18 March 2010 - Juventus Get Their Fill Of Fulham

On 18 March 2010, Fulham rallied from a 4-1 aggregate deficit to beat Juventus in the Europa Cup, 5-4.

It was only Fulham's second appearance in a UEFA competition, but they beat several more experienced sides on the way to their meeting with Juventus, including group-stage wins over Basel (twice) and CSKA Sofia, plus a knockout round aggregate victory over Shakhtar Donetsk.

They lost their first leg against Juventus in Turin on 11 March, 3-1, presenting an uphill battle for the second leg at Craven Cottage. That hill became a little steeper in just the second minute, as Juventus striker David Trezeguet scored to extend their aggregate lead to 4-1.

Fulham got a lifeline seven minutes later with a goal from striker Bobby Zamora, then caught a break when Juventus defender Fabio Cannavaro received a straight red card for a cynical foul on Zoltán Gera in the 27th minute. Gera made Juventus pay in the 39th minute, scoring from two yards out to narrow the aggregate margin to 4-3. Shortly after the break, Gera brought Fulham level when the referee awarded a 49th-minute penalty for a Juventus handball. Then, in the 83rd minute, with extra-time looming, Fulham substitute Clint Dempsey unleashed an arcing shot from outside the penalty area that flew into the top far corner of the net. It was a remarkable goal and sealed the victory.

Fulham eventually reached the tournament final before falling to Atlético Madrid.

11 March 1900 - The New Kids On The Piazza

On 11 March 1900, Juventus played their first competitive match, losing 0-1 to Torinese. It was one of only four matches for them that season.

Founded in November 1897, at approximately the same time the first Italian league contests began, Juventus were not admitted to the league until three years later. At the time, the league, known as the Italian Football Championship, was divided into regional groups, with the group winners advancing to a series of playoffs.

Only six teams participated in the 1900 edition, with Juventus joined in the Piedmont group with FBC Torinese and Ginnastica Torino (both unrelated to the current Torino FC). The other groups were Liguria, which included Genoa and Sampierdarenese, and Lombardy, which had only one team, Milan.

Torinese had already beaten Ginnastica Torino before meeting Juventus at the Piazza d'Armi. Still wearing their original pink and black kits, Juventus fell by a single goal. They went on to beat Ginnastica twice, both times by the score of 2-0, before losing again to Torinese 2-1.

They eventually won the first of twenty-seven titles in 1905 after changing to their current black-and-white striped shirts, while Torinese were disbanded in 1906.

[Retro shirt company Toff's sells a replica of the 1900 shirt, which can be found here.]

26 November 1996 - Del Piero Peels Bonano

On 26 November 1996, a late strike from Alessandro Del Piero secured a second Intercontinental Cup for Juventus.

Played at the National Stadium in Tokyo, the competition (known at the time as the Toyota Cup) pitted Juventus, the reigning Champions League winners, against the Copa Libertadores champions, River Plate. Both teams were looking for their second title--Juventus having won it in 1985 and River Plate in 1986.

The 1996 edition was a dynamic end-to-end affair, with the majority of chances coming from Juventus. They would have won easily if not for the performance of River Plate keeper Roberto Bonano, who denied a handful of point-blank shots. But Del Piero eventually tipped the delicate balance in the 81st minute; a Juventus corner kick was met by Zinedine Zidane, who headed it down to Del Piero for the match-winning shot.

It was the last appearance for either team in the competition, which ended in 2004 and was replaced by the FIFA Club World Cup.

30 October 2010 - The Peerless Del Piero

On 30 October 2010, Juventus trequartista Alessandro del Piero scored the match-winner against Milan. It was his 179th Serie A goal for the Bianconeri, setting a new club record.

Del Piero joined Juventus from Padova in 1993. Initially playing as a traditional striker, he opened his goalscoring account that September in only his second appearance, then garnered a hat-trick in his first start. Juventus went on to win the Scudetto that season, one of five league titles for del Piero, who has also collected four Italian Super Cups, one Coppa Italia, and a Champions League trophy (as well as the 2006 World Cup with Italy).

He scored 20 goals in the 2006-07 season, but they didn't count toward the Serie A record as Juventus had been relegated in response to the Calciopoli scandal. Although several high-profile players left the club prior to the relegation, Del Piero stayed and captained the club back to the top flight at their first opportunity.

In the match against Milan at the San Siro on 30 October 2010, del Piero's 65th-minute goal proved to be the decisive one as it put Juventus up 1-2, which is how the day ended. It broke the club's previous Serie A record tally, set by Giampiero Boniperti from 1946 to 1961.

Now in his last season with Juventus, Del Piero continues to find the net and has pushed the record to 205 goals, with a total of 285 in all competitions.

14 July 2006 - Nobody Passes Go, Nobody Collects $200

On 14 July 2006, an Italian football federation panel announced the punishments for the Calciopoli match-fixing scandal, including relegations for Juventus, Fiorentina, and Lazio.

The announcement was the result of a police investigation into the 2005-06 Serie A season that found all three clubs, plus AC Milan, guilty of fixing matches by bribing referees. The prosecution requested relegations and points deductions for each club, reserving the harshest penalties for Juventus. The Turin club's general manager, Luciano Moggi (pictured), was a central figure in the collusion, which resulted in Juventus winning the Scudetto for 2005-06.

Although the prosecutors requested that Juventus be demoted at least two levels, the panel's sanction dropped them only to Serie B. They also stripped Juventus' 2005 and 2006 league titles and docked them 30 points for the upcoming season. Fiorentina and Lazio were relegated as well, while Milan escaped with a relatively minor points deduction. The Juventus board resigned en masse, while Moggi received a lifetime ban.

After the appeals process, the punishments were reduced. Juventus ended up as the only club relegated--for the first time in club history. The points deduction was lowered from 30 to 9, however, and they won promotion back to Serie A for the 2007-08 season.

28 May 2003 - So The Lesson Is He Who Has Seedorf, Wins

On 28 May 2003, Juventus and AC Milan needed a penalty shootout to decide the first all-Italian Champions League Final.

Played before a crowd of 63,215 at Old Trafford in Manchester, the Final was only the second one in tournament history to pair teams from the same league--Real Madrid defeated Valencia in 2000. The Serie A race had officially ended four days prior with Juventus at the top of the table. Although they finished 11 points clear of third-place Milan, the two teams had split their two league meetings, with each team winning at home, 2-1.

The Final was even closer. The only real chance came from Milan striker Andriy Shevchenko, whose early goal wasruled out because his teammate Rui Costa had blocked the view of Juventus keeper Gianluigi Buffon from an offside position. They completed the first 120 minutes of play deadlocked at 0-0.

The shootout took place in front of the Juventus section. After four kicks each, Milan were up 1-2, with both Buffon and Milan keeper Dida making critical saves. Juventus forward and captain Alessandro Del Piero converted his team's last kick to level the score, putting the pressure on Milan's last kicker, Shevchenko. But the Ukrainian confidently stroked the ball past Buffon for the win, 0-0 (2-3).

Coincidentally, it was the third Champions League trophy for Milan midfielder Clarence Seedorf, who had won it in 1995 with Ajax (against Milan) and in 1998 with Real Madrid (against Juventus).

25 February 2005 - Apparently, Thomas Wolfe Was Right

On 25 February 2005, Valencia sacked manager Claudio Ranieri after only eight months into a three-year contract, proving the adage "you can't go home again."

It was Ranieri's second stint at the Estadio Mestalla. He had first joined the club in July 1997 and soon delivered their first major silverware in 18 years with the 1998 Intertoto Cup, followed by the 1999 Copa del Rey. In June 1999, he left to join Valencia's league rival Atlético Madrid.

His time in Madrid was less successful; Ranieri resigned in March 2000 amid rumors of his imminent sacking while Atlético ended the season with relegation. He landed at Chelsea in September 2000 and guided the Londoners to a second-place league finish in 2004, their best position in the final table in 49 years. But he was not around for long to enjoy their newfound success, as he was sacked in May 2004 by owner Roman Abramovich.

Ranieri then returned to Valencia in June 2004, but was unable to recapture his prior magic. A strong start soon gave way to a slump in October. Supporters criticized his tactics, claiming he failed to settle on an established rotation. By February 2005, Valencia had been eliminated from European competition and, even though they were in sixth place in La Liga, the club chose to part ways with their once-loved manager.

Since then, he has taken charge of Parma (2007), Juventus (2007-09), and Roma (2009-11). He resigned from Roma earlier this month after a string of three defeats dropped them from fourth place to eighth in Serie A.

10 December 1997 - But I'm Sure They Were Happy Just To Be There

On 10 December 1997, MFK Košice lost 0-1 to Feyenoord, thus becoming the first-ever team to bow out of the Champions League with zero points.

Reigning champions of Slovakia's top flight, Košice reached the group stage by beating Icelandic club ÍA 4-0 on aggregate in the first qualifying round, then defeating Spartak Moscow 2-1 on aggregate in the second qualifying round. In doing so, they were the first Slovakian club to make it to the group stage.

But their good fortune ended there. They failed to even score in the first legs opening the tournament with a 3-goal loss to Manchester United, followed by a 2-0 loss to Feyenoord, then a 1-goal loss to eventual finalists Juventus. They improved in the rematch with Juve, but still fell, 3-2, then lost again to man United, 3-0. They were already guaranteed to finish at the bottom of the group regardless of the results in their last match against Feyenoord, who were also mathematically eliminated from the competition.

Played at the Všešportový areál in Košice, the hosts kept it close for most of the match and nearly walked away with a point, but succumbed to an 81st-minute strike from Giovanni van Bronckhorst to end the tournament's worst campaign in history with 6 losses in 6 matches.

11 November 2007 - The Death Of Gabriele Sandri

On 11 November 2007, a clash between supporters of Lazio and Juventus turned deadly when one of the fans was shot and killed by a policeman.

26-year old disc jockey and Lazio fan Gabriele Sandri was travelling to Milan from Rome with a group of friends to see Lazio play against Inter. Along the way, they stopped at a service station in Tuscany, where they ran into a group of Juventus fans. A fight broke out, followed shortly by the arrival of the police. Luigi Spaccarotella, one of the policemen, fired a shot that hit Sandri, who was sitting in his car. The bullet struck him in the neck and killed him.

Football supporters across Italy rioted in response, forcing the Italian Football Federation to cancel matches across the country.

During the subsequent investigation, Spaccarotella claimed to have fired his gun into the air, then accidentally set it off while running, believing that the second shot was the one that struck Sandri. In 2009, Spaccarotella was convicted of criminally negligent manslaughter and sentenced to six years in prison.

27 September 1994 - Ravanelli's Record Romp

On 27 September 1994, Juventus defeated CSKA Sofia 5-1 in the second leg of their first round match-up. All five Juventus goals were scored by striker Fabrizio Ravanelli - a record single-match tally for the club in European competition.

Born in Perugia in 1968, Ravanelli played for a handful of clubs in the Italian lower divisions before signing with Juventus in 1992. He performed moderately well in his first two seasons at Juve, delivering a total of 14 goals in 52 league appearances. He flourshed in 1994, however, surpassing his previous two years' total in a single season.

His high-water mark came in the first round of the UEFA Cup, with Juventus facing off against CSKA Sofia. The Bulgarians had won the first leg at home, 3-2, but UEFA ruled that they had used an ineligible player and awarded the match as a 3-0 win to Juve. Ravanelli mooted any controversy, however, by scoring the first five goals (9', 65', 69', 81', 83'). Sofia grabbed a consolation goal in the 90th minute to finish the day's scoring at 5-1.

Ravanelli scored four more goals in the tournament as Juventus advanced to the Final only to lose to fellow Italian club Parma. His tally against CSKA Sofia remains the club record for an individual in a European competition and is only one goal behind the record for all competitions (6, set by Omar Savori in a Serie A match against Inter in 1961).

13 September 1973 - A Born Leader

On 13 September 1973, future Italian World Cup-winning captain and 2006 FIFA World Player of the Year Fabio Cannavaro was born in Naples. A center back, he is the only defender in history to win that award.

Cannavaro got his start in 1988 with the Napoli youth team, then signed with the senior side in 1992. In 1995, he moved to Parma, where he rose to international prominence and won his first silverware - a 1999 treble consisting of the Coppa Italia, Supercoppa Italia, and UEFA Cup. That success prompted a €23 million transfer to Inter in the summer of 2002, but he stayed there only two seasons before moving to Juventus (2004-06).

In his two seasons at Juve, he won two Serie A titles, then followed that stint by captaining the Italian national team to the World Cup title. Cannavaro played every minute for the Azzurri, who conceded only two goals in the tournament (an own goal against the US and a penalty kick against France). For his efforts, he received the FIFA World Player of the Year Award.

After the World Cup, Cannavaro moved to Real Madrid for three seasons, which included two La Liga titles, then returned to Juventus in 2009. But his form began to suffer and, in 2010, the club decided not to renew his contract. He then shocked the footballing community by moving to Al-Ahli Dubai, his current club.

17 August 1977 - Baby Bleu

On 17 August 1977, Thierry Henry was born in the Paris suburb of Les Ulis, Essonne. He would go on to be named a five-time French Player of the Year while also becoming the French national team's greatest goalscorer.

Henry made his professional start in 1994 with AS Monaco, after being brought in as a youth player by then-manager Arsène Wenger. He helped Monaco win Ligue 1 in 1997, then advanced to the Champions League semi-final in 1998. He left Monaco in January 1999, transferring to Juventus for £10.5 million, but failed to settle in Italy and moved to Arsenal seven months later, where he was reunited with Wenger.

At Arsenal, Henry blossomed into a world-class striker, winning the Premier League's Golden Boot in four different seasons. He also helped Arsenal win two League titles and three FA Cups. In 2006, Henry and Arsenal advanced to the Champions League Final, losing 2-1 to Barcelona. He moved to Barcelona in 2007, where he eventually won the Champions League in 2009.

Henry earned his first cap for France in 1997 and won the World Cup the following year. Before his international retirement in 2010, he scored a record 51 goals in 123 appearances for Les Bleus.

Henry recently moved to the United States and currently plays for the New York Red Bulls.

31 July 2009 - Mutu Loses Some Of His Appeal

On 31 July 2009, the Court of Arbitration for Sport dismissed an appeal filed by former Chelsea striker Adrian Mutu, thus requiring him to pay €17,173,990 to the Blues in compensation for breach of contract.

The dispute between club and player arose in September 2004, when Mutu, starting his second season with Chelsea, tested positive for cocaine use. The club sacked him the next month. He moved to Juventus the following January, but around the same time, Chelsea sued him for damages related to the costs spent to acquire him from Parma, the cost to replace him, and other expenses.

In May 2008, the FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber ordered Mutu to pay Chelsea €17,173,990, including €16,500,000 for the unamortized portion of the transfer fee Chelsea paid to Parma. At the time, it was the highest fine ever levied by FIFA. Mutu appealed the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport - his second appeal to the CAS during the lengthy proceedings. The CAS dismissed the appeal on 31 July 2009 and also ordered Mutu to pay the arbitration expenses for Chelsea in the amount of 50,000 Swiss francs.

Mutu appealed a third time, but that appeal was dismissed in June 2010. He has stated his intention to lodge yet another appeal, this time with the European Court of Justice. Meanwhile, he spent one season with Juventus, then moved to Fiorentina. He is currently serving a nine-month ban from football after testing positive for sibutramine in January 2010.

12 July 1988 - An Award For Winning Awards

On 12 July 1988, UEFA recognized Juventus as the first club to win all three of UEFA's major competitions - the European Cup, the Cup Winners' Cup, and the UEFA Cup - by awarding them the UEFA Plaque.

One of the most successful clubs in Europe, Juventus won the first of their three UEFA Cups in 1977, defeating Athletic Bilbao over two legs by virtue of the away goal rule. In 1984, they won their only Cup Winners' Cup, beating Porto 2-1. One year later, they completed their triple crown, winning the first of two European Cups when they topped Liverpool 1-0 thanks to a Michel Platini penalty kick. Prior to that, Juve had twice finished as European Cup runners-up.

Only two other clubs - Ajax and Bayern Munich - have followed Juventus by winning all three of the major UEFA competitions, but Juventus remains the only club to win all of the confederation's official tournaments and cups, including the Intertoto Cup (1999) and the UEFA Super Cup (1984, 1996), as well as the joint UEFA-CONMEBOL Intercontinental Cup (1985, 1996).

29 May 1985 - The Heysel Stadium Disaster

On 29 May 1985, as Liverpool and Juventus prepared to play the European Cup Final in Brussels' Heysel Stadium, pre-match rioting resulted in 39 deaths and over 600 injuries. UEFA Chief Executive Lars-Christer Olsson later called it "the darkest hour in the history of the UEFA competitions."

The trouble started approximately one hour before the scheduled kick-off time. Behind one of the goals, the opposing fans, who were divided into two sections separated by a narrow strip of unoccupied territory and bordered by chain-link fencing, began to throw bottles and stones over the fences at each other. As the situation grew increasingly hostile, a group of Liverpool supporters charged through and over the fencing into the Juventus enclosure. The Juventus fans retreated against a wall, which collapsed under the pressure. Of the 39 people killed, 32 were Juventus fans, while the other seven were neutrals.

Upon seeing their fellow supporters attacked, the Juventus fans at the other end of the stadium began rioting and fought with the police for over two hours, even after the match started (officials chose to play the match for fear that cancellation would result in increased violence - Juventus won 1-0 with a 56th-minute penalty scored by their French midfielder Michel Platini).

In response, UEFA banned British clubs from European competition for five years, with Liverpool receiving an additional three-year ban (later reduced to one extra year). British police investigated the incident and eventually arrested 27 people for manslaughter. In a trial held in Belgium, 14 people - all Liverpool fans - were given three-year sentences.

12 April 1948 - The Italians Get Lippi

On 12 April 1948, future World Cup-winning manager Marcello Lippi was born in Viareggio, Italy. After a lengthy and distinguished career as a player in Serie A, he made his real mark as a manager, winning five Scudettos and one Champions League title with Juventus before taking the Italian national team to World Cup victory in 2006.

A midfielder, Lippi spent most of his playing years with Sampdoria, for whom he played from 1969 to 1980 (with a brief loan to Serie C side Savona in his first season). In that time, he made 274 league appearances for the Blucherchiati. In 1980, he transferred to Pistoiese, who were in Serie A the time, but were relegated at the end of the 1980-81 season. He spent one year with them in Serie B before retiring in 1982.

He returned to Sampdoria later that year to coach the youth team, then spent the next decade managing eight different clubs before landing in Turin in 1994 for the first of his two spells in charge of Juventus. In his first season there, the Bianconeri won both the league and the Coppa d'Italia, while finishing as runners-up to Parma in that season's UEFA Cup Final. Lippi then put together a string of additional trophies, including the 1996 Champions League Title and back-to-back Scudettos in 1997 and 1998.

In 1999, he moved to Inter, but had an unsuccessful 1999-2000 season and was sacked after one match into the 2000-01 season. He returned to Juventus in 2001 and won two more league titles in his first two seasons back in Turin.

In 2004, the Italian Football Federation appointed Lippi as manager of the national team, replacing Giovanni Trappatoni. He helmed the Azzurri to the 2006 World Cup title in Germany and retired three days later, handing the reins over to Livorno manager Roberto Donadoni. But after a disappointing Euro 2008 performance, the Azzurri sacked Donadoni and re-appointed Lippi, who is prearing to take the team to South Africa this summer.

28 February 1942 - Zoff Takes Off

On 28 February 1942, Juventus keeper and Italian national team captain Dino Zoff was born in the northeastern Italian town of Mariano del Friuli. In a poll conducted by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics, Zoff was voted the third best goalkeeper of the 20th Century, behind the Soviet Union's Lev Yashin and England's Gordon Banks.

After a rough start to his career in 1961 with his first club, Udinese, Zoff spent time with Mantova (1963-67) and Napoli (1967-72) before finally landing at Juventus, where he would establish himself as Italy's greatest goalkeeper. With Zoff in goal, the Bianconeri won six Scudettos between 1973 and 1982, as well as two Coppa Italia trophies (1979, 1983) and the UEFA Cup (1977). His greatest achievement, however, came with the Italian national team.

He received his first cap in 1968 while he was still with Napoli, but while the team won that year's European Championship, Zoff was not selected for the 1970 World Cup. After his move to Juve, he established himself as an Azzurri stalwart. After a disappointing first-round exit in 1974, Italy finished in fourth place for the 1978 World Cup, followed by another fourth-place finish in the 1980 European Championship.

Zoff captained Italy for the 1982 World Cup, guiding them to their third title with a 3-1 win over West Germany in the Final. Along the way, they had to pass through the second-round "group of death" with Argentina and Brazil, but the Azzurri won both of those matches to eliminate the South American powers.

He retired from playing in 1983, then joined Juventus as a coach. In 1988, he took the reins as manager, but was unsuccessful, getting sacked by his old club in 1990. After several brief spells at Lazio (1990-94, 1996-97, 2001), and one with the Azzurri (1998-2000), he made his last stop as manager of Fiorentina (2005), before retiring from the sport for good.

28 January 1978 - Congratulations, Mrs. Buffon, He's A Keeper

On 28 January 1978, Italian superstar and 8-time Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year Gianluigi Buffon was born in Carrara, Italy.

Buffon made his professional debut in 1995 for Parma, the club he had joined as a youth player. He was a key member of the club's 1999 treble-winning side, claiming that year's UEFA Cup, Coppa Italia, and Supercoppa Italiana. In January 2001, he transferred to Juventus for the record goalkeeper fee of €51.5 million.

He continued his run of success for Juve, winning the Serie A title in his first two seasons and advancing to the 2003 Champions League Final, only to lose to Serie A rivals AC Milan on penalties, 0-0 (3-2). When Juventus were relegated to Serie B for the 2006-07 season after being found guilty of match-fixing, many rumors suggested that Buffon would join the exodus of players leaving the club, including Zlatan Ibrahimovich and Patrick Vieira. Buffon, however, stayed with the Old Lady and won promotion back to the top flight at the first opportunity.

Buffon debuted for Italy's senior side in 1997 and, to date, has amassed 100 caps. He had great success in the Azzurri's World Cup-winning run in 2006, conceding only one goal--a Cristian Zaccardi own goal--before the Final. Even in the Final, he did not let in any goals during the run of play, surrending only penalty kicks as Italy defeated France in a shootout, 1-1 (5-3). His performance earned him the Yashin Award as the tournament's top goalkeeper.

27 December 1931 - Long Live The King

On 27 December 1931, legendary center forward and Welsh international John Charles was born in Swansea. Known as the "King John," Charles starred for both Leeds United and Juventus.

In 1948, at the age of 17, he started his career with Leeds United, who were then in the Second Division. He played at Elland Road until 1957, scoring 150 goals in 297 league appearances, and helping the side earn promotion to the First Division in 1956.

In 1957, Charles moved to Juventus for the then-British record fee of £65,000. While in Italy, he won three Scudettos (1958, 1960, 1961) and two Coppa Italia titles (1959, 1960). His success with Juventus brought him several individual accolades, starting with the 1958 Italian Player of the Year award. He was later voted the greatest foreign player ever to play in Serie A and, in 2001, was the first non-Italian elected to the Azzurri Hall of Fame.

He returned to Leeds in 1962, but failed to recapture his former glory, making only 11 appearances. He then spent time with Roma (1962-63), Cardiff City (1963-66), Hereford United (1966-71), and Welsh side Merthyr Tydfil (1972-74) before retiring in 1974.

Charles was elected to the English Hall of Fame in 2002. Leeds have honored their former hero by naming both the West Stand and the reserve stadium in his honor. He died in 2004.

1 November 1897 - When The Old Lady Was Young

On 1 November 1897, Juventus was founded in Turin. Over the next century, it would go on to become the most successful club in Italy. The name "Juventus" is Latin for "youth" and reflects the fact that the club was founded by students at Turin's Massimo D'Azeglio Lyceum.

Juventus, or "Juve" for short, originally played in pink and black. In 1903, however, they received a shipment of Notts County's black and white striped shirts from England and have worn the stripes ever since, earning the nickname "Bianconeri." They have also been called "The Old Lady," as a play on the name Juventus.

Juve won their first league title in 1905, after finishing as runners-up the two previous seasons. They currently have 25 league titles, including a series of five consecutive Scudettos from the 1930-31 season through the 1935-35 season and 12-season run in which they finished in the top two (1971-72 to 1983-84).

They have also enjoyed European success, advancing to the European Cup Final seven times, winning twice (1985, 1996). The 1985 victory was overshadowed by the deaths of 39 people, most of whom were Juventus supporters, when a wall collapsed at Heysel Stadium.

Juventus most recently won Serie A in 2005 and 2006 under manager Fabio Capello, but were subsequently convicted of match-fixing. The Italian Football Federation stripped Juve of those two titles and relegated the club to Serie B for the first time in its history. They won Serie B and were promoted back to the top flight at the first opportunity.