Serie A and Serie B loanee reports

Serie A

Gilberto (Hellas Verona): The 23 year old Brazilian wingback has been banished to the bench since publicly expressing his irritation with being kept out of the starting lineup. Whether or not his exclusion from the setup is based on this outburst, or whether it's Gigi Delneri's tactics that are keeping him out, the young defender seems likely to return to Florence at the end of the season.

Ante Rebić (Hellas Verona): The 22 year old Croatian attacker played the final 40 minutes in Monday's surprising 2-1 win against AC Milan, putting in a typically energetic performance that was, also typically, rather devoid of an end product Still, he seems to be settling in well as squad player, alternating starts and substitute appearances, and the lower reaches of Serie A seem to be a good level for him right now.

Serie B

Maxwell Acosty (Latina): The 24 year old Ghanaian attacker picked up a knock early this month that's kept him out since April 9th. Hopefully, he'll be back in the saddle sooner rather than later.

Jaime Báez (Livorno): The 21 year old Uruguayan forward (whose birthday was Monday) played the fist half in 3-1 loss at Salernitana, picking up a yellow card in the 43rd minute. He showed good energy and awareness to get into dangerous positions, but he still hasn't scored in his 16 appearances, which is becoming a bit of a concern.

Ricardo Bagadur (Salernitana): The 20 year old Croatian centerback played the second half of the win over Livorno. He came on for former Fiorentina youth player Alan Empereur, who gave away a penalty with a dumb handball. This was probably supposed to be a day off for Bagadur, who's become a cornerstone of the defense under new manager Leonardo Menichini. He's progressing nicely and, if he keeps developing, has the look of a star.

Filippo Bandinelli (Latina): The 21 year old winger played the final 46 minutes of Sunday's 0-1 loss to Latina. Last week, he made his first competitive appearance since October. It seems that Acosty's injury has moved him up in the pecking order, and manager Carmine Guatieri is desperate to keep his free-falling side from dropping down to the Lega Pro. Frankly, that's probably about the level Bandinelli should be playing at right now, to ensure that he gets the minutes that are crucial to a young player's development.

Joshua Brillante (Como): The 23 year old Australian midfielder played 28 minutes at leftback, of all places, in Saturday's 2-0 loss at Crotone. This makes 3 straight appearances for the hirsute Aussie, which is the first time he's managed that feat since September. Perhaps he's finally finding his feet, albeit a bit too late in the season to make a big impression. Still, though, it could mean he's worth hanging onto for another year or so, just in case he develops further.

Leonardo Capezzi (Crotone): The 21 year old midfielder played the last 40 minutes of the win over Como. He got all 90 in last week's 2-1 loss at Cesena. He's been less of a crucial component of the squad since his red card on March 11th, but he's still one of the best and most promising players in Serie B, and very well might stick with the senior side next season. He also just got a call up for the U20 international team, which is exciting.

Nicolò Fazzi (Crotone): The 21 year old attacker remains unable to crack the bench. It's been a bit of a lost season for him, although he does seem to be playing as more of a central midfielder than as a winger in training, which is rather interesting.

Cedric Gondo (Ternana): The 21 year old Ivorian forward has been an unused substitute for the past 2 weeks. He's found a home as a supersub on the wings, but he's probably more comfortable through the middle than out wide. He's showed some flashes of the form that made him a terror for the Primavera, so hopefully he'll get a chance to show his stuff as an out-and-out striker next season.

Gianluca Mancini (Perugia):

Amidu Salifu (Brescia): The 23 year old Ghanaian midfielder played all 90 minutes in Saturday's 2-1 loss at Pescara, picking up a 14th minute yellow card. That's now 2 of the last 3 matches he's started and gone the distance in; apparently, his hamstrings are finally healthy again. It's probably too late to make a judgement on him this season, but at least he's fit enough to play again.

Andrés Schetino (Livorno): The 21 year old Uruguayan midfielder remains stuck to the bench, as he has since moving to the Labronici.

Lorenzo Venuti (Brescia): The 21 year old fullback played 78 minutes in Saturday's 2-1 loss at Pescara. The week before, he got his first assist of the season with a nice cross for the opener (0:58 in the video).

He continues to motor right along, looking like the sort of player who may never be a star, but will never be a weak link, either. Given the state of the right flank of the Viola defense, he could show up in purple sooner rather than later, although a year or two in the top flight would probably be helpful for him. And he'll be joining Capezzi on international duty with the U20s.

Luca Zanon (Virtus Entella): The 19 year old leftback remains frozen out of the Biancocelesti set up, mostly due to circumstances beyond his control. Oh well. There's always next year.