Posts Tagged ‘Dejan Stankovic’

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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Inter Milan vs. Manchester United: The PLAYERS

Wednesday, March 11th, 2009

inter-man-utd_cl-gazzetta

So remember that great “Serie A vs. EPL” section on La Gazzetta which I promised I’d partially translate?

Here’s the first batch of pink-goodness: a look at ALL THE PLAYERS from tonight’s Inter Milan vs. Manchester United UEFA Champions League match.

Boy I can’t wait for game-time. Meanwhile, feast your eyes on this. (oh, and credit goes where credit is due of course: the original)

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Inter Milan 2-1 AC Milan: ‘How to Put a Scudetto on Ice’ by José Mourinho (Serie A Matchday 24)

Monday, February 16th, 2009

Inter Milan midfielder Dejan Stankovic, left, celebrates with teammate Maicon after scoring, during the Serie A soccer match between Inter Milan and AC Milan and at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 15, 2009. (AP Photo by Carlo Baroncini)

Temperatura prevista per le 22:30, -11.

Translated: “Temperature forecast for 10:30pm: -11″. Those were the words exhibited by an Inter fan prior to this game, a clever (and prophetic) way to present the 270th Derby della Madonnina, the 56th (and last one) of Paolo Maldini’s career. And surely the Milan captain would have preferred a different outcome than tonight, a 2-1 victory which puts the Nerazurri 9 points above Juventus and 11 points ahead of their cousin rivals.

Too early to say “Scudetto race over”? Maybe, but not many points separate us from that conclusion. In the meantime, Serie A spectators Sunday enjoyed another vibrant, spectacular match, full of intensity and a perfect testimonial for Italian soccer worlwide. With the usual share (can’t do without it) of controversy, from ‘hand arm of God’ goals to non-given penalties.

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Lecce 0-3 Inter: Zlatan Sounding the Charge (Serie A Matchday 23)

Saturday, February 7th, 2009

It’s funny how whenever Inter are playing away from home, they make everything look much easier than if they were playing at San Siro. I’m not imagining this, stats speak for themselves (the goals scored/conceded ratio for Nerazzurri home games is 16/7 whereas the numbers increase to 24/9 for away games): Mourinho has been struggling to unleash his team’s goalscoring power in front of their fans this season. By contrast, Inter’s away games to Catania last week and to Lecce today have been a breeze. Go figure.

In any case, the players won’t be complaining. Thanks to the goals by Ibrahimovic, Figo, and Stankovic today, the Nerazzurri have increased their lead over rivals AC Milan to +8. Lecce meanwhile, have to face the dire reality of their relegation battle: they have not won at Stadio Via del Mare for over five months now. Speaking of poor home form huh?

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10-Men Inter Reclaim Their +6 Serie A Lead as Juve & Milan Stumble (Serie A Matchday 21)

Thursday, January 29th, 2009

As a Bianconero, big disappointment lingers in my mind after Wednesday’s Serie A action. Not only did an unrecognizable (and Del Piero-less) Juve lose away to Udinese, but Inter Milan‘s concurrent win over Catania (and AC Milan‘s draw to Genoa) restores the Nerazzurri’s +6/+8 lead, leaving us to wonder if the current order of the top three Serie A teams will ever change again.

Maybe I’m being overly pessimistic, but I’ve been following the soccer scene for quite some time now and I’ve got this hunch: usually during a title race, when the top team loses some ground only to regain it the following week, they are keeping their lead till the end. I’ve got no scientific or tactical evidence to support this theory, it is what it is: a hunch. But based on my previous years of Serie-A watching experience, it is somewhat reminiscent of the Juve vs. Parma and Juve vs. Inter title races of the late 90′s.

Secretly of course, I want to believe otherwise…

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