Livorno spread their wings

Livorno is a cosmopolitan place. Italy's third largest west coast port after Naples and Genoa, it has been heavily influenced by foreign cultures throughout its history. And this year its links with the rest of the continent have grown that little bit stronger. For the first time its football team AS Livorno Calcio are playing in Europe, and they are making the most of the experience.

Totemic figure
Many expected their maiden voyage to end in the UEFA Cup group stage. Especially after a slow start to their Group A campaign left them needing to win at AJ Auxerre to advance. Cristiano Lucarelli's 59th-minute goal ensured they did just that. Born in Livorno, the 31-year-old striker has always been a huge fan of his local team. After a long and much-travelled career, he finally joined his beloved Labronici in 2003 and soon became a totemic figure at the club.

'Honour'
"Not even when I was a kid playing with a ball and dreaming of playing in a Livorno shirt, did I think of playing in the UEFA Cup," he told uefa.com. "Travelling around the continent as Livorno captain is a huge honour for me and our first European adventure has been incredible so far. The victory at Auxerre was great. We achieved an historic goal and gave our fans a lot of pleasure. We had promised them we were going to play the game of our lives and we did." As a fan himself, Lucarelli appreciates more than most the efforts of the 400 supporters who made the trip. "After the final whistle we all went together to thank the fans who had come all the way to France just for us. It was the least we could do. The fans have played a really important part in our success."

Against the odds
That success has come against the odds. Livorno do not have a particularly large squad and president Aldo Spinelli admitted before the Auxerre game that it would not have been a tragedy had his side lost. Livorno are in mid-table in Serie A and keeping his side there is among Spinelli’s priorities. "From a psychological point of view it's very difficult," Lucarelli admits. "You need a week to fully recover from a match like the Auxerre one. Three days later we struggled against Lazio, but fortunately managed to claim a point. But the UEFA Cup is too important for us just to focus on the domestic league."

'Good memories'
Livorno have been drawn against RCD Espanyol in the next round. It gives Lucarelli the chance to return to a part of the world he knows well after spending the 1998/99 season with Valencia CF. "They had great champions at the time," he says. "Players like Claudio López, Gaizka Mendieta, Francisco Farinos, Amedeo Carboni, Adrian Ilie, and the coach Claudio Ranieri. A beautiful stadium as well. Unfortunately I was a bit too young to make the most of that great opportunity and after only three months I fractured my foot. Valencia, however, is a fantastic town and I have good memories of the time I spent there."

Late developer
Lucarelli was in his early 20s when he moved to Spain, but it is in the latter stages of his career that he has really begun to shine. He is in no doubt why. "Motivation for me is crucial and playing for the team I love is more than just a boost. I train with more pleasure now than I used to do when I was 20." The result? A phenomenal 79 league goals in four seasons since signing from Torino FC. He has also been called up by Italy, though he was left out of the Azzurri's FIFA World Cup squad.

'Fascinating'
So for a man who loves his club so much, what would mean more, winning the World Cup with Italy or the UEFA Cup with Livorno? "Difficult to say, but it's more fun when you play an important role in the team, so I'd say I'd prefer to win the UEFA Cup with Livorno. I like the UEFA Cup a lot. I think the competition is as fascinating as it was in the past, especially now that the knockout stage is beginning."

Ambition
Italian teams have not had much luck in the competition since Parma AC lifted the trophy in 1999. With the demands of Serie A weighing heavy, Lucarelli expects a tough ride come February. "It's never easy to win a European competition because the Italian league demands so much energy. Only big clubs can afford a large enough squad to play in two competitions and they're usually playing in the UEFA Champions League. I don't know if we can go all the way. We'll take one game at the time and see how far we can go." If the rest of the squad can match their captain’s passion, nothing is impossible.

This article is from the uefa.com Magazine. To read this week's edition click here.