U.S. Pistoiese 1921

Unione Sportiva Pistoiese 1921 is an Italian association football club, based in Pistoia, Tuscany. Currently Pistoiese plays in Serie C.

Pistoiese
Full nameUnione Sportiva Pistoiese 1921 s.r.l.
Nickname(s)Arancioni (Orange), Olandesina (Little dutch girl)
Founded1921
1937 (refounded)
1945 (refounded)
1988 (refounded)
2009 (refounded)
GroundStadio Marcello Melani,
Pistoia, Italy
Capacity13,195
ChairmanOrazio Ferrari
Managervacant
LeagueSerie C
2019–20Serie C Group A, 12th of 20
WebsiteClub website

The singer-songwriter Francesco Guccini is probably the most famous tifoso of Pistoiese in Italy.

History

The club was founded in 1921 and refounded in 1937, 1945, 1988 and 2009; having last been in Serie A in 1981.

U.S. Pistoiese

Pistoiese achieved prominence by rising to Serie B in the late 1970s with promotion to Serie A following in 1980. Under the presidency of Marcello Melani, who chose veterans like Marcello Lippi and Mario Frustalupi and promising young talents such as Paolo Benedetti, Pistoiese reached Serie A in just 6 years and made a reasonable start, reaching as high as 6th after a win at Fiorentina in Round 13. But a dismal freefall resulted in a last-place finish and relegation. Since 1980, the club has only managed two stretches in Serie B (1995–96 and 1999–2002). Melani left his post in 1980, followed by Lippi in 1981.

A.C. Nuova Pistoiese 1988

In the 2005–06 Serie C1/B campaign, Pistoiese battled against relegation from Serie C1 with goals proving hard to come by, yet having one of the best defensive records in the division. A good end to the season brought the team to a 9th-place finish in Group A, which was three points ahead the relegation playoff. Pistoiese finished 14th in Group B in the 2007–2008 season and competed in a relegation play-off against Sangiovannese. They won by 4–0 aggregate and remained in Lega Pro Prima Divisione (former Serie C1).

The Tuscan club started the 2008–09 season with Roberto Miggiano as head coach, but disappointing results and a last-place position in the Lega Pro Prima Divisione table led the club to replace him with Salvatore Polverino later in October. However, results did not improve under new boss Polverino, prompting him to tender his resignation in February 2009. He was replaced by former Juventus star Moreno Torricelli, in his first stint as a professional head coach; under Torricelli's reign, Pistoiese managed to improve results and escape immediate relegation ending in 16th place. Nevertheless, Pistoiese lost a play-off against Foligno and was relegated to Lega Pro Seconda Divisione.

In the summer of 2009, Pistoiese was not permitted enrollment in Lega Pro Seconda Divisione due to inadequate finances.

Unione Sportiva Pistoiese 1921

On 13 August 2009 Unione Sportiva Pistoiese 1921 was created by Pistoia's mayor, Berti. The club was admitted to Tuscany's Eccellenza league and managed an excellent inaugural year, reaching the play-off for promotion, where it eventually lost to Mosciano.

In the 2010–11 season, it won Eccellenza Tuscany group A and was thus promoted to Serie D. Pistoiese managed to reacquire professional status after winning the Girone E of 2013–14 Serie D, thus ensuring a spot in the 2014–15 Lega Pro.

Colors and badge

The team's colors are orange and blue.

Current squad
As of 20 January 2020

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

No. Pos. Nation Player
2 DF  ITA Federico Mazzarani (on loan from Ternana)
3 DF  ITA Leonardo Terigi
4 DF  ITA Francesco Cerretelli
5 DF  ITA Paolo Dametto
7 MF  ITA Francesco Valiani
8 MF  ITA Alessandro Bordin (on loan from Spezia)
9 FW  ITA Niccolò Gucci
10 MF  ITA Luigi Falcone
11 MF  ITA Gregorio Morachioli (on loan from Spezia)
12 GK  ITA Matteo Pisseri
13 DF  ITA Andrés Llamas
14 MF  ITA Christian Spadoni
15 DF  ITA Vincenzo Camilleri
No. Pos. Nation Player
16 DF  ITA Giulio Favale (on loan from Reggio Audace)
17 DF  ITA Federico Sonnini
18 DF  ITA Giorgio Viti
20 MF  ITA Emanuele Spinozzi
21 MF  ITA Mirko Bortoletti
22 GK  ITA Daniel Salvalaggio
25 MF  ITA Leandro Vitiello
26 DF  ITA Riccardo Capellini (on loan from Juventus)
27 MF  ITA Viviano Minardi
28 FW  MNE Ognjen Stijepović (on loan from Sampdoria)
29 FW  ITA Pierluigi Cappelluzzo (on loan from Verona)
30 DF  ITA Gabriele Ferrarini (on loan from Fiorentina)

Out on loan

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

No. Pos. Nation Player
— MF  ITA Andrea Aiassa (at Pro Donero)

Former players

Former managers
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