EDICOLA NEWS: THE REVIEWS nr. 259
album: Calciatori ADRENALYN 2022/23 (Panini)
cards: 471 (1-471) + 27 limited edition + 5 cards momentum
starter pack: binder + 5 packets + 3 cards limited edition 8,00€
box: 24 packets (6 cards per packet) 1,00€ each
tin box: cards 41 + 4 limited edition 11,99€
special packets: Premium 5,00€ (tbc), Premium Gold 10,00€ (tbc.)
packets PLUS: from october with cards plus, specials and trainers 1,00€
limited edition: read article
In a truly strange season for the world of us collectors, as well as the championship, the Adrenalyn collection also arrives on newsstands while many are still filling beaches and cities of art. Strange because the unlikely winter world championship is looming in Qatar, which has partly upset all the programs, apparently not those of Panini, both for the cards and for the classic players, the exit period remains the standard one. Choice also made easier by the encore of non-classified Italy at the final stage of the World Cup, which certainly makes the World Cup album uninteresting for the Italian market. Clearly not for us, collectors of the albums of the competitions by nations, who would buy the album even if in Qatar there were only Bolivia and Kazakhstan (with all possible sympathy for the two countries mentioned, of course).
The Adrenalyn collection, already last year, is trying to renew itself, with more captivating and different graphics, for this season with references also to the colors of the various clubs, following the line of the European cards. We are still a long way from other products, but it must also be said that they are born from a different perspective. This is The Collection of cards of the Italian Serie A championship, in addition to the substance, the form is also important, the total number of cards is always important and even if it is not as complete as the Calciatori stickers, it gives a good idea of our football.
After the preparation in July, he has some players who are no longer protagonists (for example De Ligt who moved from Juventus to Bayern), but it could not be otherwise. The confirmed presence of the plus cards is important in this sense, although the release in October is quite premature. On the other hand, the flagship Calciatori arrives in December and (luckily, we add it) it is still the most important collection of the year.
The sections of the collection find great classics such as Stelle or Portieroni and every year new sections come to light which then only time will tell if they will be appreciated to such an extent that they will remain the following year. For 2023, the new cards on which Panini seems to focus more are the Momentum, 5 exclusive cards outside the numbering and, unfortunately, cannot be ordered later. Italian football is not experiencing a moment of maximum splendor, even these cards highlight it, with all the good you could want from Bonucci or Luis Alberto.
Among the novelties, part of the numbering of 471 cards, we point out the Team Scudetto card that celebrates the 19th AC Milan championship and the Super Top Player, also linked to the past season. The Fantastelle can be potential future rookies, less captivating than the Magic 4 with precisely four players together, too many all together. More than the new and old sections, interesting the different realizations of the cards, including silver paint, metallic material, metallic gold. The presence of the 20 cards with the club logos is always a choice that we appreciate.
In general, it seems like a good collection for lovers of the genre. Rightly different from products more for “professional collectors” such as the Score or the Donruss. This collection is more designed for a young and very young audience that maybe, we hope, growing up also goes to the collection of stickers as their parents did. On the other hand, the novelty of indicating the rarity index (the Rarity Index) on the front of the cards is nice, who knows that it may not be a fundamental point in the great experience of exchanges, inevitable and also protagonists of our Figurine Days.
Worthy of note are the many promotional initiatives connected to the collection, from the completion of the virtual collection to the registration to Serie A Adrenalyn. Perhaps secondary aspects for the “older” of us, but certainly an added value for the younger ones.
Limited Edition Release Summary:
Starter Pack: Zakaria, Matic, Onana
Tin Box: Mancini, Lukaku, Danilo, Pedro
packet Premium: Immobile*, Pellegrini*, Hernandez *, Martinez *, Quagliarella, Toloi, Cabral, Rrahmani (* also signed)
packet Premium Gold: Igor, Pasalic, Veloso, Bastoni, Anguissa
Bomber magazine: Kvaratskhelia (august, Alvarez (september), McKennie (november)
Last thing, the very limited choice in requesting the missing cards is always questionable and hard to agree. While understandable on the one hand to limit “speculation”, on the other hand it is not very useful for those who simply want to complete their binder. Fortunately, there are events all over Italy such as those organized by Figurine Forever at the Edicola Birra in Bologna 😉
(EN)