22-07-2022, 17:30
This summer's transfer window has seen a number of high-profile moves across Europe.
Liverpool have signed Darwin Nunez from Benfica, Manchester City have signed Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund and Barcelona have seemingly signed just about everybody else.
Given the complexities of top-level football it is unlikely any of these moves were negotiated when the player happened to bump into the club's chairman while out walking his dog.
However, that is exactly how 10th tier Beverley Town ended up pulling off the biggest, and presumably most bizarre, signing in their 22-year history.
Daniele Mannini has played in Serie A alongside and against some of the biggest names of European football from the past two decades.
The 38-year-old Italian midfielder boasts a CV including stints with Brescia, Napoli and Sampdoria - a long way from the Northern Counties Eastern League in every conceivable sense.
"I was out walking my dog when I got chatting to another dog walker," Beverley chairman Mark Smith said.
"He happened to say he played a bit of football in the past, I told him I was the chairman of Beverley Town and he should get down to pre-season training.
"Little did I know he had over 200 Serie A appearances under his belt!"
Mannini hasn't played since leaving Italian third-tier side Pontedera in January 2020 and moved to East Yorkshire to work as a sales executive for a food ingredient supplier.
Despite his time away from the game he's holding his own alongside his new team-mates, as you'd imagine from someone who has played against Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Ronaldinho and Francesco Totti.
"I cannot speak highly enough of Dani's attitude and his training and dedication have been first class," manager Dave Ricardo said.
"He can be a real inspiration for everyone involved at the club. It's not often you get someone who has played the amount of games Dani has done at a high level, never mind in Serie A."
Beverley start the new league season with a trip to Nottinghamshire-based Ollerton on Saturday, 6 August.
Liverpool have signed Darwin Nunez from Benfica, Manchester City have signed Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund and Barcelona have seemingly signed just about everybody else.
Given the complexities of top-level football it is unlikely any of these moves were negotiated when the player happened to bump into the club's chairman while out walking his dog.
However, that is exactly how 10th tier Beverley Town ended up pulling off the biggest, and presumably most bizarre, signing in their 22-year history.
Daniele Mannini has played in Serie A alongside and against some of the biggest names of European football from the past two decades.
The 38-year-old Italian midfielder boasts a CV including stints with Brescia, Napoli and Sampdoria - a long way from the Northern Counties Eastern League in every conceivable sense.
"I was out walking my dog when I got chatting to another dog walker," Beverley chairman Mark Smith said.
"He happened to say he played a bit of football in the past, I told him I was the chairman of Beverley Town and he should get down to pre-season training.
"Little did I know he had over 200 Serie A appearances under his belt!"
Mannini hasn't played since leaving Italian third-tier side Pontedera in January 2020 and moved to East Yorkshire to work as a sales executive for a food ingredient supplier.
Despite his time away from the game he's holding his own alongside his new team-mates, as you'd imagine from someone who has played against Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Ronaldinho and Francesco Totti.
"I cannot speak highly enough of Dani's attitude and his training and dedication have been first class," manager Dave Ricardo said.
"He can be a real inspiration for everyone involved at the club. It's not often you get someone who has played the amount of games Dani has done at a high level, never mind in Serie A."
Beverley start the new league season with a trip to Nottinghamshire-based Ollerton on Saturday, 6 August.
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