AC Milan - Inter (pre-game comments)

Originally Posted by dabdob

1989 - 2004 and something to do with only one UEFA Cup and lots of Tim trophies. Name that team!

Once a merda, always a merda! Inter Merda, here we come

Good one.
I think you forgot the hundreds of millions of dollars wasted. I have read that Moratti had spent, and that was 2-3 years before, over 400 million dollars trying to make a champion out of a merda. Go figure.

Originally Posted by kenny_shev

Dont underestimate Inter this season though. A 5-1 win away to Valencia is something that doesnt come by that often. But again Milan always play well against big teams ( specially against our cousins) . Sheva was taken out early in the Barca game so he was given a deserved rest to be fresh again for the derby. I hope to see Kaka & Sheva rip their defense apart...Forza Milan !!!

Nope. Sheva was taken out in the 88th minute, which is equilvalent to playing a full match. He was subbed not to be rested for the derby but to receive a standing ovation from the San Siro crowd.

It's without doubt after the Barca game that Stam should partner Nesta in central defence. Stam was simply a man mountain against Barca! The Stam-Nesta partnership looks so much better defensively, especially when Milan will be facing a red-hot Adriano. (It'll also spare Maldini from all the abuse if he gets shredded by the Brazilian at the derby )

A big footballing weekend ahead in Europe indeed:
In España, there is the titanic clash of the Galacticos vs the Champions as Los Merengues take on Los Ches.

In England, expect fireworks in the explosive encounter between the Red Devils and the Gunners.

And of course, in Italia there is the tale of a city; the family feud between the 2 cousins. That's right! It's derby time as the Rossonero heroes of Milano take on their pathetic Nerazzurro counterparts.

I can't wait... Bring them on!!

haha...yea pathetic counterpart... this wkend is going to b VERY busy..switching from channels to channels man... Lovely!!

Originally Posted by zlatanov

No, I agree with Sheva7 - we are a team and they are just one player with a bunch of fill-ups lingering around.

Yes! and thats why Sheva can face them all by himself

Originally Posted by zlatanov

Good one.
I think you forgot the hundreds of millions of dollars wasted. I have read that Moratti had spent, and that was 2-3 years before, over 400 million dollars trying to make a champion out of a merda. Go figure.

I am begining to suspect that Moratti is using Inter for Money laundry activities .

haha Tim trohpy, amsterdam and 4th in Serie A i like it

Milan vs Inter is HUGE, both teams started the season in scratchy form but IMO they are firing now. Milan at their best will be too good, so hopefully we can be. I believe Carlo will field an unchanged line up against Inter.......Pirlo needs to improve his concentration and carelessness while Maldini musnt get dragge in to th centre (i understand he has been playing in the centre for the last 10 years but hes an 18 year professional) and Kaka needs to get back to his brilliant best - apart from those 3 everyone else was flawless

Huge games all round this week.....as Ilgenio said.

Madrid 2vs1 Valencia
Man Utd 1vs1 Arsenal
Milan 2vs0 Inter

MIlan vs Inter = Sheva vs Adriano ?
Ha..ha..
Any one of you forget the killer instinct of vieri.
Vieri with juve's jersey ever made milan ashamed with 6-1 (i think)
Vieri still a monster for maldini. I hope maldini dont take baresi position in 6-1 match.
For safely, better to put stam in the centre and maldini in the full back.
3 pts will be ours this weekend from il derby della madonnina

WIth the coming Derby, I think that match will be bigger than that of the Barc-Milan CL yesterday. Inter has been exploding with goals over the last three weeks, but Milan's Defence is drowning the offence of many teams. Milan will need to make space up front, and have some help in scoring from the likes of Kaka, and possibly Seedorf. Milan is always tough at the big matches, as everyone seems to state over and over in thethread, which is more than accurate. I will listen, but not see that match, over the net. I hope those who have the oppurtunity to veiw will share thier thoughts when it is all over, and Milan has once again walked away with the win.

forza Milan

Um no..I wouldn't say that they're a 1 man team.

http://www.milanfollia.com/contro_in...magine_big.jpg

http://www.milanfollia.com/contro_in...magine_big.jpg

http://www.milanfollia.com/contro_in...magine_big.jpg


timeless classics..thanks to my friend stefano casaburi, a genious

Originally Posted by zlatanov

No, I agree with Sheva7 - we are a team and they are just one player with a bunch of fill-ups lingering around.

LMAO, Adriano is God-like but he's not the only offensive weapon we have. Take away Sheva from your team and you're left with Tomasson and Pippo!

Caca is good but he can't carry the workload that Sheva can.

Stankovic, VDM and Veron are gonna make a mockery of your midfield.

Dear Merda,
your midfield is made up of used-to-bes like Davids and Veron and poor VDM. The only midfielder that could cause us trouble (read capable of something at all) is Stankovic.
Yes, I agree Adriano is a magnificent player, and my condolences to him for he is about to become yet another one of football's greats to waste his tallent at the wrong side of Milano, but if he is cut-off by Milan's defence and midfield from his pathetic Inter buddies, he can't do much by himself, can he?
Don't let this 5-1 vs Valencia illude you - they are a team going through a dificult period plus sometimes, as Mancio himself said, games just take a funny course and everything goes right for one team and wrong for the other. But games like that are very very rare for example Milan-Lazio from the Coppa Italia last year - they did beat us by scoring 4 goals but did that mean they were the best team in Italy or that they could beat Roma twice for the Serie A?
Don't be fooled by a single result for you will be let down in the end.

Originally Posted by AC_Merda

LMAO, Adriano is God-like but he's not the only offensive weapon we have. Take away Sheva from your team and you're left with Tomasson and Pippo!

Caca is good but he can't carry the workload that Sheva can.

Stankovic, VDM and Veron are gonna make a mockery of your midfield.

why do we still have this clown around? shouldn't we have kicked him out already? supporters of other teams are always welcomed in this place, but this clown with this profanatory username and signiture?? please throw him out already!

Derby Della Madonnina: Number 258



AC Milan Vs. Internazionale FC

Stadio San Siro, Milan - ITALIA



-> Sunday (October 24, 2004)

-> Kick-off -> 19:45 (UK Time): British Eurosport

(This information is for Kat )


PREVIEW
======

The spectacle that is the MILAN DERBY couldn't have come at a better time. It comes right off the back of Matchday 3 that will be memorable for Italian clubs stamping their authority in the UCL defeating high profile opposition from the continent.

Now comes the time that will see the strongest football city in the world at the moment clash in a high profile Serie A clash that will bring Milano to a grinding halt on a cool Sunday night!

Milan play Inter in an attempt to remain within touching distance on Don Fabio's runaway leaders Juventus FC of Turin. The sold-out San Siro will be the venue for the biggest Serie A clash of the season so far!


M I L A N

Milan is getting better as the season progresses. The leakage of goals that looked threatening has been tamed for the moment with back to back clean sheets against minnow Cagliari and giants Barcelona. The team is extremely well disciplined and organized and is playing together with purpose. It looks like a team with all the members with the exact same aim.

Right now Milan is the best bet for a side that can hang on to its lead. No team barring Chelsea and/or Juve can raise their hands and say that they can sustain pressure like Milan can. It is IDEAL preparation for pressure situations as it requires great levels of concentration to remain focused the entire length of a game.

Milan is still not at a desired level of play. Far from it but every game small steps are being taken for the ideal momentum build-up. Yet under these circumstances the results are coming which can only be a good sign if nothing more.


I N T E R

New look Inter side started off with bumps and obstacles but is getting into flow now. Inter got a 3-1 win vs. Udinese last weekend and destroyed Valencia in ruthless fashion. Inter got only their 4th ever win in Spain and took large strides to rectifying that weak record. A positive step for Inter has been Vieri getting in on the goal scoring act by getting two in two games. The midfield is contributing regularly now in the goals and Inter is moving towards becoming a UNIT rather than individuals playing in a team. It wouldn't be complete without mentioning a certain individual who is responsible for this change and he isn't the coach.

The 'Brasilian BeasT' is taking the world by storm and moving on the pitch like an Earth-Mover with 20ft wheels except that this particular Earth-Mover has a V12 engine with not only 'power' but 'speed' .

Inter has been scoring a goal every game and will want to continue that trend in this high profile encounter that is very important for both sides.


Probable Starting Line-Up(s)
=====================

---------------
---> Milan <---
---------------



--------------------Dida---------------------
--
--Cafu-------Nesta------Stam-----Maldini----
--
-------------------Pirlo----------------------
--
--------Gattuso--------------Seedorf--------
--
-------------------Kaka---------------------
--
----------Inzaghi-------Shevchenko----------


1. The defence did wonders for Milan keeping out the Barcelona attack on the weekend with not much worries except Ronaldinho who was a handful.

2. Inzaghi likes to play on the shoulder of the opponents which is excellent when the run is successful. But he has played football for enough time to realize what a good run is and what a good run isn't. Getting called offside 4 times in one half is bad football and damaging to a potentially very good through pass(es) and goal scoring chance(s).

3. Maldini has had problems shifting back to left back. At least this time he was not caught out of position. Last time he played here he was up field and caught out most often. This time he was there but not placed wide enough. Instead he stood at the edge of the box instead of trying to cut down the cross. I can't blame him as he made the very good transition from LB to CB. The reverse transition is always the difficult one so it will take him time to get back into the LB MODE of thinking when it comes to defending. He is sacrificing for the better of the team after he said he would never play at LB again. Great team man.

4. Midfield problems have been brought up as Barcelona put pressure on Milan in that area. It was two phases in the match. Last 10 mins of the first half and last 20 mins of the match. Other than that Milan didn't look troubled to an extent of pressing the red button. It has to be kept in mind that Rijkaard's Barcelona are no push-overs. Saying that it is not perfect and that game plus the other games of this season have to be used to learn from the mistakes and work with what we have for now. Let January come and then see what can be done to improve the situation.



------------------------
---> Internazionale <---
------------------------

-----------------------Fontana ----------------------
--
--Zanetti-------Burdisso-------Materazzi------Favalli--
--
----------------------Cambiasso----------------------
--
------Van Der Meyde-----------------Stankovic-------
--
------------------------Veron-------------------------
--
-------------------Vieri-------Adriano-----------------


1. The Milan system has worked very well for Inter recently. Putting a man to guard the defence has helped the other teammates to push forward for the goals.

2. Zanetti will most probably start this game as he will be fresh and his crossing will come in handy. Seeing the Barcelona game, Mancini might opt for VDM as his crossing and delivery is good and he could do more damage than Belletti did. The rest of the team will require no changes.

3. This is Mancini's first Milan Derby. A new grand experience for him. Not that it matters here but his record in derbies doesn't exactly spout great results.

4. Inter's midfield men are actively participating in the goal contribution and that is a very good sign for Inter as there are multiple avenues to look for the goals.


Tactics
======

---------------------------
--- Ancelotti [M I L A N] ---
---------------------------

Ancelotti will know that Inter is scoring freely nowadays. They have scored in every game played this season. I think I've written that somewhere else as well. It is a tough week for Milan. We successfully dealt with closing down one Brasilian mid-week and now there is another one to deal with. They are everywhere!

A) Vunerability on set pieces.
B) Improve finishing.
C) Don't switch off in games.

The above three points are the ones I highlighted in my previous preview. Milan has more or less rectified A and C. The finishing can be improved as we need to make more of the offensive finishing.


-------------------------------------------
--- Mancini [I N T E R N A Z I O N A L E] ---
-------------------------------------------

Mancini was top choice for Inter coach. He is their coach now and got his team playing well. Inter's first real test came up mid-week against Valencia and they passed it with flying colours. The other tough game they had was against Werder Bremen in Deutschland and they passed that as well. Then again I did mention in my preview that Inter would perhaps have a better run in Europe than Italy. In the Serie A the performances have been scrappy and not efficient enough. Mancini has to deal with some problems the team has in the Serie A:


A) Conceding goals after scoring repeatedly.
B) Not controlling the games enough.
C) Loss of concentration resulting in the opposition getting back in the game.

Inter's main aim will be to try and bring their European form into Serie A. They have looked slightly different there. Maybe it is just me but I feel that Mancini's Inter out of the Italian outfits is the closest to the English (EPL teams) tempo and therefore are also the best bet against an English side. Maybe it is the reason why Inter has struggled with the start they have had in the Serie A.

The defence is vulnerable so the anchorman will have a job to keep things in shape for Inter.


KEY BATTLES
==========

Nesta aka The Calming Influence Vs. Adriano aka The Brasilian Beast

Pirlo aka The Artist Vs. Juan Veron aka Seba

Stam aka Iron Man Vs. Vieri aka Recycle Bin

Shevchenko aka Stealth Bomber Vs. Materazzi aka Gentleman

Gattuso aka The Warrior Vs. Stankovic aka Stan da Man


KEY MEN
=======

Andriy Shevchenko
------------------

The man of the hour is none other than the definitive Stealth Bomber from The Ukraine! Is there a better BIG MATCH PLAYER in the world today? I think not! He delivers dagoods because the Stealth Bomber = Ratings

Proven at every level, complete as complete can be and giving meaning to the word STEALTH & BOMBER!

When the Stealth Bomber is CONFIDENT and IN THE ZONE he takes on defenders 'One-on-One' without fear of losing the ball. I mentioned this two seasons ago when he was lacking in confidence after coming back from injury. On recent evidence he was taking on the whole Barcelona team and 3 guys couldn't disposses him. This can only be good news for Inter.


Adriano
-------

'For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction' . The Brasilian Beast is defying every law of physics with his displays. If it was Adriano kicking the ball that eventually hit Ronaldo's (Real) balls on two occasions in the Real Vs. Kiev game then Ronaldo would've passed out and eventually gone on e-bay to bid for a new set!

His right foot is weaker obviously but so far there is no sign that it affects his play as he sent in a cross from the right from the outside of his left boot that curled like a convnentional right foot cross!

The MOST HAPPENING THING in world football is taking everything by storm and destroying one and all on its way. He has single-handedly won games for Inter and not only that - He has instilled confidence, belief and hope for the side that not too long ago was a mess. It is not the coach, not the president, not the management.

It is this V-12 Earth-Mover who has made his stand brought back optimism to Appiano Gentile. However all good things must come to an end


Prediction

So what does this game have in store for the viewers. The last Milan Derby was one of the all-time classics with Milan coming back from 2 goals down at the end of the first half to OWN Inter in the second by 3 wonder strikes that will be remembered and revered by every Milan fan across the world. It was a back-breaker for Inter but one hell of a football game!

This derby has a lot to offer as both sides are on a hot streak and in top notch form. Inter has scored so many goals recently that a goal drought might just be in order but the Beast will disagree with that notion.

The Milan defence shut up shop against a more explosive offence recently. Can that same level of concentration be maintained? That game drained a lot out of the players mentally and physically.

I think that Inter's form in the Serie A form is not upto par while it has been ages since they defeated Milan. History favours them for this derby.

Saying all that I don't think that Milan will slip for this one. A draw is on the cards so a scoring draw will take place at the San Siro on Sunday Night IMO.

However:

"The SupeRNaturaL is something that isn't supposed to happen but It does happen!"


P.S Manuel da fecking legend is in the bet so I guess its lights out for Inter! Big Tiiiiiime!

Nice post yet again Haroon. Just watched the inter- Valencia game. inter were very impressive, constantly harassing the other team for the ball. They also passed the ball around pretty well and then they had Adriano

I noticed they liked playing long balls up front, but that doesnt worry me because we have Dida, Stam and Nesta at the back, infact I welcome it. There are two Milan players who I am worried about. Seedorf, if he carrys on giving the ball away then it will be lights out. The other player is Maldini who may be tired, especially at left back. We cant afford this, not with Zanetti and Vandermeyde running at him. Pancaro could be very important as a sub.

Gatusso will be vital, just as Veron is regaining confidence the last thing he needs is to be put on his a55 by Gatusso. With no real left winger, I look forward to seeing Cafu take advantage. Nothing needs to be said about a reborn Sheva. Iv never been a massive Pippo fan, so I wouldnt mind seeing Crespo start, and if he returns from injury the way Stam did

Finally, the huge individual battle that everyone seems to have forgotten. Kaka and Davids. Its no coincidence Davids was rested against Valencia. The winner of this may very well belong to the winning team. Then again, with inter's forward thinking midfield, if Davids had to concentrate on Kaka that would just give Pirlo more time on the ball to pick his passes.