Derby of the Lantern to ignite local passions again in Genoa

DERBY DAYS DERBY DELLA LANTERNA:It hasn't the profile of a meeting between AC and Inter in Milan or Rome v Lazio but the big game in Liguria has a charm all of its own, writes DAMIAN CULLEN

MANY OF the world's biggest sporting derbies have become loud, brash affairs - generating more noise through television studios and the back pages of newspapers than they actually command at the stadium itself. Famous players line up on opposing teams. Championship titles are often on the line. It is life and death - or so we're told.

Some derbies, however, are primarily local. Sampdoria versus Genoa doesn't have the pre-match national, and international, billing of a Roma versus Lazio or an Inter versus AC. The rivalry has quietly got on with business at hand and while the city of Genoa enjoyed the passion and excitement that naturally flowed from a meeting between the clubs from the north Italy seaport, the matches largely went unnoticed outside of the region of Liguria.

But being immune to national concerns has advantages.

At the same time as Serie A was enjoying its status as the pre-eminent soccer league in the world during the 1990s, the Derby Della Lanterna (which is a reference to the main lighthouse for the city's port) disappeared off the radar. While the soccer world was enthralled by the jewels in the crown of club soccer, Genoa ended the city's traditional twice-annual meetings by slipping to Serie B. Sampdoria duly followed their neighbours into the second tier for four seasons from the start of the 1999-2000 season.

The derby resumed, away from the glare of almost all - bar the residents of the city.

It is, therefore, perhaps fitting that, as the Italian Serie A quickly fades from the peak of its glory days, Genoa should reappear last year in the top-flight (gaining promotion alongside heavyweights Juventus and Napoli) and the derby should resume again - having missing out on much of the top-flight's glory years.

Last year, for the first time since April, 1995, Genoa and Sampdoria met at their shared Stadio Comunale Luigi Ferraris in a Serie A clash.

In the 1994-'95 season, both sides won their "home" tie, Sampdoria winning a thriller 3-2 early in the season, with Genoa snatching a 2-1 victory the following April (with then England captain David Platt scoring the consolation goal).

Because of the long time gap, the derby enjoyed unprecedented attention in the Italian media ahead of their first Serie A meeting in 12 years.

However, in September, 2007, the players let the emotion of the derby's return get the better of them and the game was marked by constant fouling. While the debut of former Real Madrid striker Antonio Cassano for Sampdoria captured most interest, it was the pageantry in the stands that, not for the first time, allowed the match to stand out from the weekend's other Serie A games.

But with the match being below the standard they were accustomed to, the national audience quickly lost interest once again. That mattered little in Genoa. The Derby of the Lantern has been in existence since 1946, when the clubs - Sampierdarenese and Andrea Doria - came together to form Unione Calcio Sampdoria.

Neither club has ever needed a big trophy cabinet, both sides being more concerned with local battles rather than any national campaign. Sampdoria have only claimed the Scudetto once, in 1991 - long after Liam Brady, Graeme Souness and Trevor Francis, who all played for the club in the mid 1980s - had moved on. The league winning side, who flirted with European football during the same period, did contain such stars as Gianluca Vialli, Roberto Mancini and Attilio Lombardo.

(Incidently, this Friday afternoon, ESPN Classic are showing the 1989 Uefa Cup Winners' Cup final in which Barcelona (including Gary Lineker) defeated Sampdoria 2-0.

Genoa Cricket and Football Club have had even less distinguished success at national level in recent years. While they have won the Italian title nine times, the last time Italy's oldest club achieved the feat was in 1924.

So while Italian soccer lurches from crisis to crisis, one city is anticipating a derby that is insulated from such problems. This is an inner-city rivalry. It's also a neighbourly rivalry that perhaps best demonstrates the character of Italian soccer.

Genoa will arrive for the "away" fixture with more confidence, despite losing their 100 per cent home record so far this season due to a 1-1 draw with Bologna last weekend. Sampdoria were beaten 1-0 Cagliari and are now eight places and six points behind their neighbours, who are seventh in the Serie A table.

Sampdoria coach Walter Mazzarri, however, is undeterred. "The derby is a game on its own," he said this week. "We will need a great performance."

Genoa may boast striker Diego Milito, currently Serie A's leading scorer with 11 goals in 14 games, but his hot form is just another intriguing subplot as Sunday evening's big game approaches.

Sampdoria

v

Genoa

Stadio Comunale Luigi Ferraris, Genoa

Sunday, kick-off - 7.30pm (Irish-time)