Strike It

Strike It

There is a strong need for someone to lead our attack. The dodgy kneed Kaka has shown over the last couple of seasons, that he is not upto the task. Pato's brave attempts this season has given us some hope, but he cant be relied on completely either. He is only 19 and his inexperience shouts aloud. Shevchenko has enjoyed his vacation in Italy, and after experiencing a season of nostalgia will be surely returning to the Blues at the end of the season. Inzaghi is 35, and will most probably be on crutches soon. Borrielo is already on crutches and has given me no reason to have faith on his fitness going by the standards he has set this season. As for the last option, Ronaldinho, he has forgotton the concept of running altogether.

There lies a bit of promise in the form of the returning Yoann Gourcuff. But where he will be slotted, or will he be slotted at all are questions that remain to be answered. Galliani has said that the club wont sign big names in the coming season, but this man can hardly be trusted.

So, what do we need? We need a striker for starters as I have already made obvious from the first paragraph. We need a target man with a lot of strength, with a lot of skill, with a lot of quality and with considerable amount of experience.

Lets start with the strikers we have already been linked with. Adebayor. He is one of the most over-rated strikers in the world, and its a blessing in disguise he dint accompany Flamini here last season. At a ridiculous 30 million euros price tag, he defines inflation in the footballing world. I would have engaged in discussing his fitness concerns, if only I was more confident of his technical ability. Kanoute from Sevilla is another on the list, and the former Spurs man would be an ideal fit, considering our desperate need for a target man. But he is 31. And even if he is performing well in the league, i wouldn't want him primarily due to his age. I would however be over-joyed with the signing of his striking partner Luis Fabiono. With a potential strong Brazilian connect up front, he could form a lethal partnership with Pato. Moving on, I would have loved Rossi, but his style of play clashes with that of Pato, it wouldn't be an ideal purchase. If only we had signed Samuel Eto'o, who currently is by far the best striker in the world. If all had gone well, and if Milan had signed him instead of the unnecessary Ronaldinho, things would have been different, and better. Negredo who is enjoying an outstanding season with Almeria can be shortlisted, but the lack of experience can prove to be costly. I have dreamt of Villa in Rossoneri colors, but considering the new policy at Lombardy, it would most likely remain a dream. However, from Spain, my choice of striker is one who goes by the name of Jaan Klass Huntelaar. This Dutchman has quality and skill in abundance and with another fellow countryman returning to action next season, Huntelaar might end up warming the bench. He has an eye for goal, an appetite for the same, and is a young, reputed target man.

England now. EPL touted by many as the best league in the world probably has justified its hype by the quality of strikers it nurtures. Ranging from Torres to Rooney, from Defoe to Heskey, there is skill all over the country. But only a few can play for Milan. Ruling out the impossibilities, it does become hard to think of someone who can be compatible to the system of play at Milan. The first name that comes to my mind is Drogba. No, I dont think he is impossible. With the necessary motivation, he might be inclined to switch to the San Siro, and considering Chelsea's business sense, he wont be as expensive as Adebayor. With Arsenal's Champions League possibilities in question for next season, Robin Van Persie should be prioritised. Robinho's troubles at City dont seem to end and he might just leave come season end. Amr Zaki has shown that he has the ability to perform in one of the most demanding leagues in the world. But does he have what it takes to play for the one of the biggest clubs in the world? Well, that remains to be seen. The chances are that Tevez might be available, but I am not sure how compatible he will be with Pato upfront. Roque Santa Cruz is someone I would look at sincerely, but one look at the demand for the former Munich man, you will most definitely fathom numbers that would send Galliani reeling. My pick of the lot, Drogba. Reasons are known, but to put it simply, he is a world class striker.

Italy. Home to some of the best strikers in the world. And ironically out of reach for the most successful club in the world. Here I can think of several strikers. Lets start with the Turin duo. Iaquinta and Trezeguet. Both have the desired attributes. And with Trezeguet falling apart with Ranieri, he is the more likely to leave. Amauri would have been my favorite, but by now, Gigli would have tagged him as an untouchable. And I dont think he would behave like Berlusconi did in the winter, so there is no point trying. Iaquinta would be more favorable, according to me. He has waited in the shadows, and when called upon, has shot into fame. He was in blazing form for Udinese, and he seems to be enjoying a similar stint with the Old Lady. Speaking of Udinese, Di Natale and Quagliarella also can be options, but considering the project that Udinese are building, they wont come cheap. There were rumors linking us to Julio Cruz and due to my sheer distaste to the rumor I wont dwell further on it. Lavezzi would be wonderful, but again, the project with its attributed side effects apply. Milito, Mascara and Pazzini have been reborn this season, and are performing sensationally. But my interests lingers on the 'talentino'. Cassano has all the quality in the world. His age also seems to be a benefit. The only problems are that he isn't a target man and more importantly, his temper. Can Milan handle it? Honorable mentions must be made for Pandev, Rocchi and Di Vaio. None of these will ever be linked, and that I am quite sure of. I dint mention a certain name, who from the Serie A, is my favorite, quite obviously after 'Ibracadabra'. His name is Sergio Floccari and he plays for Atalanta. Del Neri has received much praise for the performance delivered by this Italian striker, with his name echoing across the continent with hungry giants sniffing already. If we do manage to bag him, we can be proud of it for awhile. And with a young Italian, it will help is in the long run. Refer 6+5.

The lesser leagues also do possess options. Hugo Almeida, Hulk, Pogrebnyak are players who are enjoying their football and have created a name for themselves. Ibisevic, Grafite and Helmes have been running riot in the Bundesliga. Podolski also might be available, but Roma are behaving a bit aggressive about him, so its better to lay off. Highly rated Gignac has been setting France on fire. Horau and Cavenaghi aren't far behind. In an ideal world, I wouldn't have looked beyond Benzema, but considering he is amongst the 3 most wanted strikers in the world, I will simply concentrate on a striker we were linked with last season. Mario Gomez. Yes he disappointed at the Euros. But there is no denying his quality and his strenght. He had a fantastic spell with Stuttgart last season, and things aren't very different this season. With his attributes and at a cost that will well suit our budget, he can be a superb alternative to the big boys.

A striker is meant to score. You may feel like slapping me for stating this sentence, but the importance of it is beyond measure for a club like ours. After Sheva departed, we have lacked a striker who can bang in 20-25 goals a season for us. Its high time, we switched on our spotlights on the areas that need mending, rather than on Beckham's jersey. By the way, Leonardo is scouting for 2 very highly rated Brazilian kids, namely Neymar and Keirrison. Lets wait and see how that develops.

Napoli 0 AC Milan 0

Napoli 0 AC Milan 0

Hypothetically, if you decided to make your friend a Calcio fan by showing him/her the game between Napoli and Milan, you made a massive mistake. This game exemplified the popular belief that Serie A is the most boring league in the world. I would have believed it myself had I not followed the Serie A for the last 5 years. Yes, the game was that disappointing.

Napoli have had a torrid run of results recently. And the latest calamity was the sacking of Edu Reja. Under Donadoni, a new regime was established, and being so young, it was fragile. An enterprising club would have seized the opportunity by inflicting more trauma on the club from Naples. However, as usual, Milan decide cowardice is the best approach.

AC Milan have reduced their season objectives to 3rd place. So playing like Hull City is more than enough to secure that. But I expected more and was disappointed. Milan had a competent side at the Sao Paolo. With Inzaghi and Pato up front, Milan already seemed lethal. Kaka returning from injury would have increased the anxiety for Donadoni's men.

Napoli have been winless in the last 10 league games. Milan should have increased that, but not by drawing the game. Pirlo and Beckam began dictating the game, with Flamini being reduced to cleaning up the midfield. Both the teams were hesitant in attack. Mannini was displaying Zambrotta's true colors. The veteran has truly passed it, and had Mannini any more quality, Zambrotta would have had one of the worst games in his life. The biggest threat of the half came in the form of a Beckham cross, which Navarro dealt with competently. He also managed to deny Seedorf. 33% of the possession stayed with the home side which will give you an idea of how much of the ball Milan kept. And I think that is the only positive we can take from this game, considering its us with 33% of the possession most of the time. However Napoli were having the better chances. Lavezzi ruined a glorious opportunity after his link up play with Pazienza. Hamsik scored just moments later. It was a tap in from close range, but unfortunately, the goal was wrongly ruled as offside. AC Milan, lucky once again.

Seedorf started the second half well and almost gave the visitors a lead. Kaka and Ronaldinho took to the pitch soon after and the infamous Ka-Pa-Ro was back in action. Zalayeta continued his poor form as he blasted wide a shot from close range. Lavezzi was very impressive but he lacked that finishing touch, and this on numerous occasions. Milan''s dominance in possesion was coming to nothing. Kaka's form is sliding down remarkably. I was extrememly disappointed by the former World Player and calling him world class anymore would be, balderdash. The game ended in a stalemete. And Milan fall further behind Juve. 9 games to go, with last 5 being the toughest in the calender. Games we must be winning, we are drawing. Is it too early to say, saluti Europa League? I dont know.

AC Siena 1 AC Milan 5

AC Siena 1 AC Milan 5

AC Milan have discovered a truth, that has formed the reason of success for FC Barcelona. Attack is the best form of defense. When this season started, many touted Milan of having the best attack in Europe. Though Kaka's constant absence, Borrielo's non existence and Ronaldinho's inconsistency proved crucial to negate these claims, Milan found a saviour in Pato and more recently Inzaghi. Pato, on current form is amongst the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Ribery and Messi. And i dont think I am being biased by saying that. He has carried this club on his tender 19 year old shoulders for about half the season. And this with Kaka deciding to give Borrielo and Gattuso company. But the last couple of weeks belong to a certain Fillipo Inzaghi. He netted his 300th goal at the weekend. 5 in 2 games, this old man is on fire.

Thrashing Siena is not easy. They have a very good defensive record. One of the best in the league. And scoring 5 goals in the Serie A, is as tough as scoring 10 in the EPL. So when you read the above, you will understand that Milan must have been lethal. I must congratulate you mate, you understand well. The game started and Milan found that much needed breakthrough to stamp their auhtority on the game. Flamini was brought down in the box by Kharja and PIrlo scored the penalty. Bad news was sure to follow, and i would have hoped to have conceded instead. Abbiati was stretched off and was replaced by Dida. And latest reports do suggest that the Italian's season is over. Following the departure of Abbiati, the away side knew the stand a chance and started firing randomly at the Milanese goal. First half stoppage-time, Beckham takes the corner. Inzaghi loses his man and scores. At this time, the game was surely wrapped up and sealed. The second half was only going to be a formality.

Kaka was brought on for Ambrosini. One of the few substitutions that Ancelloti has made that i admire. Kharja and Calaio combined well, with the latter firing past Dida, but the goal was ruled offside. Milan made it 3 for the evening, as Pato received the ball from 30 yards out and unleashed a powerful drive that landed the ball in the top corner. A world class goal by a world class player. Not much later, Kaka cemented his position for miss of the season, as he fired over from 6 yards out, in front of a gaping goal, after Flamini did some incredible work on the left. Flamini's efforts deserved a goal, but it wasn't to be. Kaka was quite ashamed as he covered his face with his shirt, leaving me frustrated over his contribution to Milan this season. The man from Riverside, Massimo Maccarone was Siena's best player and capped his performance with a good goal and he breezed the ball past Dida. Inzaghi scored again for Milan, as he turned his defender to score past Curci. And that was the 300th goal of his career. He quickly ran towards the Mian camp, received a jersey and flaunted a tailormade jersey sporting the number 300 beneath his name. As usual Kaka, limped off after falling down to be replaced by Ronaldinho. 78 minutes into the game, Pato scored his second and Milan's fifth. Ronaldinho's fantastic pass was greeted by Pato before he made an sbsolute oaf of Curci. Pato slotted the ball home and took his tally to 14 in the league. Nicolo Amoruso, another popular name in the Siena squad, could have scored a second for his team. And Codrea summed up his team's outing as he hit the bar from a 25-yard drive.

A good win, but we are still not certain of the 3rd place. I was happy to see that the management dint go gloating after this victory. Hopefully we will keep ourselves focussed for Napoli, who we play at the weeked. Its a new regime there, with Donadoni taking over from Edu Reja. It will be interesting, this one.

Impervious Priorities

Italian. Football. When you combine these two words, you get a spontaneous response, viz, impermeable defense. Or whatsoever, but the essence of the response doesn't change. Dint know that within half a decade, i would be associating the same response to English teams and would be comparing the boys downstairs to the defenders of the Serie A giants. As its popularly understood, this blog is dedicated to reflecting AC Milan and therefore I wont stray away into the rest of Calcio. A lot of people believe this season is a disaster. Nothing new. A lot of people believe its down to a powerless defense. Nothing new. We struggled against one of the best attacking sides on the continent last season. We were smothered at the Emirites, and we were bullied at the San Siro. Any sane individual would know that a 2-0 scoreline was flattering on the veterans. And the owner of SportMediaset decides to do something about it, signs Senderos. When I read this, I dint know whether to laugh or cry. I stopped to think, are people taking this game seriously? But then it balanced out when Juve signed Mellberg. I realized its a bug that's caught the league.

We haven't been too poor defensively. We have a more than decent record. Yes we have conceded one and half times more than league leaders Inter, but thats quite an achievement when you have a center back line up of Maldini, Kaladze, Nesta, Bonera and Senderos. It pains me to read those names. Nesta the exception, but not so considering he has barely kicked a ball all season. Is this the representation of the defense of the Calcio to Europe? Is this even remotely Championship material? I am surprised we aren't fighting for relegation. Or probably it shows how poor the strikers are in the Serie A. But wait, Mutu, Milito, Cavani, Ibra, Amauri, Di Natale, Gilardinho, Del Piero, Totti, Lavezzi, Di Vaio, Quagliarella, Adriano, Pato, Cassano, Pazzini. Got tired typing.. But hold on, wasn't i talking about poor strikers in the league? Sorry I take it back. So how did we survive? One name definitely comes to my mind now. Christian Abbiati.Well, he has always been an under-rated keeper. If he had to play understudy to Leo Franco, its nothing but obvious, my previous statement. Abbiaiti has saved our club's reputation on several occasions, and has reduced the humiliation, when he couldn't modify the result. Its just that much he can do. Its time our management did wake up and do something about the situation. And they are waking up.

It all started with signing of Thiago Silva. His performances haven't impressed me. He has the quality, but not an abundance of it. He can be worked on. A few tweaks and some much needed experience, and we have a top class defender. What more, he is only 24. Post this we were linked with a host of defenders. Marcos Rossi, Carrozeiri, Bovo, Lucio, Pannucci, Kjaer, Baiva and many many more. The names wont ring a bell, so I wont confound you more. I shall however dwell on the more popular names, and a few do come to my mind now. Agger. Daniel Agger. A left footed defender, who is physical, has a decent head, and plays for Liverpool FC. Can come for as low as 8 million euros. Very impressive CV. But he has found himself down the pecking order with Skertel and Carragher being given the thumbs up. Brondy IF is where he originated from and at 6'3'', he is an imposing personality. Someone we must and should consider. He has been a part of this Liverpool set up for awhile and has the necessary experience at such a young age. But should he be the only one? No, most definitely not. You see, Kaladze, Maldini and Nesta will be given the boot (or atleast I hope, obviously in a more respectably fashion than mentioned), and we need 3 high quality replacements. With Perticone returning from Livorno after a glorious season, and Antonini as back up for the flanks, center back should be the priority. Next, a media favorite. Mexes. He has abounding quality, is in his mid twenties and was part of rock solid defense with his counterpart Chivu not too long ago. He has a great understanding of the game. But he severely lacks in pace, and I do think that is an integral part of our search. Two classic occasions when he made a fool of himself, one against Pato and the other when he brought down Van Persie this season. With his beefy physique, quick players will get past him in a flash. Nemanja Vidic, my favorite. I consider him as the ideal CB, internationally. Arguably the best in the world, at 27 and having won almost everything with his club, he has the inevitable experience and hopefully the hunger to try out a new league. Though his arrival to Milan would be like a fairy tale, it could be the highest Milan spent in their history for a defender. And I assure you, it will be more than that 12.5 million euros spent by Liverpool on Skertel. Finally amongst the big boys, is Sergio Ramos. He is considered by many as the perfect heir to Maldini. Yes, he is the best fullback on the planet, but his ability at CB would be questionable. Lets not neglect the 3 digit price tag.

I personally feel that we should sign Agger, and Vidic if possible. If not, Mexes wouldn't be too bad. But the supposed 35 million being quoted by Sensi is a fantasy figure and we could get 2 top class defenders with that kinda money. Who? There are those like Christian Zapata, Canini, Alex Silva, Bruno Alves, Raul Albiol, Alessandro Gamberrini, Ivanovic and Santacrocce. Very good, young and should be given a chance to shine. Milan have become misers and want success. Thats like saying I wont practice but I will still beat Nadal at tennis. Or something like that. But we need to release the funds to relieve ourselves of this mess that we are in.Hence Vidic? Nothing like it. If not, then we do, and definitely do need atleast 2 highly rated defenders for the new season. And I am not counting Thiago Silva here.

AC Milan 3 Atalanta 0

AC Milan 3 Atalanta 0

Atalanta are a very good team. I need to start by informing you so, as I am not sure many of you have heard much about this team. Luca Cigarini and Sergio Floccari who are iconic for this club, are pivotal for the future of Italian Football. Luigi Del Neri, their coach, is one of the finest coaches in the league. The club is 102 years old. So we weren't playing against some mediocre opposition And on the face of it, in the last 6 games, we have won 2, lost 2 and drawn 2. So this hasn't been the best period of form for the Milanese based club.

Milan took the lead in the 7th minute, as Inzaghi scored from a Jankulovski cross. Prior to this cross, Pato was in an offside position and had gone for the ball, so this goal was a result of some poor refereeing. Jaime Valdes almost got the scores back on level terms before Flamini intervened. This Chilean international is one of the most under-rated prospects in Italy. Pato was in the thick of the action, had quite a few chances. Beckam's long balls were always threatening. Bellini made Abbiati get into the action with a dangerous low shot. Abbiati has been one of the revelations of the league this season, and has duly repayed the trust of his coach and club. 3 minutes later, Jankulovski made the Atalanta keeper work after some good work from Pato. Even in the absence of our superstars, we were looking deadly and menacing. Just before the break, Plasmati tried to bring the game on level terms, but his header was tipped away safely by Abbiati. Without Floccari in attack, Atalanta weren't looking as dangerous and our defense seemed up to every challenge.

The duel between Consigli and Pato was interesting to watch and the keeper was winning it hands down. 63d minute, the Oribici had an unusual chance, when Ferreira Pinto got past Zambrotta to only shoot into the side netting. 71st minute, the game was all but over when Pato scooped the ball over the defense to find Inzaghi who turned around the keeper to slot the ball into the open net. The veteran poacher found his hat trick not much later. Some good pass-play between Jankulovski and Zambrotta, found Inzaghi facing a gaping net with the ball at his feet. Inzaghi did apply the finishing touch to all 3 goals, but these were only possible due to some concrete team effort. The La Dea continued to push forth in search of a consolation goal, but in the 84th minute it was the home side that was presented with a golden opportunity to make it 4-0, but Pato blew it. He wasn't meant to share the spotlight with Inzaghi today. Vuidez was brought on to replace Beckam, and his Serie A debut lasted for 1 second! Prior to this, Shevchenko was brought on to relieve the hero of the afternoon. The Ukrainian was visibly very disappointed as he was being given so little time to prove himself. His time for redemption has not yet come, and I doubt it ever will.

This was a distinguished performance by the il Diavolo without the assistance of the long list of players, who were keeping the medics busy. This wasn't a second string side, but only a few fans would have predicted this scoreline. A good friend of mine, who epitomizes knowledge of this great club, initially thought that Milan would lose. Hopefully it will re-instill some confidence in him, as it has in me.

Video Highlights - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLOZcqNCtCI&eurl

Goalscorers -
AC Milan - Inzaghi (7'. 71', 74')
Atalanta - /

Al Sadd 1 AC Milan 2

Al Sadd 1 Milan 2

AC Milan found themselves in Qatar to play a 'lucrative friendly'. Money is all that's been on the minds of the management, with Berlusconi stating that he wants to reduce the wage bills of the club to 90m euros. Juve spend 115m euros and Inter 120m euros. That should tell you in what direction this club is heading. However lets keep that topic for another day, and lets focus on this friendly between one of the biggest clubs in the world and a club in the middle of nowhere.

Ancelloti put out a traditional English formation. 4-4-2. Jankulovski has been playing further up the field and was now in the wings with Beckham handling the right side of the formation. 27 minutes into the game, and a high quality pass from Emerson found Shevchenko who unselfishly laid the ball to Pato who finished in a typical poacher style. Some usual horrendous defending resulted in the home side equalising, as a lopped ball into the box left all the defenders for dead, and Gholam placed it past Abbiati. Just a minute later, a piece of great skill and understanding resulted in Antonini scoring one of his rare goals. He combined fantastically with Jankulovski on this occasion It was a goal of supreme quality, Barcelona style. Ancelloti was bold enough to make quite a few changes. Vuidez, Darmian and Mattioni came on, along with Pirlo, Dida, Inzaghi, Senderos and Zambrotta. Speaking of Senderos, he produced a fantastic near goal-line clearance after Dida made a mess of an easy save. Inzaghi also scored, but it was ruled out for offside. Pato had that chance, but Inzaghi simply had to put his foot in there. Sometimes this Italian baffles me. Al Sadd continued to try their luck from long range but Dida seemed up to the task. It ended with a morale boosting win for Milan

Yes, this was a morale boosting win for AC Milan, but nothing more. Maybe this game was necessary, maybe it wasn't. But what id did show is that Milan's squad is not as thin as Ancelloti wants the world to believe. He simple lacks the boldness that Ferguson or Guardiola have, to play the youngsters in case of injury to the main team players. Instead throughout the season, he has been playing the Favalli's, the Ambrosini's and the Seedorf's when there are better replacements in this very squad. I sincerely hope to see more of Antonini, Cardaccio, Vuidez, Mattioni, Darmian and possibly Albertazzi in the first team in the near future. And mind you, Ancelloti, not just for friendlies.

Video Highlights - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNu1e8J2xkg&eurl

Goalscorers -
Al Sadd -Gholam (37')
AC Milan - Pato (28'), Antonini (38')

Sampdoria 2 AC Milan 1

Sampdoria 2 AC Milan 1

'Such a shame' sighed Berlusconi Sr from Brussels. As I read that, I felt something good was to come. But then the man goes on to blame the results on the long list of injuries in the squad, commenting how different things would have been if the first team was fit. What list? A list of 32 year olds, who barely can move in a fast paced game that football has become today? Kaka, a player who spends his time outs with medics? Nesta, Borrielo, Gattuso - who were ruled out for the rest of season, and Milan did nothing in the winter to replace them. Whose to blame? Its not only the injuries old man, definitely not only the injuries.

After having been shown the door in the most humiliating fashion, Milan focussed their energies on securing an automatic qualification berth in the Champions League for next season. The road to Europe started this weekend at the Stadio Ferraris. Ancelloti went ahead with 4-4-1-1 formation. Game in the 7th minute had a controversial moment, when Pato was down injured, and Cassano held up play. But Flamini stole the ball, fed it to Seedorf who made the keeper work. Sampdoria were furious with Milan. Cassano reacted by going through the Milan defense with a blazing run, before bringing out a world class save from Abbiati. Pato was Milan's liveliest player, but his team on the contrary were quite static and dead. 28 minutes into the game, and alarm bells went ringing in the Sampdoria camp, as Flamini long range shot flashed past the post. Cassano headed the ball from a corner, and the ball crossed the line. Goal to Sampdoria, with Milan claiming it was a controversial goal. Seedorf and Pato tried to get their team back into the game, but Lucchini was simply unbeatable. If I am not mistaken, this is the same guy who was sent off the last time we played Sampdoria this season. This bloke was destined to have a great game.

4-3-1-2, a change that Ancelloti made, was greeted with cheer in response. Inzaghi on for Antonini. Zambrotta tracked back to save the Rossoneri from early disaster as he tackled Pazzini. However the former Viola hitman, did make it 2 for his side, as he exposed Bonera's great defensive skills, before blasting past Abbiati into the top corner. 40 minutes to go, and it dint seem like Blucerchiati were done humiliating the Via Turati outfit. Castellazi dealt with Flamini and Inzaghi like he was playing against the reserve team strikers. Cassano was dealing with Milan like it was a circus, and his tricks and gameplay was beyond Milan's ability to handle. His cutback for Pazzini should have been 3-0 for the homeside. 20 minutes left and Seedorf's disappointing shot showed how dispirited the team was. 1o minutes from time, and Pato perfectly headed home a goal from a wonderful cross from Favalli. Emerson scored a minute later from a header but the goal was ruled offside. Inzaghi volleyed wide, summarising his team's display for the day, and Sampdoria continue their unbeaten run.

The defeat is down to Ancelloti, and his outstanding team selection. Lets not forget the centre back pairing of Bonera and Senderos. I wonder, has any giant in Europe, in its history, had a centre back pairing this weak. Sampdoria thrashed this pairing throughout the game, and any Milan fan would have felt absolute disgrace at how these players were getting toyed around. Now coming to Ancelloti, which coach on the planet will replace Jankulovski with Favalli and Beckham with Emerson when his team is 2-0 down. Utter Calcio Comedy! But the hero is 'Talentino'. He scored one, and set up the other. The bad boy of Italian football should be playing for one of the big boys. Juve, are you listening?

Video Highlights - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15_iuE_pr0M&eurl

Goalscorers -
Sampdoria - Cassano (32'), Pazzini (50')
Milan - Pato (80')