Ischia moves with low lights. But it moves. Antonio Messina for the yellow and blue attack?

Ischia Calcio is starting to take its first concrete steps towards the 2025/2026 season. After weeks of silence and reflection, the yellow and blue club has made official an important first managerial step: the arrival of Marco Ferrante as the new general manager. A figure of substance, with experience and charisma, called upon to bring enthusiasm and organization back to a club that wants to turn the page after a troubled season. But there is a lot of work to do and it is developing on a double track: on the one hand the construction of the new technical structure, on the other the fulfillment of the fundamental bureaucratic practices to ensure participation in the next Serie D championship.

Bench waiting: Martino in pole position The first step on the field will be the choice of the new coach, with Alessio Martino at the top of the list. Born in 1983, Martino has already gained significant experience in places such as Gelbison, Gladiator and Termoli. He is considered a modern coach, capable of reading the games with tactical intelligence and working effectively on a young group. His teams have always shown a strong identity, based on organization, intensity and spirit of sacrifice. Precisely what Ischia needs in this phase of reconstruction. The management, after evaluating several profiles, seems intent on entrusting him with the leadership of the new season, even if the official announcement could arrive only in the next few days, after registration. With Marino still in pole position, Ferrante is also evaluating a second profile, albeit in a more hidden way, to whom he could possibly entrust the yellow and blue bench.

Retreat in Subiaco? Pino Taglialatela has almost defined the details for the summer retreat, which should take place in Subiaco, in Lazio – a signal that could also be linked to the possible inclusion of the team in Group G of Serie D. The final green light should arrive next week.

MARKET RUMORS: Antonio Messina coming? On the market front, while denying some of the rumors that have been circulating in recent days, it seems that Antonio Messina (formerly of Angri and Savoia) is ready to join Mazzella. In addition to the striker, the general manager has also identified a promising striker - a 2005 class player who already knows the category - and an over winger to further strengthen the island's offensive department. With Gemito's confirmation, the club is now looking for a quartet of goalkeepers, also to avoid the mistakes of the past: the goal is to complete the department with two under and one over.

Alongside the already announced confirmation of Luigi Buono, there are also those of Chiariello, Trofa and Matteo Arcamone for the midfield. The return to the yellow and blue of Kikko Arcamone, a midfielder of technique and character, who in the past made the island fans fall in love, cannot be ruled out.

YOUNGSTERS BETWEEN CONFIRMATIONS AND CHANCES Between confirmations and new opportunities, a parenthesis also opens on the under: Mollo and Desiato will continue to be part of the squad, while the club has also decided to reward Pipolo and Faella - promising class of 2009 - by including them in the summer retreat to offer them an opportunity for growth and for a more in-depth evaluation.

The 2025/2026 Serie D championship will begin on Sunday 7 September and will end on 3 May 2026. The Coppa Italia will begin on Sunday 24 August

Registration: countdown The second track, no less important, is represented by the registration procedure for the championship. The documentation must be completed and presented between 4 and 10 July, the deadline to formalize the request to participate in the next Serie D. At that point it will be Co.Vi.So.D., the LND's control body, to examine the applications and verify the existence of all the economic, structural and organizational requirements. Registration, in essence, will be the real first test of the new ownership: without the formal OK, any technical project would in fact remain on paper.

Serie D welcomes new arrivals Meanwhile, a few days before the start of the new sports season, Serie D welcomed the clubs arriving in the top amateur league. The opening remarks came from LND President Giancarlo Abete: «Serie D has become the fourth national league in recent years, strengthening its strategic role within the Italian football system. Furthermore, the reform of the sports system has brought about an epochal change with the birth of employment contracts which, although with figures different from professionalism, determine a significant increase in costs for clubs».

The president of the LND then recalled the tens of thousands of employment contracts between national and regional championships that certify the growing role of the amateur world and confirmed the will to sign in a short time the renewal of the collective agreement with the AIC and the AIAC, aimed at clearly identifying the rights and duties of the clubs and members and to keep within the sports system, through the use of arbitration boards, any disputes that may arise. Taking into account that there has been a significant reduction in the income from television rights for the football system - within a phenomenon that has international value - Abete reiterated the importance of balanced economic management: "Operating in this context, you have to be prudent and not bite off more than you can chew. Continuity is a more important value than the immediate sporting result".

The new rules and the "youth" mission The occasion was also used to present the structure of the offices and the employees of the Interregional Department who will assist the clubs during the season. «After the Covid emergency we have permanently rescheduled this appointment to create an initial contact with the companies that are approaching Serie D and the Department.

An important training moment recognized by the large participation" underlined the Coordinator Luigi Barbiero who, before illustrating in detail the regulatory steps and giving direct answers to the questions posed by the managers in the room, reiterated the importance of dialogue with the companies in strategic decisions: "All the important decisions were shared choices, such as the obligation of the three under even after the abolition of the constraint. Serie D has always shown itself sensitive to the valorization of talents, it is no coincidence that we recently increased the fund destined for Giovani D Valore from 450,000 to 1,035,000 euros".

Recalling the start and end dates of the championship established yesterday in the Federal Council (7 September 2025 - 3 May 2026), the LND manager then clarified the format: «The goal of this season is to be able to start again from 162 clubs, taking into account the excluded clubs that will not be able to start from the D in addition to the place not assigned by the Coppa Italia Dilettanti. In the future we will see if there will be room for a reform with playoffs that guarantee direct promotion and a different relegation mechanism».