Trio Of Italians
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The Trio of Italians, was the name given to the three Italian players that where signed by David Platt for Nottingham Forest. They turned out to be three of the worst signings made by an English club.[citation needed] They made only 37 appearances between them, most mainly as substitutes. None of them currently play professionally.
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[edit] Gianluca 'Bepe' Petrachi
- Position: FW
- Appearances : 14
- Goals: 0
- Cost: £1,200,000
- Previous Clubs: Perugia
Only 4 of his games for Forest were for the full 90 minutes.
[edit] Salvatore Matrecano
- Position: DF
- Appearances : 11
- Goals: 0
- Cost: £1,200,000
- Previous Clubs: Perugia
Was known for awful pace and positional marking.
[edit] Moreno Mannini
- Position: DF
- Appearances : 12
- Goals: 0
- Cost: Free
- Previous Clubs: Sampdoria
The defender had not scored more than 5 goals his entire professional career.
[edit] Andrea Silenzi
Before the arrival of the Three Italians, Frank Clark had signed Andrea Silenzi, a one time Italian international, for £2 million as a replacement for Stan Collymore, who had left for Liverpool FC. Silenzi was another flop in a Forest shirt. He became the first Italian to play for Forest when he arrived in 1995 and was on a £30,000 a week. He managed few games. Many Forest fans wondered how he was ever offered the chance to play for the Italian international team. Many believe he was picked because during his time at Torino FC, he had a very good strike rate. He only played there for a single season, but it was enough to give him the chance to play for the national team, and persuade Clark to purchase him for Forest. He played 20 times for Forest, only 7 of them in the starting line up, and managed just 2 goals, both in the League Cup. He was loaned out to Italian club Venezia, where he managed no goals in 2 months there on loan, and when Dave Bassett arrived as the new manager, he tore up Silenzi's Forest contract. He was then signed to another Italian side Reggina where he ended his career due to an injury. He had ended up costing Forest £2.9 million with wages and bonuses. Many believe Silenzi was just another "one season wonder."
