milan win the derby della madonnina

Milan 1 Inter 0

The biggest derby in club football took place at Milan last night. The participants were AC Milan and Inter Milan, as usual. Milan were going into this match coming from a bad patch of form. Inter were sitting pretty on top of the table, and were the clear favorites.

This was supposed to be the most fascinating Milan derby in a long time. This was because of the star power added to the Rossoneri squad over the summer and the appointment of the 'special one' at Inter. Milan had decided to field the famous Ka-Pa-Ro, this time the Ro was not Ronaldo but Ronaldinho. Inter's worst nightmare was on the bench. His name is Shevchenko, had scored 13 times in 16 derbies. Inter surprisingly though having the potential of fielding the strongest and scariest strike force in the world, decided to go with Ibra lone up. Quaresma and Mancini were playing as wing forwards. Why dint Mourinho use Adriano in the starting line up? One would never know.

Milan started the first half really well and attacked relentlessly and this ended with a positive result as Ronaldinho completed a fantastic move with a goal, stunning header to the top corner with Julio Ceasar having no chance to stop it. Oh what an assist from Kaka', that ball in would be a striker's delight. Milan then decided to sit back and soak the pressure after that goal went it, and gave Mourinho a taste of his own medicine. That according to me, was the best part of the match. But once Adriano and Julio Cruz came on in the second half, Inter were not the same team. Adriano was a constant threat and had numerous chances to equalise but he couldn't. Milan in a way were quite lucky to escape with 3 points. Why would Ancelloti take off Pato and bring in Flamini when Gattuso had his wrist injured? Why would he bring in Bonera once Burdisso was sent off? I think Ancelloti is sending a subtle message across to the Milan management through his tactical decisions. And he has never concealed his love for Roma, so..

Abbiati was solid, some impressive saves, and displayed one of these saves just seconds before Milan scored . Maldini marked Ibra out of the game, and he is putting in some special performances. Hoping it continues. The wingbacks were sound and Kaladze seemed fine as well. Gattuso was his old self and was like a bulldog in the midfield. He along with Seedorf dominated the center of the park for Milan and were clearly outshining Cambiasso and Viera. Ambrosini stood like a wall blocking everything coming in his way and he was hard to get by. Ronaldinho was showing glimpses of getting back to form, and his passing was sublime. Kaka displayed he is still world class despite the injuries and if he carries on playing like this he would be one of the favourites for the Ballon D'Or and the World Player of the Year next year. Pato, well he needs to improve and playing lone up isn't really his cup of tea. But he will improve no doubt.
As for Inter, Ibra showed why he isn't Golden Ball material. Another big game, another flop. Mancini was constantly practising how to dive, Quaresma was anonymous. Cambiasso played well and so did Viera. Burdisso was sent off after a rash challenge on Kaka. But the player who takes the cake is Julio Ceasar. The keeper from Brazil put in an outstanding performance to keep the scoreline dignified for Inter. The saves from Kaka, Ronaldinho and Shevchenko were magical.

We have stamped our authority upon Inter and we have won 3 games on the trot in the Serie A. We own the bragging rights of the city till the next derby. If the current form is maintained we could be holding the Scudetto come season end. And yes, I almost forgot, Mourinho is still grumbling. What a jackass!! Hahahaha!!

FORZA MILAN!!

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=zWQeagcFDew&eurl=http://www.footytube.com/

Goalscorers -
Milan - Ronaldinho
Inter - (hahahaha!!)

struggled, victory nonetheless

Reggina 1 Milan 2

Barcelona and Arsenal are probably 2 clubs in Europe that play fascinating football and win with consistency. Milan are not of that caliber in terms of flair. Sometimes getting lucky with your results also counts. Reggina are way down at the bottom of the table, and a team of Milan's stature should have swept them away. We rested some important players and other important players are injured. But with the team we had, Reggina shouldn't have had much of the ball or too many scoring opportunities. But that wasn't the case last night.

Milan have had a reputation of playing poor against the weaker sides. Last season it was the excuse of not finding enough space. This season, the management is working on a new excuse. With players of the quality of Seedorf, Kaka, Pato and Borrielo, Milan shouldn't have had much problem with space. And that too against a team not known for great defensive abilities. Yet we managed to scrape a win.
Seedorf whipped in a ball from right side of the field and Borrielo scored by losing his man, ahh what a header! This Italian is impressing me with the passing of every game, and how! Of course our leaky defense couldn't hold onto the lead and we conceded under catastrophic conditions. An ardent Milan fan would be ashamed at how weak our defense has become. And Super Pato eventually had to save the day, like he has done in the past. Kaka mesmerised the Reggina defense by having one of those amazing runs and he cut the ball in towards Pato who finished cooly. This was the 3rd goal in a week for the youngster. 3 goals in 3 games. This kid is going places and is proving me wrong and am so glad he is. He has shown great bonding or should i say partnership with Borrielo and will surely go ahead and rock the Serie A this season. Hope this is not just a flicker but a fire that will burn the defenses that Milan come against in the future. 2 thumbs up to the young mighty Brazilian. With the invaluable guidance of Pippo and Sheva, this cub would be receiving so much of experience that cannot even be imagined. And quite visibly he has started to translate the performance on the pitch, where it really matters.

Abbiati has been Milan's unsung hero this season, as he was in this game. He has shown some admirable bravery and courage in between the posts. Bonera was awful, as usual if i might put it. Kaladze has begun to show his true colors without Nesta beside him. Zambrotta could've been better and Favalli, i think Favalli still figures in the team because Ancelloti is at the helm of affairs. Which is why i want him sacked. Moving onto the midfield, Seedorf had a good game, Gattuso is consistent in putting in below average performaces, and Flamini was unusually poor, very poor. Kaka is steadily getting back to being the best he is. And Borrielo and Pato upfront were constantly troubling the hosts and did well to get their names on the scoresheets.

Monday marks the arrival of the greatest derby on the planet. And if you ask me, I regard the 'special one' as a better coach when compared to Ancelloti. The Italian has been using Favalli and Emerson so often, its not even funny. What's the point of having Antonini and Cardaccio in the squad if you are not going to be using them, and instead are using washed out 'has beens'? I don't get it. Anyways, we are 4 points below Inter right now and a win would be very useful for pride and for points. Let me warn you, we are not favorites heading into the derby.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whRJW_MRKfA

Goalscorers -
Reggina - Corradi
Milan - Borrielo, Pato

a lesson taught, a lesson learnt

Milan 4 Lazio 1

Lazio arrived at the San Siro with a lot of confidence. They were on top the table as they had won the first 2 games of the season. They were talking about upsetting an already upset Milan. How often do you see a team at the bottom of the table beating a team at the top of the table by the scoreline 4-1?? I don't think that happens very often.

Lazio were pasted last season by Milan, we went and scored one more at the Stadio Olympicio. The scoreline against Lazio last season was 5-1, so i am a bit disappointed that we dint replicate the scoreline this time. Just kidding!

Milan had lost to newly-promoted Bologna and a rejuvenated Genoa in the first 2 encounters of the season. And me being the realist that I am was expecting Lazio to cruise past Milan, and I am glad Milan surprised me. The game showed what Milan could do, almost all the players (except Abbiati and Kaladze) put in fine performances. Gattuso was very impressive to say the least. He was put in a position that quite simply belongs to Pirlo and was expected to perform. This was his first game after returning from injury and he dint seem to show any sign of injury. His performance cried out loud - 'who needs Flamini when i am here.' Seedorf was almost back to his sublime, creative best, Carrizo was seeing stars when Seedorf blasted the ball past him to the top corner. Carrizo was probably seeing galaxies of stars after Zambrotta's wonder goal and Kaka's superb curler from outside the box. Carrizo is a fine keeper and i have no doubts he will go places, but he sure dint go places today as he was firmly rooted to his ground as most of Milan's goals were out of his reach.

Zamrotta scored a typical wingback's goal as he bulleted the ball from 31m out, and Kaka curled the ball into the top corner from outside the box, showing signs that he is getting back to his best. He was absolutely unstoppable today. Running circles and mazes around the defense from Rome. Jankulovski also had a nice game, he delivered an absolute beauty of a ball for Pato's header. A special mention must go for Maldini who was responsible for making Kaladze look like a defender. After Zarate scored the goal for Lazio, Maldini man marked him out of the game, showing that form is temporary but class surely is permanent. Ambrosini was at his usual best. Borrielo showed what was missing at Milan last season, and that was a target man of his ability. He was really good and I hope he would become a regular at the club.

The goal we conceded was due to poor defending by Kaladze and even poorer keeping from Abbiati who let the ball past him at the near post, even though he was guarding the near post. He is certainly not a world class keeper and relying on him would be folly.

Though I am happy with this outing, i wont get thrilled and go bananas. Milan have done this in the past, they have had a string of poor results and then they 'surprise' the world with a scintillating display of attacking football. I hope these results come with consistency, and that we move up the table and contend for honors worth contending for. Nevertheless, Milan have taught the footballing world a lesson that no one should ever write this team off, and Lazio have learnt their lesson of not trying to get too big for their shoes. Got it, Delio Rossi?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rcdkw6oNzuU

Goalscorers -

Milan - Seedorf, Zambrotta, Pato, Kaka

Lazio - Zarate

istanbul awaits as milan surge ahead

Milan 3 Zurich 1

Milan in Europe are something special. Even when they play like a relegation bound team in the Serie A, they put in some extra-ordinary performances in Europe. Same has been the case recently. Milan have been below ordinary in the domestic league but they dispatched Zurich with relative ease. 3-1 was the final score.

Shevchenko was better than usual. He was responsible for 2/3 goals that Milan scored. Pato scored an absolutely blinder from a dead ball situation. But my personal favorite was the goal that Borrielo scored even though Pato's goal would be grabbing the headlines. Pato scored from 30-35 yards out, which is not a joke, but how often does he do that?? Lets look at Borrielo's goal - Shevchenko receives the ball from Seedorf and he pushes it to Borrielo. The Italian forward has two defenders converging on him, and he is closer to the near post. The goalkeeper is guarding the near post and Flamini is running down the right flank. Marco has 2 seconds to decide whether to shoot or to pass it to the Frenchman. He decides to shoot with his left foot, and he scores! This goal, if scored by a world class striker would be considered as a trademark goal, and Mr Borrielo has scored some like these in his days with the Grifoni last season. That's what makes this goal worth describing. What a cool finish to the bottom corner, at near post, the goalkeeper had no chance. I had my apprehensions about this Italian, and i still do, but he has shown sparks of becoming a world class striker, and a certain spark was displayed last night.

Our defense is a major concern, though i don't blame the defense for the goal the Zurich scored, i mean Djuric rifled the shot to the top corner from outside the box so the maximum Milan could have done was close him down, which they obviously dint. Dida had a nervous night, Seedorf seemed confident, Flamini was kept busy, and Kaka showed signs of returning to form. Jankulovski was sublime, and he capped his performance by scoring a goal. Overall a good, sound performance.

Lazio await us back home, and they have been splendid in the first 2 games, as they sit pretty at the top of the league. Hopefully this win will give us some confidence to face the side from Rome.

http://www.eatlime.com/play_FE2B4CCD-4C5E-3D17-A25C-8C93680A3F97

Goalscorers -

Milan - Jankulovski, Pato, Borrielo

Zuric - Djuric

misery piles on

Genoa 2 Milan 0

Another day, another defeat. 'The Prince' of Genoa has returned and has certainly outshined the 'prodigal son'. A hugely disappointing game. Milan were out of sorts, and were simply over-powered on every front. The defense was caught napping and were run ragged by the trio of Gasbarroni, Sculli and Milito.

Some greats of the game refuse to retire gracefully, and Maldini is one of them. He is not needed in the club, correction- on the pitch anymore. The Italian is a leader, and has all virtues of leading the club by example, but the example he is setting is quite poor, to be honest. With due respect to what he has accomplished and done, Milan need fresh blood and fresh legs in the defense, which wont happen if Maldini continues to be a part of the squad. Darmian is an upcoming defender, one from Milan's youth ranks and he needs some experience at the highest level. He is bound to take over sooner or later, then why not sooner, as visibly, this Milan defense has more holes than any defense in Italy? Yesterday, Madini's marking on Sculli was dismal, as it resulted in the first goal for Genoa. He doesn't have the legs for the job, lets face it. And more importantly, I hope he faces it. The purchase of Zambrotta, Ronaldinho and Shevchenko has already shown signs of being blunders, and i wont be surprised if their poor form continues over a large part of the season. What i was surprised about was how awful Kaka was in the game, but later I realised that he is just returning from injury and needs time. Borrielo was also a surprise package and the only one who showed any interest in the game.

Lastly would like to speak about the one person who may not be identified with Milan in about 21 days time, and that is Carlo Ancelloti. He is running out of ideas and his tactical moves has left the footballing world in a state of shock. Starting with Favalli, taking off R80 when Kaka deserved to be subbed, not playing Cardaccio when he was the best player against Lugano. Lots of questions are being raised, and as James Homcastle clearly puts it, the winds of change are moving through Milan. And the person who could be swept away first is the gaffer.

http://www.101greatgoals.com/videodisplay/1562346/

Goalscorers -

Genoa - Giusseppe Sculli, Diego Milito

Milan - none

such a shame

Lugano 2 Milan 0

Experiencing shame is something, experiencing shame and embarrassment is another thing. Thats what i felt when i read the morning news. Milan, weakened by 7 of the starting 11 players going on international duty, were facing a mediocre, unknown, unheard of team in Switzerland. No one expected this scoreline at the end of the game.

Something's wrong, what is it? It's called Carlo Ancelloti. The guy has run stale, there is no doubt that he has. He shouldn't even be here today. And he is. Unfortunately its Milan who are paying the price.

Yes, its just a friendly, but losing with such a scoreline and that to to Lugano? Absolutely unacceptable. I would have included this post in the 'friendlies' thread, but no. This friendly has been played after the Serie A has started so it deserved to be highlighted as a seperate post. And several players such as Abbiati were talking about facing this team with the same professionalism as they would face a Serie A side. And they intend to win the Scudetto by displaying such professionalism??? Hmm, i am considering racing Usain Bolt myself.

I have stopped caring about the flair Milan display in their game. I used to once, but i no longer do. A friend of mine, who is a fan of Chelsea enlightened me on whats the most important thing when you play the game. Its to win, play un-appealing football, like Chelsea probably does (or used to), but still win. Play dirty, unattractive football, but win for Pete's sakes! I now understand and agree with him. If Milan are doing something consistently, its losing.

This is the team Milan fielded. Abbiati (kalac 46'), Bonera, Senderos ( pasini 46'), Maldini (favalli 46'), Antonini, Cardaccio, Emerson, Ambrosini, Seedorf, Inzaghi (angelili 17') (kaka 46'), Pato.

Inaghi has a muscular problem and had to be taken out of the game after 17 minutes. Cardaccio was Milan's best player. Kaka returned from injury, played the second half. This game marked the debut of Senderos. And Pato, yes the duck. He should be floating in some pond in Brazil. He is 'trying' to play football at Milan. I used to think Rooney was the most over-rated player in the world. Then i saw Pato. Last night was the same night that Walcott showed why Wenger placed confidence in him when he brought him to Arsenal. Walcott played some exquisite football to score the first competitive hattrick after Micheal Owen's against Germany. Pato was/and is still floating around! The thought of him wearing the Rossoneri jersey angers me. He couldn't score against a Lugano side? And Walcott was scoring 3 past Croatia which is regarded as the 5th best country in world football!

Milan should only concentrate on the Coppa Italia, the rest of the silverware is completely, completely, once again, completely out of reach.

Goal-scorers

Milan - what??

Lugano - Renella, Laborde

return of the prodigal son

Andriy Shevchenko, yes thats his name.He thrilled the audiences at the San Siro, between 1996-2006. 7 glorious seasons that made him the deadliest hitman in world football. 127 goals in 208 games, just leaves you stupefied. And he is back.

Personally, i would have never wanted him back at the club after the way in which he slammed the door on our face, but in the depths of desperation, we aren't left with any other option. I was forever cribbing about the lack of that one world class striker in our strike force. Not that Shevchenko is world class now, but he brings all the experience to the table. It makes our strike force a lot more lethal than it was a week ago. Not expecting great things from the Ukranian, but if he delivers, it will be a bonus. Glad we have someone like him in the attack, makes me feel a lot more comfortable.

swiss disaster

A guy from Switzerland put in an impressive performance against us last season in the champions league. He was one of the key reasons we were 'gunned' down. That was enough to impress the white and bald heads of Milan. And now, he is our latest acquisition. One, i am certainly not proud of. Now how many Rossoneri fans would be proud to say, "we have Phillipe Senderos in our line up." Atleast i wouldn't be one of them i am sure. He is colossal, gigantic, fantastic (at times), and tactically an illiterate. Thats not an ideal combination of attributes for a center half who plays for the most decorated club in the world is it? No, its not.

Then what is Mr. Senderos doing at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza? No, he is certainly not playing for Inter (and God would i be happy if he was). No, he is not part of the groundstaff, or so i wish to believe. Then? Thats a question Mr. Galliani should answer. Or atleast i believe he will when Senderos starts running after players and referees instead of the ball.

For the record, the Swiss center back arrives on a one year loan deal, with an option of making the deal permanent come season end for a certain fee. The 23 year old made 74 premiership appearances scoring 4 goals since arriving at Arsenal from Servette in December 2002. He won 31 caps for Switzerland, playing at the World Cup 2006 and the EURO 2008.

Very impressive, bravo Senderos! Not! If you are not good enough for Arsenal how on Earth did you land up at Milan?! Miracles do happen, i believe.

squad for the uefa cup 2008-2009

Goalkeepers: Dida, Abbiati, Kalac.

Defenders: Maldini, Kaladze, Zambrotta, Jankulovski, Favalli, Senderos, Bonera, Darmian, Pasini, Antonini.

Midfielders: Emerson, Gattuso, Pirlo, Ambrosini, Flamini.

Strikers: Pato, Inzaghi, Seedorf, Borriello, Kakà, Shevchenko, Ronaldinho.