Team Focus: Remarkable Robur - Assessing Giuseppe Sannino's Siena

At first glance, newly promoted Siena seemingly offer very little in the way of talking points, sitting in sixteenth place in Serie A and just five points outside the relegation places. They also have none of the big name players seeing out their playing days lower down the table that some of the sides around them possess - such as Cesena's Adrian Mutu - nor a coach with a compelling story, such as that of Emiliano Mondonico at Novara.

They have struggled to score goals, netting just 23 times in the same number of games and only five teams in the league can claim a worse tally. Yet to write off the Tuscan side as mere fodder for those above them is to entirely miss the point of what is happening at Italy's other Stadio Artemio Franchi.

After finishing second in Serie B last term they lost coach Antonio Conte to Juventus, the 42-year-old unable to resist the siren call of la vecchia Signora, the club which he has always held closest in his heart. Robur then, much like the Turin side with whom they share their Bianconeri colours, ignored the usual practice of appointing one of the same old faces and turned to a man who had never coached in the top division.

Giuseppe Sannino arrived having steered Varese from the bottom of Serie C2 - earning successive promotions - into the second tier. He wasn't interested in playing good football, insisting Siena became a "humble and hard working side" like his Varese. Helped by Sporting Director Giorgio Perinetti he has accomplished exactly that, adding a sprinkling of quality to the determined side Conte led into Serie A. They have continued with the 4-4-2 formation that was embedded in the squad last season, but the new coach has shown some flexibility, experimenting with a 4-1-4-1 and also joining the ever-growing return of the 3-5-2 currently sweeping Italian football.

Gaetano D'Agostino and Mattia Destro in particular have raised the technical ability of the side but, more than any individual it is the collective effort of Sannino's side which impresses. Tactically superb, the new coach has fashioned a team capable of earning some incredible results - witness the 1-0 triumph over Roma in their most recent home match - thanks to the group not only understanding his ideas but also executing them to the letter. In addition to the win over the Giallorossi, Siena have held Juventus to a 0-0 draw in Turin, earned a 1-1 against Napoli and, in perhaps their best performance of the season, demolished Lazio 4-0 at the beginning of January.

As their scoring record shows, they are lacking behind many teams when attacking, a fact further highlighted by their 43.9% possession which is worse than every team in Serie A other than Bologna (43.7) and Parma (43.8). Only eight teams have completed a worse percentage of passing than Robur's 77.5% while their 3.4 shots on target per game is again a league low. They are also caught offside (4 times per game) more than any team that doesn't field Antonio Di Natale in attack.

What Siena do well however is defend. Not individually, indeed their back four of Roberto Vitiello, Luca Rossettini, Claudio Terzi and Cristiano Del Grosso could probably walk the streets unrecognised almost anywhere. But as a unit, Sannino has created a genuinely incredible defensive system with players very rarely caught out of position and all working to cover any gaps that opponents create when under pressure. They have conceded just 26 goals this season, a remarkable effort which sees the clubs defence as the seventh best in Serie A, a genuinely incredible achievement.

Putting forth the effort demanded by their coach, Robur's 24.4 tackles per game is the third best in the league while, with 22.8 per game, no team in Serie A makes more interceptions. Rossettini's 9.5 clearances per game trails just four players in the league, with Lucio top on 10, but the club has no other player in the top ten of any positive statistical category, showing this truly is a collective effort.

One player who's contribution must be mentioned is striker Emanuele Calaiò, currently with ten goals to his name, a total which not only represents 43% of the teams entire output, but also more than double the amount the 30-year-old has managed in any of his previous five Serie A seasons. That he has managed such a return is made even more remarkable when noting he has taken just 42 shots in 22 appearances.

But for all the former Napoli and Torino striker has led the line to such great effect, there is no denying that this Siena, if indeed they do avoid relegation, will survive as a unit, working hard and, in every sense of the word, becoming a team. Giuseppe Sannino's team.