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FRANCESCO COCO'S
FACTS
DOB : January
8th, 1977
Birthplace
: Paterno, Catania
Height :
1,81 m
Weight :
78 kg
Position
: full left back, but also work as left wing midfielder
Who he is, what
he does : a physically strong left-back who is capable of going forward.
Can play both in defence and in midfield; concludes easily (from inter.it)
Serie A
Year
|
Club
|
Appearances
|
Goals
|
1994 - 1997
|
AC Milan
|
19
|
0
|
1997 -1998
|
Vicenza
|
20
|
0
|
1998 - 1999
|
AC Milan
|
6
|
0
|
1999 - 2000
|
Torino
|
21
|
0
|
2000 - 2001
|
AC Milan
|
30
|
2
|
2002 - ?
|
Inter Milan
|
?
|
?
|
La Liga
Year
|
Club
|
Appearances
|
Goals
|
2001 - 2002
|
Barcelona
|
23
|
0
|
Champions League
Year
|
Club
|
Appearances
|
Goals
|
2000 - 2001
|
AC Milan
|
8
|
2
|
2001 - 2002
|
Barcelona
|
5
|
0
|
Nazionale
(from fifaworldcup.com)
Goals : 0 (as of 27 May 2002)
Caps : 13 (as of 27 May 2002)
Debut : Romania ( 7 October
2000)
Stats - FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan
MP
|
Min
|
G
|
YC
|
RC
|
FC
|
FS
|
TC
|
2
|
145
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
3
|
1
|
12
|
Key :
MP - match played
Min - minutes played
G - goals
YC - yellow card
RC - red card
FC - fouls commited
FS - fouls suffered
TC - tackles commited
Profile
(from onefootball.com)
Francesco Coco made a surprise move to
Barcelona in August 2001 having impressed enough with AC Milan to force
his way into the Italian national team.
Coco burst on to the scene at Milan in
the spring of 1994, replacing the injured Paolo Maldini. The Milan stalwart
was hardly missed, mainly because Coco was simply magnificent. Not as tall
as Maldini, he nevertheless had the same loping stride and physical presence.
He became an overnight sensation - and that's where his problems began.
Since Milan were clearly not about to sell
Maldini, he had to be content with sitting on the bench and, after a humdrum
season backing up the Milan captain, he was sent to Vicenza on loan.
At Vicenza, he was beset with injuries
and his streak of bad luck continued when he returned to San Siro the following
year. He missed most of the season and was loaned out to Torino in 1997-98.
A lot depends on whether he can stay healthy.
Otherwise, he's the total package: fast, skilful, strong in the tackle
and an excellent crosser of the ball.
His progress continued in 2000-01. In September
2001, he ran Barcelona ragged in a 2-0 Champions' League win at the San
Siro, scoring the first and setting up Oliver Bierhoff for the second.
History repeated itself, and within a month he had become the 71st Milan
player to represent Italy's senior side in the World Cup qualifying win
against Georgia.
The move to Barcelona, therefore, came
somewhat out-of-the-blue. New Milan manager Fatih Terim professed a preference
for Serginho on the left and deemed Coco to be surplus to requirements
after just one game of the 2001-02 season.
He Says: "I didn't think the season would
start so well. Things are looking good for me and the team so I am feeling
relaxed. But that's precisely why I want to keep my feet on the ground
– I know there could be great times ahead.
"When a player moves on loan, he does so
because he agrees with his club that it is the best thing to do. When I
was at Vicenza three years ago, I had a terrible knee injury, and last
season I needed to play a lot and immediately. This is why I chose to go
to Torino, even if then things were not perfect. I will admit that I was
afraid that I would not return to Milan, I really felt this."
- November 2000
"My dream was only Milan, but it vanished
and Barcelona strongly wanted to have me."
- August 2001
They Say: "Francesco Coco played well last
year and this year he has started very well; he could even become one of
the regular players."
- Italy coach Giovanni Trapattoni