Franco Colomba
Encyclopedia
Franco Colomba is an Italian
football
coach and former player, who is currently in charge of Serie A
club Parma
.
, started his playing career in Bologna
, making his Serie A
debut in 1973–74. He played for Bologna until 1983, except two loan spells at Serie B
teams Modena
and Sambenedettese
, in 1975 and 1976 respectively. After having left Bologna, Colomba signed for Avellino
, a minor Serie A team where he played until 1988, when Avellino relegated to Serie B
, and became a favourite among the biancoverdi fans. He ended his career in 1990 with Modena.
and Spal
, Colomba took his first head coaching job in 1993, at the helm of Olbia
of Serie C2
. After an impressive season with Novara
one year later, in 1995 Colomba was called to coach Salernitana, where he narrowly missed immediate promotion to Serie A
; he was fired one year later, because of poor results. In 1997, Colomba signed for Reggina
of Serie B
, where he obtained a seventh place. At the end of the season, he left Reggina for Serie A
team Vicenza
, where he however did not end the season, being fired after nineteen matchdays.
Colomba returned to Reggina in 1999, and stayed in Calabria
for three seasons, with a relegation in 2001 (after having lost a playoff match to Verona
) and a successive promotion in 2002. In the 2002–03 season, Colomba had a somehow turbulent Serie B experience at fallen giants Napoli
, with a sacking and a successive recall, and a disappointing fifteenth place as a result. The next year saw Colomba making his third comeback at Reggina, but he is fired after the eleventh matchday and replaced by Giancarlo Camolese
. The 2004–05 season started with Colomba at the helm of newly-promoted Serie A side Livorno
, but abruptly ended in January, when he was sacked and replaced by Roberto Donadoni
. In October 2005, a Serie B team in danger of relegation, Avellino
, called him to replace Francesco Oddo
; however, Avellino finally lost its place to Serie B after two playoff matches lost to AlbinoLeffe
.
Colomba returned to coach in December 2006, when he was appointed to replace Marco Giampaolo
at the helm of Serie A
club Cagliari Calcio
. He was fired on February 26, 2007 following a 2–0 home defeat to Lazio
.
On July 19, 2007 he was announced as head coach of Serie C1
club Verona
. However, Verona had a very poor start in their Serie C1 2007–08 campaign, with no wins in the initial seven league matches, and a shock 1–2 defeat against Legnano
led the club management to sack Colomba on October 8, 2007.
On December 2008 he was appointed as new head coach of Ascoli
, becoming the third manager of the bianconeri in the Serie B 2008–09, and replacing Vincenzo Chiarenza
. He guided Ascoli into a mid-table finish at the end of the season, but his contract was not extended and therefore left the club.
On 20 October 2009 Colomba was appointed new head coach of Bologna, taking over from Giuseppe Papadopulo
. Notably, despite being born in Grosseto, Colomba grew up in Bologna and is a fan of the local club since childhood, and Bologna was also the club that gave him the chance to make his professional football debut. After taking the reins of the rossoblu club, he defined his appointment as head coach of Bologna as a dream coming true. He guided Bologna to keep their place in the Serie A in 2009–10, however his position was put under question after Sergio Porcedda took over the club. Originally confirmed at the helm of the club, he was ultimately dismissed on 29 August 2010, exactly one day before the first game of the season, allegedly due to disagreements with the board.
On 5 April 2011, Colomba was announced as the new head coach of Parma
, replacing Pasquale Marino
, and saved the club from relegation, being subsequently confirmed at the helm of the club also for the new season.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
coach and former player, who is currently in charge of Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
club Parma
Parma F.C.
Parma Football Club , commonly referred to as just Parma, is an Italian professional football club based in Parma, Emilia–Romagna that will compete in Serie A for the 2011–12 season, having finished in twelfth position last season. Founded as Verdi Foot Ball Club in July 1913, the club changed its...
.
Playing
Colomba, a midfielderMidfielder
A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...
, started his playing career in Bologna
Bologna F.C. 1909
Bologna Football Club 1909, known simply as Bologna, is an Italian Football League club based in Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, formed in 1993. The club are nicknamed the rossoblù because of the red and blue striped shirts they wear. Red and Blue are the official colours of the town.During its history...
, making his Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
debut in 1973–74. He played for Bologna until 1983, except two loan spells at Serie B
Serie B
Serie B, currently named Serie bwin due to sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega Serie B since July 2010, after the split of Lega Calcio that previously took care of both the...
teams Modena
Modena F.C.
Modena Football Club is an Italian football club based in Modena, Emilia-Romagna. The club was formed in 1912 and currently plays in Italian Serie B, after being relegated from a two year period in Serie A in the year 2004. The team's previous stay in Italy's top division ended in 1964. The team...
and Sambenedettese
S.S. Sambenedettese Calcio
Unione Sportiva Sambenedettese is an Italian association football club, based in San Benedetto del Tronto, Marche. The club was founded in 1923. Sambenedettese currently plays in Serie D, having last been in Serie B in 1989. The team's colors are red and blue....
, in 1975 and 1976 respectively. After having left Bologna, Colomba signed for Avellino
U.S. Avellino
Associazione Sportiva Avellino 1912 , since summer 2010, is the new name of the Italian football club, based in Avellino, Campania. The club was founded in 1912 and its traditional colours are green and white...
, a minor Serie A team where he played until 1988, when Avellino relegated to Serie B
Serie B
Serie B, currently named Serie bwin due to sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega Serie B since July 2010, after the split of Lega Calcio that previously took care of both the...
, and became a favourite among the biancoverdi fans. He ended his career in 1990 with Modena.
Coaching
After three years as youth coach for ModenaModena F.C.
Modena Football Club is an Italian football club based in Modena, Emilia-Romagna. The club was formed in 1912 and currently plays in Italian Serie B, after being relegated from a two year period in Serie A in the year 2004. The team's previous stay in Italy's top division ended in 1964. The team...
and Spal
Spal 1907
SPAL 1907 is an Italian football club, based in Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna. The club was founded in 1907 as Società Polisportiva Ars et Labor and was refounded in 2005....
, Colomba took his first head coaching job in 1993, at the helm of Olbia
Olbia Calcio
U.S. Olbia 1905 is an Italian association football club, based in Olbia, Sardinia. The club was founded in 1905. Olbia currently plays in Eccellenza...
of Serie C2
Serie C2
Lega Pro Seconda Divisione is the name of the fourth highest football league in Italy, the lowest with a professional status. Usually it consists of 54 teams, but in the season 2010–11 the teams are only 49 divided geographically into three divisions of 17, 16 and 16 teams each...
. After an impressive season with Novara
Novara Calcio
Novara Calcio is an Italian football club based in Novara, Piedmont.-History:In December 1908 the F.A.S. was created by eight students of Liceo Carlo Alberto, aged between 15–16 years; among them an engineer, Gianni Canestrini, and a lawyer, Piero Omodei Zorini...
one year later, in 1995 Colomba was called to coach Salernitana, where he narrowly missed immediate promotion to Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
; he was fired one year later, because of poor results. In 1997, Colomba signed for Reggina
Reggina Calcio
Reggina Calcio are an Italian association football club, the main club of the city of Reggio Calabria. Founded in 1914, they currently play in the Italian Serie B, and play their home matches at the 27,763 seater Stadio Oreste Granillo...
of Serie B
Serie B
Serie B, currently named Serie bwin due to sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega Serie B since July 2010, after the split of Lega Calcio that previously took care of both the...
, where he obtained a seventh place. At the end of the season, he left Reggina for Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
team Vicenza
Vicenza Calcio
Vicenza Calcio is an Italian football club based in Vicenza, Veneto. The club was formed in 1902 and currently plays in Italy's Serie B, having spent the entire 1960s and a large part of the 1990s in Serie A...
, where he however did not end the season, being fired after nineteen matchdays.
Colomba returned to Reggina in 1999, and stayed in Calabria
Calabria
Calabria , in antiquity known as Bruttium, is a region in southern Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula. The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro....
for three seasons, with a relegation in 2001 (after having lost a playoff match to Verona
Hellas Verona F.C.
Hellas Verona Football Club is a professional Italian association football team, based in Verona, Veneto. The team's colours are yellow and blue and gialloblu is the team's most widely used nickname...
) and a successive promotion in 2002. In the 2002–03 season, Colomba had a somehow turbulent Serie B experience at fallen giants Napoli
S.S.C. Napoli
Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli, commonly referred to as Napoli, is a professional Italian football club based in Naples and founded in 1926. The club has spent most of its history in Serie A, where it currently plays its 2011–12 season....
, with a sacking and a successive recall, and a disappointing fifteenth place as a result. The next year saw Colomba making his third comeback at Reggina, but he is fired after the eleventh matchday and replaced by Giancarlo Camolese
Giancarlo Camolese
Giancarlo Camolese is an Italian football manager and former player. He is currently without a club.-Playing:...
. The 2004–05 season started with Colomba at the helm of newly-promoted Serie A side Livorno
A.S. Livorno Calcio
Associazione Sportiva Livorno Calcio is an Italian football club based in Livorno, Tuscany. The club was formed in 1915 and currently plays in Italian Serie B. The team's colors are dark red or maroon...
, but abruptly ended in January, when he was sacked and replaced by Roberto Donadoni
Roberto Donadoni
Roberto Donadoni is an Italian football manager and former player, last in charge of Serie A club Cagliari.An attacking midfielder or winger known for pace and technique, he was a pillar of the powerhouse AC Milan teams of the late 1980s and early 1990s and one of the pioneers of Major League...
. In October 2005, a Serie B team in danger of relegation, Avellino
U.S. Avellino
Associazione Sportiva Avellino 1912 , since summer 2010, is the new name of the Italian football club, based in Avellino, Campania. The club was founded in 1912 and its traditional colours are green and white...
, called him to replace Francesco Oddo
Francesco Oddo
Francesco Oddo is a football manager and former player.Born in Trapani, Sicily, but resident of Città Sant'Angelo, Abruzzo, Oddo started his coaching career in 1988 for Giulianova of Serie C2 league. In 1990 he became head coach of Serie B club Avellino, successively managing several other teams...
; however, Avellino finally lost its place to Serie B after two playoff matches lost to AlbinoLeffe
U.C. AlbinoLeffe
Unione Calcio AlbinoLeffe is an Italian association football club based in Leffe and also representing the town of Albino, in the Province of Bergamo, Lombardy. AlbinoLeffe plays its home games at the Atleti Azzurri d'Italia stadium, in the city of Bergamo, and its official colors are dark blue and...
.
Colomba returned to coach in December 2006, when he was appointed to replace Marco Giampaolo
Marco Giampaolo
Marco Giampaolo is an Italian association football manager.-Playing career:Born in Bellinzona, Switzerland, but originary from Giulianova, Giampaolo is a former midfielder who played for several Serie C teams, including Giulianova Calcio, Gubbio, Licata and Siracusa, before to make his Serie B...
at the helm of Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
club Cagliari Calcio
Cagliari Calcio
Cagliari Calcio is an Italian football club based in Cagliari, Sardinia. The club was formed in 1920 and currently plays in Italian Serie A, having spent a large part of recent years mainly in Serie A and Serie B....
. He was fired on February 26, 2007 following a 2–0 home defeat to Lazio
S.S. Lazio
Società Sportiva Lazio, commonly referred to as Lazio, is a professional Italian football club based in Rome. The team, founded in 1900, play in the Serie A and have spent most of their history in the top tier of Italian football...
.
On July 19, 2007 he was announced as head coach of Serie C1
Serie C1
Lega Pro Prima Divisione is the name of the third highest football league in Italy. It consists of 36 teams, divided geographically into two divisions of 18 teams each. Until 2008 it was known as Serie C1....
club Verona
Hellas Verona F.C.
Hellas Verona Football Club is a professional Italian association football team, based in Verona, Veneto. The team's colours are yellow and blue and gialloblu is the team's most widely used nickname...
. However, Verona had a very poor start in their Serie C1 2007–08 campaign, with no wins in the initial seven league matches, and a shock 1–2 defeat against Legnano
A.C. Legnano
Associazione Calcio Legnano was an Italian football club, based in Legnano, Lombardy, that was founded in 1913. The team's colors were lilac and white. In the past Legnano have played three seasons in Italy's top league; Serie A, finishing bottom of the league each time.The club were perhaps best...
led the club management to sack Colomba on October 8, 2007.
On December 2008 he was appointed as new head coach of Ascoli
Ascoli Calcio 1898
Ascoli Calcio 1898 is an Italian football club based in Ascoli Piceno, Marche. The club was formed in 1898 and currently plays in Italian Serie B, having returned to it after two seasons spent in Serie A...
, becoming the third manager of the bianconeri in the Serie B 2008–09, and replacing Vincenzo Chiarenza
Vincenzo Chiarenza
Vincenzo Chiarenza is an Italian football coach and former player.-Player:Chiarenza started his professional playing career in 1973–74 with Sampdoria in the Italian Serie A, then playing mostly at Serie B level with Brindisi, Avellino, Bari, Taranto, Triestina, Atalanta and Lazio...
. He guided Ascoli into a mid-table finish at the end of the season, but his contract was not extended and therefore left the club.
On 20 October 2009 Colomba was appointed new head coach of Bologna, taking over from Giuseppe Papadopulo
Giuseppe Papadopulo
Giuseppe Papadopulo is an Italian football manager and former player, last in charge as head coach of Torino.-Career:...
. Notably, despite being born in Grosseto, Colomba grew up in Bologna and is a fan of the local club since childhood, and Bologna was also the club that gave him the chance to make his professional football debut. After taking the reins of the rossoblu club, he defined his appointment as head coach of Bologna as a dream coming true. He guided Bologna to keep their place in the Serie A in 2009–10, however his position was put under question after Sergio Porcedda took over the club. Originally confirmed at the helm of the club, he was ultimately dismissed on 29 August 2010, exactly one day before the first game of the season, allegedly due to disagreements with the board.
On 5 April 2011, Colomba was announced as the new head coach of Parma
Parma F.C.
Parma Football Club , commonly referred to as just Parma, is an Italian professional football club based in Parma, Emilia–Romagna that will compete in Serie A for the 2011–12 season, having finished in twelfth position last season. Founded as Verdi Foot Ball Club in July 1913, the club changed its...
, replacing Pasquale Marino
Pasquale Marino
Pasquale Marino is an Italian football coach.-Playing career:In his playing career, started for his home team, Marsala, Marino never played in divisions higher than Serie C1, and ended his career for Catania in 1996/1997....
, and saved the club from relegation, being subsequently confirmed at the helm of the club also for the new season.