Paolo Di Canio (born July 9, 1968) is an Italian football player who currently plays for Italian Serie C2 club Cisco Roma. is the 190th day of the year (191st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... A player (wearing the red kit) has penetrated the defence (in the white kit) and is taking a shot at goal. ... Serie C is the name of the third and fourth highest football leagues in Italy. ... A.S. Cisco Roma is an Italian football club, based in Rome, Latium. ...

Biography and career

Paolo Di Canio was born in Rome, in the district of Quarticciolo. For other uses, see Rome (disambiguation). ...

He signed for Lazio, in 1985; here he remained until 1990, moving to another of Italy's biggest clubs, Juventus. He stayed there until 1993 and successive seasons saw him join first Napoli and then A.C. Milan. In 1996 he joined Celtic in Scotland, and his successful season in Glasgow (scoring 15 goals in 37 appearances) saw him make a move to the English Premiership as he joined Sheffield Wednesday. Whilst in Sheffield, Paolo was the club's leading goal scorer for the 1997-98 season with 14 goals and he became a favourite of the fans. Società Sportiva Lazio, commonly referred to SS Lazio or simply Lazio, is an Italian professional sports club most noted for its football section, founded in 1900 and based in Rome. ... Juventus Football Club (from Latin [1] iuventus: youth, IPA: ); (pronounced yoo-ven-toos) also known as Juventus Turin (or Juventus Torino), Juventus, or simply Juve, is a football club from Turin, Italy. ... Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli, commonly referred to as simply Napoli or the abbreviation SSC Napoli, is an Italian professional football club based in Naples, Campania that was originally founded in 1904. ... Associazione Calcio Milan is an Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy. ... Celtic Football Club (pronounced seltik in IPA; AIM: CCP)[1] is a Scottish football club, competing in the Scottish Premier League, the highest form of competition in Scotland. ... This article is about the country. ... For other uses, see Glasgow (disambiguation). ... “SWFC” redirects here. ...

In England, Di Canio is famous for an incident on the pitch in 1998 where he pushed referee Paul Alcock to the ground after being sent off while playing for Sheffield Wednesday against Arsenal at Hillsborough. Claiming that Wednesday did not wish to support him after the incident, he went home to Italy and refused to return and thus forced Wednesday to try to offer him for sale at a lower-than-market figure. In January 1999, Di Canio signed for West Ham United and helped them to achieve a high league position (5th) and qualify for the UEFA Cup, albeit through the "back door" route of the Intertoto Cup. He was also the OPTA player of the season 1998-99. He scored the BBC Goal of the Season in 2000 with a volley against Wimbledon, which is still considered among the best goals in Premiership history. In this season he was also voted Hammer of the Year by the club's fans. Arsenal Football Club (also known as Arsenal, The Arsenal or The Gunners) are an English professional football club based in Holloway, north London. ... West Ham United Football Club is an English football club based in West Ham, London Borough of Newham, East London, and have played their home matches at the 35,146 capacity Boleyn Ground stadium since 1904. ... The UEFA Cup (also known as European Cup 3, CE3 or C3) is a football competition for European club teams, organized by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). ... The UEFA Intertoto Cup is a summer football competition for European clubs that have not qualified for one of the main UEFA competitions (the Champions League and the UEFA Cup). ... The 1998-1999 season was the 119th season of competitive football in England. ... For other uses, see BBC (disambiguation). ... The Goal of the Season is an annual competition and award given on BBCs Match of the Day, in honour of the most spectacular goal scored that season. ... Wimbledon F.C. crest This article refers to the original club from London which existed until 2003. ...

In 2001, he won the FIFA Fair Play Award. The previous December, in a match against Everton, in a noteworthy display of sportsmanship, Di Canio shunned a goal scoring opportunity and caught the ball from a cross instead as the Everton goalkeeper Paul Gerrard was lying injured on the ground after he twisted his knee attempting a clearance on the edge of the box. FIFA described the act as "a special act of good sportsmanship." FIFA FAIR PLAY AWARD This is a award given by FIFA to players who did fair play in their games or were involved in a specific incident of fair play or the spectators were given for their good behaviour for a long period of time or fighting against racism. ... Everton Football Club is an English football club located in the city of Liverpool. ... Paul William Gerrard (born January 22, 1973 in Heywood, near Rochdale, Lancashire), is an English football goalkeeper who is currently playing for Sheffield United in the Football League Championship. ...

He remained at West Ham until 2003 when, following a very public row with Manager Glenn Roeder and West Ham's relegation, he signed for Charlton Athletic. Charlton Athletic Football Club (also known as The Addicks) is a professional football club based in Charlton, in the London Borough of Greenwich. ...

Even though he had already signed an extension to his Charlton contract, in August 2004 he returned to his home team of Lazio taking a massive paycut in order to return to the economically stretched Roman team. Lazio fans were happy to have a Rome-bred Lazio supporter in the team again, something missing since the departure of Alessandro Nesta in 2002. He scored in the Rome derby, just as he had in 1989, leading the team to a 3-1 victory in January 2005. However the negative publicity that Di Canio generated for Lazio, including his intimate relationship with club's ultras and their increased influence thanks to his presence in the team, coupled with problems with some teammates and coaches, exasperated his already difficult relationship with, club president and majority shareholder, Claudio Lotito who decided not to renew his contract in the summer of 2006. He subsequently signed with Cisco Roma of Serie C2 on a free transfer. In his first season with Cisco Roma, his team failed promotion to playoffs, despite a runners-up position in the regular season. He subsequently agreed to stay with Cisco for another season, in a second attempt to win promotion to Serie C1 with the Roman side. Società Sportiva Lazio, commonly referred to SS Lazio or simply Lazio, is an Italian professional sports club most noted for its football section, founded in 1900 and based in Rome. ... Alessandro Nesta, Cavaliere Ufficiale OMRI[2][3], (born March 19, 1976 in Rome) is an Italian World Cup-winning footballer. ... A.S. Cisco Roma is an Italian football club, based in Rome, Latium. ... Serie C is the name of the third and fourth highest football leagues in Italy. ... Serie C is the name of the third and fourth highest football leagues in Italy. ...

He recently announced he is willing to retire from football in June 2008, and cited his intention to stay at Cisco Roma in a coaching position.^[1]

Controversy

Di Canio has been the centre of much controversy throughout his career; pushing over referee Paul Alcock after being sent off for Sheffield Wednesday and more recently, for making Fascist salutes. After making a salute in a match against Juventus in December 2005, he was suspended for one game by the Italian Football Federation and fined 10,000 Euros. After criticism from politicians for his behavior, he stated that he would,"always salute as I did yesterday because it gives me a sense of belonging to my people." Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, stated that the salute "did not have any meaning" and described the player as "an exhibitionist but a good lad". His own team Lazio, distanced themselves from his actions, claiming that they rejected the "politicization" of football in any way. Paul E. Alcock (born 1954) is a former English football referee, who operated in the English Football League and Premier League. ... The Oath of the Horatii (1784), by Jacques-Louis David The Roman salute is a gesture in which the arm is held out forward straight, with palm down. ... For other uses, see Euro (disambiguation). ...   (born September 29, 1936) is an Italian politician, entrepreneur, and media proprietor. ...

Di Canio initially refused to apologize for his actions and claimed that he did not intend to make a political statement. He insisted that he is free to communicate with his fans in whichever way he pleases, though the Italian constitution considers Fascist propaganda to be illegal. These events sparked a series of debates throughout the country, comparing the difference in the perception of the far right and left. Di Canio amended his earlier remarks and claimed that he is "a fascist, not a racist. The salute is aimed at my people. With the straight arm I don't want to incite violence and certainly not racial hatred."^[2] He later denied ever having made that comment which was attributed to his lawyer.

Di Canio has a tattoo on his arm which reads "DVX", which is the Latin appellative used for former Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, Duce. He is also known to have been part of the Ultras fan group (Lazio's Irriducibili) in his youth and even traveled with the group to away matches. For other uses, see Tattoo (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Latin (disambiguation). ... Mussolini redirects here. ... Varvari choreography at a Montenegrin First League home match Ultras are a specific type of sports team supporter group. ...

References

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 313th day of the year (314th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 313th day of the year (314th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... BBC Sport is the sports division of the BBC. It became a fully dedicated division of the BBC in 2000. ...

External links

• FootballDatabase provides Paolo Di Canio's profile and stats
• Di Canio's playing profile (from Cisco Roma official website)