Inter Milan At A Crossroads

Jose Mourinho, the mercurial manager had a very successful run with Chelsea and when he moved to Inter Milan, he had inherited a veteran laden team led by Patrick Vieira, he still falls short of expectations.

He is the highest paid manager in the game today but he has been able only able to match the accomplishments of his predecessor Roberto Mancini. There are differences though as his current lead of ten points over their nearest competitor with still six games to go. It has been a relatively easy Italian championship compared to the ones won by the previous manager of the team.

There also were the positives, the teenage stars Davide Santon and Mario Balotelli and the negatives, the transfers of duds like Ricardo Quaresma and Mancini. But they are out of Champion’s League contention with terrible losses to Panathinaikos at home and a draw by Anorthosis of Cyprus. The clock is ticking for Mourinho works his magic as his window would be closing soon.

Juventus To Play Next Game in Closed Doors

The racist chanting against Inter Milan’s Mario Balotelli has prompted Serie A to have the next Juventus game behind closed doors. The young striker scored first in the match between Inter Milan and Juventus but chants of “a black Italian does not exist” from the Juventus supporters and racist songs moved officials to play one game behind closed doors.

Juventus, who is set to play Lazio for the Italian Cup semifinals match said they would appeal the decision for their next home game with Lecce on May 3. Racist abuse happens in Italian soccer and fines are meted out for them but the gravity of the incident against Inter Milan has prompted a sterner penalty on the home side of the racist fans. The decision on the one game without fans in the stands was decided upon as the abuse was “deplorable and could not be excused as sporting passion”. This is in line with the current efforts of football authorities to curb hooligan violence and upgrade its status as it missed out on hosting Euro 2012 due to the soccer violence.

Lazio Sends Lecce to Relegation

Lazio was in search of a victory after a losing skid in the last month. Lecce on the other hand was treading relegation as it trailed by a measly three points. To help in their cause, Lazio was debuting Christian Ledesma back from the disabled list.
Lazio scored in the 10th minute with a strong volley from Pasquale Foggia from an assist by Lichsteiner which went home into the net. In the 50th minute the away side took a commanding two nil lead when Aleksander Kolarov struck the ball to the top right corner of the goal with the keeper unable to block the shot in time. Lecce offered a feeble response to the onslaught and was even a man down on the final minutes after Lecce’s Cacia was brought off the field after a heavy challenge. As the referee blew the final whistle, Lazio celebrated as if a monkey had been taken off their backs while the dejected home side slipped further into contention not for the league standings but to relegation come next season.

Balotelli’s Endgame Wins for Inter

Mario Balotelli came in as a substitute and helped his Italian club side Inter Milan a two goals to one win over Bologna. This widens their lead to twelve points in the standings in the Serie A.
It was an eventful first half for both sides with shots at goal effectively repulsed by their respective keepers. But in the 57th minute, Esteban Cambiasso took a shot from within the box from a Maicon corner kick to score for Inter. On the 80th minute, Miguel Britos levelled the score with a header into the far corner of the Inter Milan goal.
Jose Mourinho, the Inter Milan manager then tapped the Italian Balotelli to replace Adriano on the pitch for more scoring options which proved to be a masterful move as the striker’s first touch of the ball resulted in a goal by a curling free kick just off the edge of the box over the penalty area and into the Bologna goal. Inter had better chances at goal with attempts from Ibrahimovic, Muntari and Santon but great goalkeeping by Bologna’s Antonioli kept the Inter squad at bay.

AS Roma Sneaks Past Siena

The game played by AS Roma lacked the usual attacking and aggressive style of play but they still managed to sneak past Siena one goal to nil at home. This was courtesy of Rodrigo Taddei’s goal at the 73rd minute as he rebounded an uncleared free kick by team mate David Pizarro into the Siena net. The performance viewed by many as lacklustre compared to the calibre of the team. The next one would be an away match at Arsenal and the Italian club side would be without Daniele de Rossi and Simone Perrotta as they are suspended for the next match.
Injuries may also play a factor in the next few matches as Philippe Mexes, the heart of the AS Roma defense went down with an apparent shoulder injury. He is still to undergo tests to see the extent of the damage.
Before the Brazilian was able to score, there were attempts made by Julio Baptista with two attempts at goal on both sides of halftime. The lead could have been extended but Vincenzo Montella’s close range header was blocked by Siena goalkeeper Curci.

AC Milan Ups the Ante on Beckham

Britain’s most read tabloid, The News of the World has reported recently that AC Milan has offered David Beckham new terms for an eighteen month contract with the amount unstipulated in its continued effort to keep the English midfielder in its fold.

The 33-year-old footballer has been playing for the Milanese club as he was loaned by his current club side MLS LA Galaxy. The end of that loan deal has come and passed and LA Galaxy is expecting the return of the star as it opens its season on March 9. During the loan, Beckham impressed many as to his form as he can still play at the top-notch levels of football and has become a vital cog in the AC Milan offence.

This has emboldened AC Milan to sign the former English captain to play for AC Milan in its Serie A matches. This has not been taken well by LA Galaxy, Beckham’s current owners. They have rejected a previous offer made for the buy out of the hundred plus million dollar contract Beckham signed a couple of years back. This in turn fuelled the desire of the Italian club side to sign the player.

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