Posts Tagged ‘AC Milan’

AC Milan 0-4 Inter Milan: Yes Way José, the “Real” Serie A Can Begin

Sunday, August 30th, 2009

Inter Milan's Serbian midfielder Dejan Stankovic, second from left, reacts after scoring their fourth goal with from left to right, Dutch midfielder Wesley Sneijder, Argentine defender Walter Samuel, Brazilian defender Maicon, Romanian defender Cristian Chivu and Brazilian defender Lucio, during their Serie A soccer match against AC Milan at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2009. Inter won 4-0. (AP Photo)

In many ways a new year of Serie A doesn’t truly begin until it features one of thee Big Matches. It is often said that over the course of the season it’s the the “little games”, those against teams battling for relegation, that pave the road for a championship title. Often true, but the “little games” certainly are not those everyone is waiting to see. And thanks to Lega Calcio’s new fixture drawing system, this year we have the opportunity to see two ‘Big Games’ as early as Matchday 2, starting with Saturday’s Derby della Madonnina.

And what a derby it was. With 4 goals against their most bitter rival this match featured a true display of power by Inter Milan, highlighted by the shining performances of Thiago Motta, Eto’o, Diego Milito and with and a clear clear message to their harshest critics: Zlatan who?

As for Milan, to quote Gazzetta Inter were “giants without an adversary”. AC Milan cannot hide behind their good performance of today’s first 15 minutes. A team which completely disintegrates both tactically and psychologically (see Gattuso’s red card) at the first sign of trouble cannot, for lack of a better phrase, call themselves a “team”. At least for the moment. Until Leonardo figures out a solution out of this mess.

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Siena 1-5 Milan: Super Pippo & The Duck Make Milan… Rock (Serie A Matchday 28)

Sunday, March 15th, 2009

AC Milan's Andrea Pirlo (C) celebrates with his teammates Filippo Inzaghi (L), Pato (2nd L), David Beckham and Paolo Maldini (R) after scoring a penalty against Siena during their Italian Serie A soccer match in Siena March 15, 2009.  (REUTERS)

Yes, I didn’t look for that rhyme very far… sue me for lack of imagination. I stand by it: it’s an appropriate title, and something a bit more original than phrases including “Super Pippo” and “300″.

Milan‘s visit to Siena Sunday was really a one-way encounter for the Rossoneri, who saw the welcome returns of Kakà and Ronaldinho from injury as well as the confirmation that maybe, just maybe (and for one last season), old & new can blend together in this team. On the one hand we have Inzaghi, who followed last week’s Atalanta hat-trick with a brace today, just to confirm that even as a 35 year-old he’s lost nothing of his goalscoring cunning. On the other hand we have Pato, whom Inzaghi has apparently taught well and who quite happily seems be carrying the scoring torch at Milan. With his two goals today (one more spectacular than the other) the “Duck” rises to 14 goals in this Serie A season, just five behind capocannoniere Marco Di Vaio.

Oh, and for those still confused about my “Super Pippo” and “300″ reference: no, this isn’t another Zack Snyder movie. Simply, Serie A goalscorer extraordinaire Filippo Inzaghi just bagged his 300th professional career goal Sunday. Say what want about Inzaghi (he’s always offside, he dives, etc.) but… Mazel Tov! Few people can make that claim about their football career.

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Serie A Preview: AC Milan vs. Atalanta

Saturday, March 7th, 2009

Serie A: AC Milan vs. Atalanta

As another Serie A week-end draws near, AC Milan vs. Atalanta could very well be David Beckham‘s last game for the Rossoneri, and I for one will be sad to see him leave Italian football. Milan might not have been great over the past few weeks or so, but for me Beckham has added to the Milan side considerably and would probably continue to flourish in Italian football. If it doesn’t happen now it could happen in November anyway when his contract at LA Galaxy runs out (there are speculations Milan is waiting to do just that: snatch the player on a free transfer for January 2010) so even if he does return we may not have seen the last of the former England captain.

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Sampdoria 2-1 Milan: Cassano & Pazzini Sink the Rossoneri Boat (Serie A Matchday 26)

Monday, March 2nd, 2009

Sampdoria 2-1 Milan: Cassano & Pazzini Sink the Rossoneri Boat (Serie A Matchday 26)

February just isn’t AC Milan‘s month. With the exception of a (valuable, but unconvincing) victory obtained against Cagliari, the Rossoneri’s performances since their 3-0 thumping of Lazio have been punctuated by mediocrity. They tied to Reggina, lost the Derby della Madonnina to Inter, and got eliminated from the UEFA Cup. Sunday’s match against Sampdoria marks the latest day of a very rainy month for Carlo Ancelotti, his team decimated by injuries and persecuted by fate.

As for the Blucerchiati, perhaps getting rid of European cup engagements was not such a bad thing. Well rested after skipping their mid-week fixture, Cassano & Pazzini were in fine form to provide the winning goals for their team today.

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AC Milan 2-2 Werder Bremen: Claudio Pizarro Vaporizes Rossoneri’s European Dreams (UEFA Cup Round of 32, 2nd Leg)

Saturday, February 28th, 2009

Bremen forward Claudio Pizarro, right, of Peru, scores a goal as AC Milan defender Paolo Maldini looks on during the UEFA Cup, Round of 32, second-leg soccer match between AC Milan and Bremen, at the San Siro stadium, in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2009. (AP Photo)

Don’t trust the numbers you read between Milan and Werder Bremen in the title: the scoreline may say 2-2 but this was match with only one team on the grass. And it certainly wasn’t the Rossoneri. For not only did Werder fight back from an (undeserved) 0-2 half-time deficit: the German side had literally every other goalscoring chance of the 90 minutes, capitalizing the playmaking skills of Diego and lethal aerial ability of Claudio Pizarro.

The idea of winning the only silverware missing from Milan’s trophy room might have been tempting, but Berlusconi has to come down to the sad reality of things: this is a team in need of change, and team needing change fast. “Experience” and “name prestige” just don’t do it anymore.

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