HEARD the one about the soccer underdogs who defied the bookies' odds and embarrassed the pundits by shooting to the top of the league?

Of course you have. Wanderers have been the talk of the football world after their flying start in the Premiership.

In fact they are so famous they are even being mentioned in the same breath - and the same headlines - as Chievo!

What do you mean you have never heard of Chievo! They are the team that has soared to the top of Italy's Serie A - reputed to be one of the toughest leagues in the world.

In fairness, it is no disgrace to admit your ignorance. For Chievo - the team from the suburbs of Verona - are an even bigger surprise package than Wanderers.

This is their first season in Serie A ... promoted after just seven years in Serie B and on average home gates of 4,000! The team's annual budget would not even pay the wages of a Totti or a Del Piero ... Wanderers have more season ticket holders than Chievo has inhabitants.

Not surprisingly, they were one of the hottest favourites in living memory to be instantly relegated!

Yet they are sitting pretty and proud in second spot, just behind Inter and ahead of the giants of Juventus, Milan, Roma and struggling Lazio.

Unlike Wanderers, who have topped the Premiership for longer than any club this season, Chievo have yet to suffer a drop in form. Having beaten Fiorentina and Bologna in their flying start, there was talk of their bubble bursting when they lost 3-2 in controversial fashion away to Juventus. But they bounced back with a home win against Piacenza and pulled off another impressive away win, 2-1 at Udinese on Sunday - a result that has put the Udinese coach, former Blackburn boss Roy Hodgson, under pressure.

Coach Luigi Del Neri put last season's promotion success in perspective by recalling: "Our aim was to avoid relegation to the Third Division. Our promotion was exceptional for everyone."

Former Juventus and Reggina midfielder Simone Perrotta, who is reputed to be paid 400,000 US dollars a year - modest in Serie A terms - is proving a priceless addition to a squad made up almost exclusively of Italian players. One import, the Brazilian Eriberto, is enjoying a new lease of life in Serie A and was on target in an impressive performance in Udinese.

No one expects Chievo to stay on their lofty perch for long but, as one gentlemen in the tiny suburb of Vernon said: "Sometimes you don't need big names to play good football, just a handful of players who believe in themselves and their coach."