Catanzaro-Cosenza and a shared legend
The name Di Marzio is synonymous with transfers, at least in the Anglo-centric footballing world. Attaching Gianluca Di Marzio to a rumour is not quite a papal seal, but he has a level of authority that the iPad holders at Sky Sports News could only dream of.
Still, in Calabria, the name Di Marzio belongs to another family member, the late Gianni Di Marzio, father of Gianluca.
Cosenza and Catanzaro meet this Sunday in the first Calabrian derby since 2018, and the first in Serie B since 1990, back when Gianni was Cosenza’s manager. He passed away in January 2022 and, as often happens, it was only in death that his true impact on Italian football was laid out for all to ponder.
The tributes poured in from Palermo, Napoli, Genoa and across the media world, as Gianni had worked as a columnist, TV pundit, and spent years as a sporting director at Venezia and Palermo, as well as working with Juventus and QPR. But it was in Calabria, again, where his passing was mourned with the greatest intensity.
There are four big clubs in Calabria. Reggina and Crotone, Cosenza and Catanzaro. The former play in the Magna Graecia derby, to reflect their ties to ancient Greece, both cities in the former Greek colony. Cosenza and Catanzaro’s derby is one of campanilismo, the Italian term for civic pride, literally translating as pride in one’s own bell tower.
Cosenza, a city with a chip on its shoulder, meets Catanzaro, the regional capital.
It made sense back in the day when a town’s bell tower evoked grandeur, more so than the presence of designer shops or rich tourists.
In Cosenza, they are proud of their rich history and architecture, as well as its working-class roots and socialist politics. A city with something of a chip on its shoulder, but one that embodies many of southern Italy’s positive stereotypes while showing a great compassion for its fellow humans, regardless of race or creed. Its football club and fanbase represent these ideals, and Tobias Jones’ 2019 book ‘Ultra’ makes a group of Cosenza ultras its affable, yet edgy, protagonists.
In Catanzaro, they sit between the Tyrrhenian and Ionian sea, at Italy’s narrowest point. Lucky them. A city known for silks that decorated the Vatican and its historical importance from the time of the Greeks, it became the capital of Calabria in 1970, prompting riots in the old capital, Reggio Calabria, thus making Reggina-Catanzaro a derby of vicious nature.
Even with the violent edge of the derby with Reggina, it is the clash with Cosenza that gets minds racing in Catanzaro, and vice versa.
Catanzaro was the site of (arguably) Gianni Di Marzio’s greatest managerial triumph where, between 1974-77, he took a struggling side from 14th in Serie B to promotion in two years, one that had Claudio Ranieri at the heart of its defence.
After relegation back to Serie B in his third season, Di Marzio left for Napoli, where he lost a Coppa Italia final, and later reunited with Ranieri at Catania, where they won another promotion to Serie A together; but it was 1987 where his Calabrian love triangle developed, taking over at Cosenza.
He guided Cosenza through the tragic death of Denis Bergamini and on to Serie B safety.
Cosenza, who had spent over two decades between Serie C and D, hired Di Marzio with one intention; to take the club back to Serie B. This was their promised land, given they had never seen the bright lights of the top flight. He obliged, taking them up in 1988 before leaving that summer.
Eight weeks into the following season, and he was back in the dugout. Catanzaro had only one win and looked like relegation material, prompting them to reach out to Di Marzio, who came in and saved them from relegation. Once again, a club came calling after a rotten start to the season. This time it was Cosenza, who had sacked Luigi Simoni after two wins from fifteen games.
Di Marzio navigated Cosenza through the tragic death of midfielder Denis Bergamini in November 1989, which was declared a suicide but is currently in court with Bergamini’s then girlfriend, Isabella Internò, on trial for conspiracy to commit murder over thirty years after the fact, with several informants from the ‘Ndrangheta clan, the Calabrian mafia, called to give testimony.
On the pitch, Cosenza survived on the final day, spared by their superior head-to-head record over Monza and Messina. Their bitter rivals did not fare so well, with a meagre 25 points all season seeing Catanzaro finish bottom.
Di Marzio left the managerial role at the end of that salvation season of 1989-90 and became director of football at Cosenza, where he worked for several years until Mauro Zamparini took him to Venezia. Despite two stints at both Catanzaro and Cosenza, Di Marzio is still remembered fondly at both clubs.
His son, Gianluca, said this week that his father would not have wanted to watch the derby at either stadium, so as to not disrespect either fanbase.
Two sides with legitimate playoff aims, the derby is at its best since the days of Di Marzio.
Such was his impact on both clubs, you would struggle to even produce an educated guess as to which one club he ‘prefers’; and today, there’s little to separate the two.
Cosenza have had the greater recent history, surviving in Serie B for the past few seasons, but Catanzaro will always have the played-in-Serie A card that Cosenza cannot play, having never made it to the top.
Catanzaro came up from Serie C and entered this season with serious momentum, racing into 2nd before three straight losses dragged them back down to something resembling reality.
Cosenza, meanwhile, have eased their way into this season. Having survived by the skin of their teeth, new manager Fabio Caserta has had to work out his best XI and manage an ever-changing picture with several injuries.
They find themselves 8th heading into this weekend, with their rivals one place better. Two sides with legitimate playoff aims, especially after their respective starts to the season, a sign that perhaps this Calabrian derby is at its best since the days of Di Marzio.
