Italian SuperCup 2011 – Inter v AC Milan Preview

Here we are just days before Inter take on AC Milan in the 2011 Italian Super Cup at the Bird’s Nest Stadium in Beijing. The match, which will be shown live on RaiUno in Italy, kicks off at 20:00 local time (14:00 CET) on Saturday 6 August or for those like me that live outside of Italy you can find live streams of the match online at FreeFootball.org or at Free Live Sports TV. With the Derby della Madonnina in Serie A not coming till the 18th week (Jan 15th 2012), i’m thankful for this years Supercup being against our cross town rivals, even though it won’t be played at the Meazza, as that is a long time to have to wait for one of the highlights of the Calcio calender.

A few people have asked me whether I think the atmosphere during the match will be as intense as a normal Derby and I would have to say that I don’t see why it wouldn’t be, there have been rumours over the last few weeks that the Curva Nord and the Curva Sud won’t be making the trip to China, which in my opinion would be a shame, but even so judging by the welcome Inter received upon arrival in China i’d say there’s no danger of there not being a great atmosphere for the event.

Roma v Inter Coppa Italia Semi Final Leg 1 Preview

The Coppa Italia semi final 1st leg against Roma is tonight and the reality of the situation is that this is Inter’s last chance of silverware this season (Not including the Supercup & World cup) unless a miracle occurs in the Scudetto.  So what are our chances of beating Roma across the two legs?  Well we’ve been really out of form since our defeat in the derby which isn’t being helped by the fact Leonardo doesn’t see anything wrong with how his tactics are affecting the team, there are rumours going around that tonight is Leo’s last chance and Baresi is waiting to take over until the end of the season if he does get the boot, but i’m not going to go on about Leo anymore as i don’t like to be negative about anything to do with my beloved Inter.  The important thing is that Inter perform without dwelling on recent bad results and Roma have had a bad season too sitting down in 6th just 1 point above Juve, so on that Inter hasn’t had that bad a season really! It also means we have got a very good chance of knocking them out of the cup, especially as we have got Maicon back in the squad the bad news though is that Eto’o is out for tonights match with a foot injury, hopefully though this will give Milito & Pazzini a chance to get the goals and be Nerazzurri’s heroes tonight.

Squad selection

Leonardo has called up 22 Nerazzurri for Roma v Inter, semi-final first leg of the Coppa Italia 2010/11 scheduled for tomorrow, Tuesday 19 April, at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome (kick-off 20:45 and live on Rai Uno).

Goalkeepers:

1 Julio Cesar, 12 Luca Castellazzi, 21 Paolo Orlandoni;

Defenders:

4 Javier Zanetti, 6 Lucio, 13 Maicon, 15 Andrea Ranocchia, 23 Marco Materazzi, 26 Cristian Chivu, 37 Marco Davide Faraoni, 55 Yuto Nagatomo;

Midfielders:

5 Dejan Stankovic, 8 Thiago Motta, 10 Wesley Sneijder, 14 Houssine Kharja, 17 MacDonald Mariga, 19 Esteban Cambiasso, 20 Joel Obi, 29 Philippe Coutinho;

Forwards:

7 Giampaolo Pazzini, 22 Diego Milito, 27 Goran Pandev.

Press conference

At the time of writing this there is no press conference interviews published on Inter’s website so i can’t put them on here yet, but as soon as they appear i shall include them on here.  Until then you’ll have to make do with an Interview with Dejan Stankovic.

Dejan Stankovic

Dejan Stankovic was interviewed for Inter Channel’s Zona Mista programme. You can read his words here on inter.it.

Dejan, you’ve been through some good and some bad times with Inter, and this is one of those moments when the ball doesn’t seem to be running for you. Do you think that some of it is just down to chance?

“Yes, there is an element of bad luck in the negative period we’ve been through in the last two weeks. We can’t deny that it’s a difficult moment but we have plenty of experience; this group of players has seen a lot, both wonderful moments and very difficult moments, and sooner or later you come through them. The main thing is that we stick together and remember how good this group is and what we have achieved. We can’t hide anything but if we’re committed we can get out of the rut and achieve the goals we still have. As long as it’s still mathematically possible, anything can happen, though I’ve always been realistic in life. It’s very difficult for us to stay in the hunt for the Scudetto but we mustn’t lose out on Champions League qualification, which is crucial for this club, for our fans and for us players. We also have two games against Roma and a possible cup final. A team that is so used to winning as we are has to bring a trophy home; raising a cup is important to us.”

The Coppa Italia tie between Roma and Inter has been dubbed as “the semi-final of the frustrated”, but perhaps lots of people have forgotten that the Nerazzurri have already won two competitions this season…

“There were many people who couldn’t wait to let out everything they had been storing up for the last five years. Inter have won everything there is to win at club level in the last five years so it’s normal that we should be criticised now, just as we have to accept it, get our heads down and push on. I must say that I’m very proud. Even in the difficult times I’ve always said I am proud to be wearing this shirt and to have these fans who back us and tolerate us, because what they are doing is extraordinary. I’m really very proud to have a set of fans like that.”

How much desire and strength is left in this team to achieve the targets that remain?

“It’s not easy because we put so much into closing the gap from January up until two weeks ago. It was a minor miracle and sooner or later there’s a price to pay for that. It’s a shame it happened right at the key stage of the season but that’s football. In situations like this you get tired physically and mentally. You have to work hard in your head, trying to remember the good times, the great games, the moments of magic and move on without letting it all get to you. It is hard but we can do it. We have to find that energy from somewhere; I’m not sure from where but, as Zanetti said, we have to put some more petrol in the tank.”

Is Leonardo helping you in that?

“If you start playing again immediately, you don’t have time to think about what happened. Leonardo is trying to keep us calm and he knows what it’s about because he was a player too. As he told us on the pitch in Parma, we have to play without panicking because sooner or later the moment will pass. Hopefully starting from tomorrow.”

My Prediction

For this prediction i’m going to ignore the fact we’ve been terrible for a few weeks and keep my faith in the Nerazzurri to do what is needed to progress to the final with a 2-3 win for Inter tonight.

AC Milan v Inter Preview

Well here we are on the eve of the Milan derby after the International break which saw 13 Nerazzurri players representing their countries. As you know the derby is always an important match for both Milanese teams but this one is set to be extra special as a win for the Nerazzurri will put them a point above Milan with only seven games remaining in the season. Over the last month many have tryed to tell us that the result of this match won’t be decisive to the race for the Scudetto, this i feel has been said to releive some of the pressure by not putting to much emphasis on needing the result from this match, but we all know that even though it won’t guarantee the title for either side it will give the winning side a major boost and i wouldn’t be suprised if the winner of this match goes on to claim the title.

Squad Selection

Leonardo has named 22 players in his match-day squad for the Serie A 2010/11 Week 31 fixture between AC Milan and Inter, which will be played tomorrow, Saturday 2 April, at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza in Milan’s San Siro district (20:45 kick-off).

Goalkeepers:
1 Julio Cesar, 12 Luca Castellazzi, 21 Paolo Orlandoni;

Defenders:
2 Ivan Cordoba, 4 Javier Zanetti, 13 Maicon, 15 Andrea Ranocchia, 23 Marco Materazzi, 26 Cristian Chivu, 55 Yuto Nagatomo;

Midfielders:
5 Dejan Stankovic, 8 Thiago Motta, 10 Wesley Sneijder, 14 Houssine Kharja, 17 MacDonald Mariga, 19 Esteban Cambiasso, 20 Joel Obi, 29 Philippe Coutinho;

Forwards:
7 Giampaolo Pazzini, 9 Samuel Eto’o, 22 Diego Milito, 27 Goran Pandev.

My predicted line up

It’s great to see Milito back in the squad and i think should take full advantage of that so i predict that Leonardo will play a 4-2-3-1 formation with Julio Cesar obviously in the goal, a defensive line of Maicon, Ranocchia, Chivu & Zanetti, Cambiasso & Motta in the defensive midfield and Eto’o, Sneijder & Pazzini in the forward midfield and Milito spearheading the formation.
It’s a shame Lucio is suspended as he is a vital part of our defense but i feel Ranocchia & Chivu are up to the job anyway.

Leonardo’s Press Conference
“I have lots of different feelings at the moment, on the eve of this derby, but my feelings aren’t the most important thing. I have fond memories of everything that has gone on in my life before now, and I respect the past, but that is only one facet of a fantastic match which is this derby.” That was how Leonardo began as he spoke to journalists in the press room at the Stadio Meazza.

“I do wish I was playing in this game,” Leonardo admitted, “because a coach has a part to play but the game belongs to the players. This isn’t my match, it’s Inter’s match, the players’ match. I’m not seeking revenge.” Asked what reception he expected to be given by the AC Milan fans, Leonardo replied: “As I’ve said, I respect football and everything it represents for people, and I respect others’ opinions. I’m not worried. At the age of 30 I went through a moment when I looked at my life introspectively, when I was caught up in lots of thoughts, but from that moment on I decided I would live this game with joy, and within my own parameters and values. I have my own convictions and I want to live my life with joy. And that includes tomorrow’s game.”
I would expect the Milan fans are going to give Leonardo a hard time during tomorrows match just for the fact that it’s his first derby since his switch to Inter, but given his history with AC i’d imagine he’ll easily take it in his stride.

How have Inter’s preparations for this game gone?
“The players have all lived very different lives over the last two weeks, with so many international games going on, but these players are professionals and I don’t think they are affected much by these things. Naturally there’s a bit of fatigue that we have to deal with,” explained the Nerazzurri coach. He then added that “a derby game goes beyond any sort of tactical consideration, it’s an extraordinary event: we all know each other very well, so I don’t think there are any secrets you can work out or plans you can come up with. Ibrahimovic’s absence? He’s an important player for AC Milan, and a great player, but these are things that can happen.”

“It’s hard to pick out an individual when there are so many top-class players,” was Leonardo’s reply when asked who he thought might prove decisive tomorrow.

For Inter any of our players have the potential to be decisive in these big games but as usual Sneijder & Eto’o are our two main men that Milan will have to watch very closely, though if they concentrate on them two too much Pazzini & Milito will surely punish any mistakes.

He was then asked to comment on the appointment of Nicola Rizzoli as referee: “I never talk about referees after the game so I’m certainly not going to beforehand. For what it’s worth I think he’s a very good referee, but it really makes no difference to me.”
How will Leonardo react, as an ex-AC Milan player, if Inter score? “I’ll react in whatever way feels natural at the time. I feel very much a part of this club and my job is to help the team score goals and win games, so there’s no reason to hold myself back. I don’t know how I will react but I’ll do it freely and I don’t think there’s anything wrong if I feel happy about it.”
Asked to predict the result, Leonardo replied: “It’s hard to say, but we’ll do everything we can to make sure Inter win it, of course. On a psychological level this derby is an energy-drainer and it is important for the league table, but it doesn’t end here so the result won’t be decisive.”
There was an inevitable question about Ganso, the coach’s relationship with the player and the battle with AC Milan for his signature. “I’ve been speaking to Ganso for a while now but it’s not a battle to sign him… What he has to concentrate on now is playing football and recovering properly from a serious injury. I’ve been offering him support over the last year and we’ve built up a relationship, but I don’t know what will happen. And like him, we too have other things to think about at the moment, such as the end of the season.”
And what a climax to the season it’s shaping up to be, after our terrible start with Benitez who’d have thought we’d still be fighting for the treble now, whether or not you like the fact our manager is an ex-Milan player, manager, director the fact remains he has performed miricles with Inter in 2011.

Marco Materazzi
“It’s the biggest match, the match I for one have felt the most intensely over the last ten years, because the local rivalry is really strong and when you’re on that pitch you always want to win it. There’s always that desire to beat the other Milan team.” Marco Materazzi was speaking to Roberto Scarpini in A tu per tu, featured this afternoon during Countdown.

Born in Lecce, an Umbrian in heart and soul and a man who has been all over Italy and beyond, Marco is nonetheless an Inter man to the core because, he explains, “The people here welcomed me and made me an Inter man through and through. They accepted me as a son, a brother, always making me feel one of them. They made me feel important, even in the most difficult times, when I’d done something silly. That’s why I’ve always given everything in derby games over the last ten years.”

How does it feel when you score in a derby match? “It’s a wonderful sensation, you feel an explosion of joy in yourself and the supporters. I can say that the goal I got in the derby [October 28 2006, AC Milan 3-4 Inter] felt like one of the best I’ve ever scored.”

When Materazzi is reminded that, along with Rino Gattuso, he is the player with the most sendings off and bookings in the derby, he explains that “the yellows were probably all deserved; one of the reds I was given because I took my shirt off after I’d been getting stick for six or seven years, so I got sent off for two yellows; the other one was because Flamini punched Adriano in the head and we should have had a penalty, and Morganti [the referee] – with the whole bench on their feet – saw me say ‘When the f*** are you going to blow for it?’ But that was the first time and the last time because I don’t think you’ll see many more sendings off like that.”
If Materazzi has much in common with Gattuso, the same can be said of him and another good friend of his, Francesco Totti, a player who feels derby matches as intensely as Marco. “If we are friends,” says Matrix, “it’s because we both have blood running through our veins, not water. We have always given everything, and in that sense Francesco is as good an example as you can get.
“It would be wrong to think the championship is over if we win the derby,” Materazzi continued. “They are the favourites, they are two points ahead, but we’ll put in our humble shift tomorrow and try to take home the three points.” What kind of derby will it be? A derby with players missing? “I hope it will be the derby of the 22 who take to the field, because the less you notice the ref, the better it means he’s doing his job. It will be a great game if that happens, a great game with a slice of Scudetto resting on it.”

My Prediction
In what is guaranteed to be a hard faught and passionate derby that could go either way i’m going to predict a 2-1 victory for Inter with Sneijder & Pazzini scoring for the Nerazzurri to put us where we belong at the top of the table.

Inter v Lecce preview

Well here we are again ready for another Serie A game, Inter’s week 30 game is at home to Lecce. It’s been a fantastic week for us with our magnificent comeback champions league win against Bayern Munich and Milan’s loss against Palermo will cut their lead down to 2 points if we keep our heads and get the win today. The Derby will turn out to be one of the most important games of the season after all, and to put the cherry on top Milan will be without Ibra & Pato for that game! But for now we’ve got our game with Lecce to deal with then it’s the International break before the derby.

20 man squad

Leonardo has named 20 players in his match-day squad for the Serie A 2010/11 Week 30 fixture against Lecce, which will be played at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza (15:00 kick-off).

Goalkeepers:
1 Julio Cesar, 12 Luca Castellazzi, 21 Paolo Orlandoni;

Defenders:
4 Javier Zanetti, 6 Lucio, 13 Maicon, 23 Marco Materazzi, 26 Cristian Chivu, 55 Yuto Nagatomo;

Midfielders:
5 Dejan Stankovic, 8 Thiago Motta, 10 Wesley Sneijder, 14 Houssine Kharja, 17 MacDonald Mariga, 19 Esteban Cambiasso, 20 Joel Obi, 29 Philippe Coutinho;

Forwards:
7 Giampaolo Pazzini, 9 Samuel Eto’o, 27 Goran Pandev.

There’s no real surprises in the squad this week so my prediction on the formation and line up is a 4-3-1-2 with Cesar, Maicon, Lucio, Materazzi, Nagatomo, Cambiasso, Kharja, Zanetti, Sneijder, Eto’o, Pazzini

Press conference

Leonardo

“I think optimism breeds more optimism and victories breed more victories. Inter are aware of the fact they are in a decisive stage of the season. Lecce have been improving game on game and although they will be without Chevanton and Di Michele tomorrow that doesn’t mean they will change their usual open game. We don’t expect it to be an easy match at all.” On the eve of Inter’s Week 30 match at home to Lecce, Leonardo describes how things stand in the Nerazzurri camp between the fantastic Champions League win over Bayern Munich and tomorrow’s league fixture.

The Nerazzurri go into the game high on the euphoria gained at the Allianz Arena after achieving an important target. Could too much euphoria be a bad thing? “I don’t think it’s a problem. It would have been strange if we hadn’t enjoyed the moment a bit after an amazing win like that. But I think Inter are a very experienced team whose best characteristic is their concentration and ability to understand the moment and what needs to be done. Finding a balance between euphoria and concentration, that’s the key.”

The subject then turns to Milito, who was once more left out of the match-day squad: “Diego has to complete his rehabilitation programme. We’re not rushing him, though he has responded very well. He trained with us in Munich but he’s having a sort of pre-season preparation and he is still two weeks away from completing it. It’s best for him to finish his programme.”

Leonardo was asked how he intends to deal with the fact that players like Eto’o, Pazzini, Lucio and Nagatomo are one booking away from suspension and risk missing the derby. “It’s true that these players are close to a suspension but they were also close when I arrived so I don’t see it as something that should be given special consideration, also because we’re already missing players.” One of those is Andrea Ranocchia: “He won’t be involved,” explained the Nerazzurri coach, “because he’s not fit enough to play. He’s played too many games and done more than he should have in his condition; his knee problem is not serious but he won’t be playing tomorrow.”

The Nyon draw was inevitably another topic on the agenda: “I don’t think there is such a thing as an easy Champions League quarter-final,” stated Leonardo. “Schalke are high on enthusiasm too and are a team that have been built through long-term investments over a number of years. It’s not about being lucky or unlucky. We have to study the side we’ve been drawn against: they’ve done very well in the Bundesliga and have gone far in the Champions League; they have a fantastic goalkeeper and two fantastic players in Raul and Farfan. But we’re talking about Raul when we should be thinking about Corvia…”

When asked for his view on what Josè Mourinho reportedly said about Inter having a clear path to Wembley after drawing Schalke, Leonardo retorted: “I don’t think Mourinho worded it exactly like that because he is a football man and he knows how difficult games can be. We are optimistic based on our own strength, not because of who we will play.” Leonardo then quickly brought things back to the present: “But, I repeat, today I only want to talk about Lecce because I hope this game will be further confirmation that we’re on track, against a side that go out to play football and who will be coming to the San Siro with enthusiasm.”

The coach was also asked about the fact that the derby comes at the end of an international break in which 16 Nerazzurri players will leave to join up with their respective national teams (“not an easy situation and something that will need to be handled wisely”),

Walter Samuel’s fitness (“I hope we might see him back in the side before the end of the season”) and Samuel Eto’o (“I’m not saying this just to motivate him, because he gets himself motivated, but without a shadow of doubt he is one of the best players in the world; just look at what he as done since 2005″).

My Prediction

This game should really be one of the easiest of the season but I think Inter will take it fairly easy so I’m going to go for a 2-0 win for us though if we were going all out for the win I reckon a 5-0 is entirely possible for the Nerazzuri

Location:Milan

Champions League Preview: Bayern Munich v Inter Milan

After Inter’s shock draw against Brescia on Friday i was starting to think the Scudetto was slipping through our fingers, luckily though Bari somehow managed to hold onto a 1-1 draw with AC Milan meaning that we’re still very much in the title race, but for now Inter are concentrating on overcoming the defeat we suffered to Bayern in the last Champions League game, since which the Germans have been in shocking form, so much so that Louis Van Gaal has had his contract terminated from the end of this season. This was fantastic news for Inter approaching the return leg in Munich until Saturday when Bayern re found their form with a 6-0 win over Hamburg meaning that to proceed to the next round we have got quite a challenge on our hands, that being said we beat them 2-0 in the final last year so the possibility of outscoring them remains likely we just need to see the determination from Inter that we had back in Madrid last May, if we can keep hold of that belief then anything is possible for the Nerazzurri including an unprecedented back to back Treble, FINGERS CROSSED!!!

Interviews

Leonardo

“I’ve watched our last few matches and Bayern’s at least three times – you’ve got to study every detail. But every match has its own story, one that depends above all on a team’s form. You have to hit the best form at the right time.” These were Leonardo’s opening words at the press conference on the eve of Bayern Munich v Inter.

“The players are really up for this one,” he went on, “they’re looking forward to the night. It’s always a privilege to play in matches like this, which are like finals, but it’s even better to win them. This is the atmosphere the lads are living through, they know the historical importance of these games.”

“The first leg could have produced a different result, so it would be no surprise if Inter won this one. Tomorrow night we’ll be starting on level terms and I’m optimistic because I know the strength and spirit of this group.”

Leonardo is asked whether he thinks it would be best to plan to hit them on the break. “It’s not a question of best or worst, you should always take the match as it comes, so there’s no set scheme. Bayern have played their last matches with a virtually unchanged team and the same system of play, but we’re a well-drilled outfit too, so we’re optimistic.”

Massimo Moratti

During an interview outside his offices on the eve of this crucial match, Inter president Massimo Moratti answered questions from the press on Inter’s chances against Bayern and his reaction to last weekends league games, here’s what he had to say –

How much do you believe in Inter overturning the deficit against Bayern?
“We believe we can do it, absolutely. Also because we did well in the game in Milan. We made a mistake only in the last minute, but otherwise we were set out well and so I hope we can do the same there – but with the result going our way this time.”

Even if we get the one away goal we can force extra time and give ourselves another 30 minutes to secure the victory, though like everyone else i’m hoping for a straight win in normal time!
What did you tell the players in Appiano Gentile to get them even more motivated?
“There is a much more direct and less official form of dialogue compared to in a conference. I think they understand, they are all mature and with the necessary personal experience to understand what is required.”

Does the draw between AC Milan and Bari give you a further boost for this game too?
“In terms of morale it is better to go there five points behind instead of seven, as it gives us the feeling we are still involved in the title race. What is negative is Friday’s result, slightly diluted by what happened yesterday.”
We were definitely lucky with AC’s result this weekend but we can’t rely on luck to bail us out they need to learn from their mistakes and do what’s necessary to ensure they don’t happen again.

Do you expect to meet Ibrahimovic in the derby?
“I’m sorry for Ibra, but what will be, will be.”

Do you think there might be some strain in the Rossoneri camp? Are they feeling the pressure of having Inter on their heels?
“No, Ibrahimovic’s frustration has nothing to do with that. His was just a reaction, nothing more.”

But it would be strange if Ibrahimovic got to play in the derby, particularly considering what happened to Eto’o and Chivu in similar circumstances…
“You are trying to get me into things that I have no intention of discussing. It will work itself out.”

I’ve just watched the incident they are talking about with Ibra and he should be looking at a 3 match ban the same as Eto’o & Chivu got for their conduct, and if that works to our advantage in the title race then that’s even better, though the likes of Juve & AC Milan always seem to get away with things Inter never could! Maybe that’s because we play fair unlike some, and on that controversial point i’ll get back to the Champions league preview.

Wesley Sneijder

Tomorrow is the big night and, judging by his words and his face, Wesley Sneijder can’t wait. It’s the return leg of the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 and the Dutchman was the player chosen by Leonardo to accompany him in the pre-match press conference. Sneijder speaks in English so that he can express the concepts better, and he makes it clear that he and Inter are up for it: “To win we have to score but it’s a 180-minute tie; we lost the first 90 minutes but we’re capable of winning tomorrow evening. This match represents the cream of the Champions League, one of those games that gets the hairs on the back of your neck up. We’re all focused and convinced we can do it.”

Sneijder didn’t want to comment on Van Gaal’s announced June departure from Bayern Munich (“I’m concentrating on Inter”) but he says he is happy to meet up with friends and Netherlands team-mates. And no one is looking back towards Italy: “At the moment we’re focused on Bayern Munich. We think we can overturn the first-leg result and qualify. Only then will we start thinking about the league and AC Milan.”

Interviewed shortly afterwards on the Allianz Arena pitch by Sky Sport Italia’s Massimiliano Nebuloni, Sneijder admitted that he has never played there before, but underlined that “We are a team and we always play as a team. We don’t depend on anyone in particular. We’re confident because we played well in the first leg. It will be difficult but we’re confident. We’ve got to score. They are ahead but you can’t talk about chances of qualifying in terms of percentages. We just have to score and win. And we believe we will.”

So we’re all set for the match tomorrow, and Inter are showing the absolute commitment and belief that they need to beat Bayern and proceed onto the quarter finals.

Location:Allianz Arena, Munich