0	0	1	0

• Source: http://calcio-seriea.net/presenze/2003/2962/

References

1. (in Italian). ilpalermocalcio.it. Archived from the original on 2008-09-14.
2. "The last night of Toni" (in Italian). gazzetta.it.
3. (in Italian). raisport.it. Archived from the original on 2007-11-16.
4. loaned out on Winter.
5. Loaned out.
6. Loaned out
7. Transferred In on Winter
8. Loaned out.
9. Transferred In
10. Loaned out.
11. Transferred In on Winter
12. Transferred In on Winter
13. Transferred In on Winter