Armando Pantanelli

Infobox Football biography
playername = Armando Pantanelli
height = height|m=1.84
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1971|6|1
cityofbirth = Turin
countryofbirth = Italy
currentclub = Paganese
clubnumber =
position = Goalkeeper
youthyears = 1986–1989
youthclubs = Reggiana
years = 1989–1990
1992–1994
1994–1996
1996–1997
1997–1999
1997
1999
1999–2001
2001–2004
2004–2007
2007–2008
2008–
clubs = Reggiana
Olbia Carpi Inter Reggiana → Fidelis Andria "(loan)" Perugia Cosenza Cagliari Catania
Avellino
Paganese
caps(goals) = 000 (0)
035 (0)
064 (0)
000 (0)
025 (0)
027 (0) 000 (0)
060 (0)
117 (0)
116 (0)
023 (0)

Armando Pantanelli (born June 1, 1971 in Turin) is an Italian professional football goalkeeper. He is currently with Lega Pro Prima Divisione club Paganese.

Career

Early career

Born in Turin, Pantanelli spent his childhood in Parma, [cite news |language=Italian |accessdate=2008-10-07 |title=Armando Pantanelli |url=http://www.calciocatania.com/nuovisto/schede/giocatori/2006_2007/pantanelli.php|publisher=CalcioCatania.com] and began his footballing career with A.C. Reggiana, and from 1992 to 2006, he played for several other clubs, appearing in over 400 matches in Serie C2, C1, and B, before making his Serie A debut in the 2006-07 season after Calcio Catania earned promotion to the premier division. After a feud with the club he moved to U.S. Avellino in the summer of 2007.

Pantanelli is famous for his mane of hair kept out of his eyes with a baseball cap rather than the conventional headband. He has captained Catania on a number of occasions. He is also well respected for his remarkable reflex saves, including a few penalty saves. He is, however, also known to have made some high profile blunders. Pantanelli has been compared to another Italian goalkeeper, Marco Storari, for a similar style of goalkeeping, as well as hairstyle.

Catania controversy

At the end of the 2006–2007 season Pantanelli was involved in a feud with Catania, accusing the club of bullying him into quitting the club by excluding him from training sessions and keeping him and two other players at a separate hotel at away games. [cite web|url=http://www.channel4.com/sport/football_italia/aug4g.html |title=Catania trio sue “bully” club |work=Article on channel4.com |accessdate=September 9 |accessyear=2007] In September 2007 he was allegedly implicated in a betting scandal. An inquest has been opened into betting involving Pantanelli, according to newspaper ‘La Sicilia’. It is alleged that he placed bets on two games that ended with a negative result for Catania, supposedly due to mistakes made by Pantanelli. [cite web|url=http://www.channel4.com/sport/football_italia/sep8j.html |title=Catania duo in match-fixing scandal |work=Article on channel4.com |accessdate=September 9 |accessyear=2007]

Later years

As he was sent off the first team roster, Pantanelli had to find a new club where to play to. In summer 2007 he then joined Serie B club Avellino, but he did not manage to return back to his highs, and the "biancoverdi" were ultimately relegated to Lega Pro Prima Divisione that year. He was successively released for free by Avellino, and then signed by Lega Pro Prima Divisione club Paganese on October 7, 2008. [cite news |language=Italian |accessdate=2008-10-07 |date=2008-10-07 |title=UFFICIALE: la Paganese acquista Pantanelli |url=http://www.tuttomercatoweb.com/index.php?action=read&id=124499|publisher=TuttoMercatoWeb]

References