Cristian Silvestri (born January 21, 1975 in

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council *Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

) is a retired Italian

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

defender.

Career

Ternana Calcio

Silvestri began his professional career at the age of 20, after he was promoted from the youth system of

Ternana Calcio Ternana Calcio, commonly referred to as Ternana, is an Italian football club based in Terni, Umbria. The club was founded in 1925 and refounded in 1993. In its history, Ternana has twice played in Serie A (in the 1972–73 and 1974–75 seas ...

in 1995. The player made a handful of appearances in his first season, and continued with the senior squad for 4 full seasons, and in his final two seasons with the club, Silvestri established himself as an undisputed starter an following the conclusion of the 1998–99 season, Silvestri had racked up over 100 appearances for his club in all competitions, scoring 6 goals. Following several positive seasons with

, the fullback transferred to

Cosenza Calcio Cosenza Calcio S.r.l. is an Italian football club, based in Cosenza, Calabria. Currently the team plays in . Found in 2011 as Nuova Cosenza Calcio as the phoenix club of Cosenza Calcio 1914 S.r.l., the spiritual successor of the original Cosenza ...

in the

summer Summer is the hottest of the four temperate seasons, occurring after spring and before autumn. At or centred on the summer solstice, the earliest sunrise and latest sunset occurs, daylight hours are longest and dark hours are shortest, wit ...

of 1999.

Cosenza Calcio

In July 1999,

Cosenza Calcio 1914 Cosenza Calcio 1914 was a professional Italian football club based in Cosenza, Calabria. It starts in 1912 when was founded Società Sportiva Fortitudo (the year 1914 is a reference to the first historic match played by the club on 23 February 1 ...

, officially announced the signing of the 24-year-old defender, for an undisclosed transfer fee. In just two seasons with the third division club, Silvestri managed an impressive 54 appearances with 1 goal in all competitions. The players impressive form led to interest amongst several larger Italian clubs, including

Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Coppa ...

side, U.S. Lecce, who eventually signed the defender in the summer of 2001.

U.S. Lecce

The defender officially transferred to U.S. Lecce in the summer of 2001, and made his

debut during that season. In his first

season, the player managed to make 15 appearances in the league, while also taking part in a select

Coppa Italia The ("Italy Cup") is an annual knockout cup competition in Italian football organized by the FIGC until the 2009–10 season and the Lega Serie A ever since. History The beginning of the tournament was turbulent, due to the complexity of ...

, and friendly matches. Silvestri could not, however, help the club avoid relegation to the

, but he remained within the squad, despite their demotion. In his second season with the

Apulian it, Pugliese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographic ...

club, Silvestri was a starter for much of the

Serie B The Serie B (), currently named Serie Balkrishna Industries, BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 ...

season, and went on to make 35 starts for the club in the league. His efforts helped the club earn promotion back into the top flight after just one season in the second tier. In the club's return season, Silvesrti was dropped from the starting XI, and made just 15 league appearances. During the following campaign, Silvestri was far down in the pecking order and also was hampered by injuries throughout the first portion of the season. With this, he managed to make just 2 appearances during the first 4 months of the 2004–05

season. After a dismal start to the season, the fullback transferred to Sicilian side,

Calcio Catania Catania S.S.D., commonly known as Catania, is an Italian football club based in the city of Catania, Sicily, that plays in . Originally founded in 1908 as ''Associazione Sportiva pro Educazione Fisica'', the club boasts 17 appearances in the ...

for the second half of the 2004–05

season.

Calcio Catania

Silvestri officially joined the Sicilian outfit in January 2005, during the winter transfer market. He instantly became a key part of the team's roster and made 18 appearances in the league scoring 2 goals in his first six months. Silvestri also was an influential part of the

Catania Catania (, , Sicilian and ) is the second largest municipality in Sicily, after Palermo. Despite its reputation as the second city of the island, Catania is the largest Sicilian conurbation, among the largest in Italy, as evidenced also by ...

first team during the 2005–06

season, as he helped the club to finish second in the league, and hence, earn promotion to the Italian Serie A. Cristian contributed with an impressive total of 36 league matches, also netting a single goal. Upon

's return to the Italian top flight, Silvestri continued to be an integral figure in the club's success. He manages 22

appearances and helped guide the team to a 13th-place finish in the league table. The 2007–08 season proved to be very similar, as the player contributed with 26 appearances, helping the team to avoid relegation yet again with a 17th-place finish in the league. During the 2008–09

campaign, Silvestri was often used as a left full back, as the right side was covered by

Gennaro Sardo Gennaro Sardo (born 8 May 1979) is a former Italian footballer who played as a right back. Career Early career Sardo started his professional career in 1997 when he played for Palmese. In 1998, he moved on loan to Giugliano. He played 16 tota ...

and later Alessandro Potenza. Silvestri still managed 23 appearances in the league, and the club wound up 15th in the final table. At the conclusion of the season, talk of a contract renewal was heard, but on June 30, 2009, Silvestri became a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

at the age of 34. During his time with

he was known for being a hard worker and a so-called "wall" in defensive positions.

Ascoli Calcio

In July 2009, Silvestri signed a contract with

side,

Ascoli Calcio Ascoli Calcio 1898 F.C., commonly referred to as Ascoli, is an Italian football club based in Ascoli Piceno, Marche. The club was formed in 1898 and currently plays in Serie B. The team traditionally play in vertical black and white stripes. H ...

, following the expiration of his

deal. In his first season with the club, Silvestri made 21 appearances in the league, along with select appearances in the club's

campaign. Silvestri joined former Catania teammates,

Marcello Gazzola Marcello Gazzola (born 3 April 1985) is an Italian former footballer who played as a defender. Club career Early career Born in Borgo Val di Taro, Gazzola started his youth career at Parma in 1995. The defender remained within the youth syste ...

Mirco Antenucci Mirco Antenucci (born 8 September 1984) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Bari. Club career Giulianova Antenucci began his professional career in 2002, with Serie C1 club, Giulianova, where in two seasons wit ...

, and

Vito Falconieri Vito Falconieri (born 18 June 1986) is an Italian footballer who plays for Martina in Eccellenza. Club career Early career Born in Brindisi, Apulia, Falconieri was a player of Torino Calcio's reserve team in 2004–05 season. He also wore no. ...

Ascoli Ascoli may refer to: Places in Italy *Ascoli Satriano, a town and ''comune'' in the province of Foggia in the Apulia region *Province of Ascoli Piceno, a province of the Marche region **Ascoli Piceno, a city which is the seat of the province above ...

. Gazzola and Falconieri are at Ascoli in co-ownership deal, whilst Antenucci was on loan.

External links

PRofile at Lega-Calcio.it
{{DEFAULTSORT:Silvestri, Cristian 1975 births Living people Italian footballers Catania S.S.D. players Association football defenders