Nerrazzuri play hard, physical football with some wonderful touches of
skill and touch to come from behind in the Derby della Madonnina. AC Milan has passages of lovely attacking
play but a refereeing lapse and some awful play from the defenders and ‘keeper
hand Cambiaso the winner.
Sunday at the San Siro, the
magnificent stadium is this week the home of Inter#### onale with AC Milan as
the away team. The Christmas break looms
and a win is more vital for Ancellotti’s side; who are faltering in Serie A. Mancini’s team wants the win to increase
their Serie A lead. The contest is a
historic and hard fought affair.
Mancini manages to pick a world
class side despite his injuries. None of
the starting eleven are Italian. Cesar keeps
goal with a South American back four of Maicon, Samuel, Cordoba and Maxwell, the midfield is mostly
South American with a touch of Romanian class, Zanetti, Chivu, Cambiaso and
Jiminez form a rotating midfield diamond.
Up front Ibrahimovic and Cruz form a potent strike threat; nine goals apiece
in Serie A; the 4 4 2 is more attacking for the home game.
Ancelotti; tired from a long but
fruitful World Club Championship victory in Japan; plays his first Serie A game
since early December. His team has
starts with Italians but has a definite international flair. Dida keeps goal with a back four of Oddo,
Nesta, Kaladze and Maldini. The
Christmas Tree formation sees Gattuso, Pirlo and Ambrosini as the deeper
midfielders, Kaka and Seedorf adding width and Inzaghi providing the goal
threat.
The first Milan thrust forward is a long ball up to
Inzaghi, meat and drink for Samuel.
Seedorf attacks down the left but his cross is sliced awry, then Oddo’s
cross is safely claimed by Cesar.
The game is played at pace, Inter
attacks the flanks switching play almost effortlessly. Maldini shows that experience will often beat
skill, strength and pace as he marshalls
Ibrahimovic and dispossesses him.
The initial tackles are fierce
with Gattuso educating Jiminez as to the intensity of a Milan Derby. Jiminez accepts the lesson then attacks,
initiating a move which see an unmarked Ibrahimovic at the back post show great
technique and poor aim as his powerful volley sails high.
Jiminez is working hard and shows
some nice touches with Ibrahimovic and Maxwell on the left then he combines
with Chivu on the same side.
Milan is being forced on the back foot but
keep trying to play their own possession football in the middle of the
park. This almost works when a good
Seedorf ball over the top almost finds Inzaghi who had beaten Cordoba.
Samuel defends the run of Kaka
well but the Brazilian has yet to get into the game.
Milan is starting to win the midfield battle despite
the tightness and tough harrying football Inter are employing. Another neat through ball bisects Inter,
forcing Samuel to haul down Inzaghi on the edge of the area. From twenty yards out Pirlo is very good and
with Ambrosini bossing the wall finds the top corner with Cesar rooted to the
spot.
PIRLO - DOING WHAT HE DOES BEST!
Ibrahimovic intercepts a poor
Kaladze forward pass and plays in Cruz on the left, the cross dips in to the
box and Dida gets a hand to it to take it away from Chivu, Jiminez is free at
the back post and his fierce shot comes off the face of the crossbar. The Chilean slips when under pressure from
Pirlo in the Milan
area, Morganti isn’t interested.
The game is tight and combative
with Inter exploding into action when they break forward. Milan’s
game is less frenetic and more subtle.
Gattuso gets an almost inevitable
yellow. The free kick is deep on the
Inter right and is well delivered forcing Seedorf to concede the corner,
Maldini clears another good Inter delivery then the next ball is well met by
Milan, the Rossonerri break but Zanetti has the pace and skill to track back and
deny Kaka with a good, well timed challenge.
The tough tackling and harrying
continues from both sides as the play spends more time in the congested
midfield. Inter get a good chance with a
central free kick which Chivu manages to get over the wall, Dida is well placed
for an easy catch.
Jiminez is denied a killer
through ball to Cruz by a great Ambrosini block, Milan comes away with the ball
and Kaka has time and space to run at Samuel, the defender is turned inside out
so much by the pace and trickery of the Brazilian that he gets injured, a last
ditch interception by Cambiaso sees Kaka flop over in the box, Morganti
probably gets the decision right as he waves play on.
Inter reshuffle a little while
Samuel gets treatment. They are a team
driven and well organized and Ibrahimovic evades the attention of three Milan
defenders to poke the ball to Cambiaso on the right the Argentinean cuts the
ball across for his countryman Cruz who brushes aside the Milan challenges to
fire in a near post shot, Dida gets a hand to it but can’t stop the shot,
pretty poor to be beaten that easily at the near post.
The equalizer comes whilst Inter
were down to ten men, Materazzi comes on as a substitute to make eleven.
Jiminez continues to cause
trouble and Kaladze gets away with a handball to end a Chilean inspired
attack. The Nerrazzurri are turning up
the pace of the game once more.
YOUNG CHILEAN TALENT!
The ex Blue, Materazzi hasn’t
found the pace of the game and of his first three tackles on Kaka two are
fouls, one earning the big defender a card.
The Inter pressure is patient and
they spread the play from left to right before coming inside and finding Zanetti,
the veteran’s shot is wide. Jiminez is
caught by Ambrosini whilst pulling the trigger and Ibrahimovic’s daisy cutter
free kick doesn’t beat Dida.
Ancelotti freshens things up at
the half with the introduction of the receding Emerson and his last fit
striker, Gilardino. Gattuso and Inzaghi
retire tired and hurt.
Inter start as they left off,
fast and furiously. Milan keeps playing their way and gets the
first of the second half chances.
Maldini is at the end of a flowing passage of play with a great near
post cross, Gilardino’s stooping header finds the ball but it flies wide.
Milan create a good opportunity
again, Kaka’s play starting the move, the Brazilian cuts a perfectly weighted
ball inside and Pirlo decides to do a fancy stepover instead of a netbusting
shot, with no one behind him; Emerson having pulled to the back post the chance
goes begging and Inter clear.
Kaka is seeing more ball in the
game and that is helping Milan
threaten their cross city rivals.
The pressure is relived with some
effort, skill and good Inter possession which ends with poor Chivu shot to
allow Milan to
come out again.
Serginho comes on for a disappointed
Seedorf and his impact is instant, he takes advantage of the tiredness of
Maicon on the Inter right, twice he gets forward on the flanks and delivers
good, telling crosses.
Milan possession is broken up with a Cambiaso
tug on Pirlo’s shorts, the Argentinean pushes forward and finds Cruz on the
left, his countryman cuts the ball back across the area and Maldini is in
position to make an easy clearance. The
veteran’s header is weak and poor and Cambiaso takes advantage with a shot,
Dida is flummoxed and let’s the shot through his legs.
HOW TO CELBRATE A WINNING GOAL!
SO GOOD TODAY HIS HAIR FELL OUT!
From then on in Inter
dominate. The game gets stretched at
times but never had the cut and thrust of the early exchanges with scrappiness
creeping in from both sides.
Gilardino and Ambrosini can’t
combine to beat Cesar in the six yard box.
Nesta shows his skill with a
wonderful marshalling of Ibrahimovic.
Ibrahimovic moves well for a big
man with a delightful cut back but his shot goes wide.
Cordoba beats Gilardino to a good Oddo cross
from deep.
Emerson dallies, is robbed by
Pele but the attempted lob is overcooked.
Cesar parries one wide from a
fierce Kaka shot; Maicon’s clearance to his countryman was tired.
Serginho delivers a succulent
ball into the six yard box and with the Inter defence beaten Ambrosini scuffs
it woefully wide.
Mancini’s team are deceptively
good, they showed strength to come back from behind but looked ragged at
times. They have an ability to dominate
sides and showed this today. A restful
Christmas will; perhaps; sort out a few knocks and leave the team fresh and
looking for more wins.
Ancelotti’s problems mount with a
performance littered with some shoddy play and only fitfully excellent. With the lead Milan should be at their best but they were
unmanned by the pace, power and application of Inter. A bitter derby defeat which leaves the
Rossoneri pretty much out of the Scudetto race.
Not picked as the Italian
refereeing representative for Euro 08 the experienced man in the middle showed
his credentials in a hotly contested game.
He officiated tough early on and
set the tone with a ‘play on’ type mentality.
He brooked no dissent or shirt pulling and was maybe unsighted for the
blatant tug that led to the second Inter goal.
Stern yet fair but maybe his legs gave the Euro spot to Rossetti, twice
Morganti needed treatment.
