Editor’s note: This post was guest-written by my friend Temi Akinaina. Temi’s my go-to person for all things EPL & Man Utd, a veritable encyclopaedia of Mancunian knowledge. She is also known to possess a very sharp tongue and can put you down faster than a Cristiano Ronaldo dive (she’ll hate me for writing this) if you piss her off.
Ok, so February 14 was Saturday and this comes a bit late, but here’s her rendition of Valentine’s day… Red Devils-style.
In times of fluctuating economy, shifting weather conditions, and Blatter’s opinion of South Africa (“2010, yes or no? Should we stay or should we go?”) there is one global truth we can always be sure of today (and probably for the next 10-20 years to come): there will be goals at Weserstadion. Indeed, no other team epitomizes the lack of defensive effort coupled with goalscoring power better than Werder Bremen, and as expected Wednesday’s Round of 32 UEFA Cup tie vs. AC Milan ended with goals. No shower mind you, just 1-1, but it’s a scoreline which leaves everything open for the return leg in Milan next week.
And since we’re speaking of goals, here’s one guy that’s been scoring lots in the past decade (especially in Europe). Wednesday’s tally marked Filippo Inzaghi‘s 66th goal in European competitions, a brilliant achievement for the Milan striker who got his party spoiled by Werder’s 84th minute equalizer. An equalizer bearing the signature of another player in search of European stardom (especially in the region of Turin): Diego Ribas da Cunha.
As top mediocre decent-but-not-quite-decent-enough clubs of Europe gathered to play UEFA Cup’s Round of 32 Wednesday night, Sampdoria vs. Metalist Kharkiv stood out like the a bad note during a melodious symphony.
For a team who had not lost at home for 12 consecutive European games and who eliminated clubs like FC Sevilla to get to this stage of the competition, the Blucerchiati sure dropped from very high up today. In a performance almost diametrically opposed to the one in Turin, Cassano & friends played an uninspired game, with no energy or verve. Even the two doubtful penalty non-calls in the second half (foul on Bellucci and handball in the box) aren’t enough to justify a lacklaster performance, and it will take Mazzarri some serious work next Thursday (February 26) to overturn a 1-0 deficit no pundit would have expected prior to this match.
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