Posts Tagged ‘Inter Milan’

RIBERY TO MISS INTER SHOWDOWN

Monday, May 17th, 2010

by Marc Roseblade

photo credit: AFP

Bayern Munich’s Franck Ribery is going to miss the Champions League final. The Court of Arbitration for Sport rejected his appeal against a 2-match ban following a red card in the Lyon semi-final.

UEFA had already dismissed an appeal, but CAS has ruled out any possibility of a Saturday showing against Inter.

Bayern had appealed to UEFA with the hope that UEFA would cut the ban to just the one game, which would have allowed Ribery to play in the final as he had already missed the second leg of the semi-final against Lyon.

Once again bureaucracy wins the day and sensibility loses out

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A STELLAR FINISH FOR UCL FINALISTS

Sunday, May 16th, 2010

By Marc Roseblade

Inter Milan today tied up the Scudetto for the 5th successive year in a row by defeating Siena 1 nil. Jose Mourinhos men finished the season 2 points above 2nd placed Roma who also won today with a 2 nil victory away to Chievo.

The Milan side now head to Madrid and the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in chase of the Champions league winners title as they face off against German champions Bayern Munich.

Bayern themselves clinched the Bundesliga with a final day 3-1 away win to Hertha on the 8th May and yesterday completed a domestic double by hammering the cup holders Werder Bremen 4-0 in the German cup final.

Uncharacteristically, the champions league final is being held on a Saturday evening but this enables both sides a full week to prepare for what looks like being a fantastic prospect for watching football supporters all over Europe and the World.

The 8 day festival of football has already started in Madrid which started with the delivery of the Champions league trophy on Friday. The festival includes all manner of activities from exhibition matches which involves top former international talent from all over Europe to audio visionary spectacles from Champions league sponsers. It truly encompasses all age groups and encourages people to interact withy the Champions league experience.

It promises to be a magnificent spectacle and with players such as Arjen Robben, Franck Ribéry, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Claudio Pizarro, Mark van Bommel for Bayern & Lucio Marco Materazzi, Eto’o, Diego Milito & Wesley Sneijder for Inter, it really is lining up as a night of fireworks and superb footballing skills. Plenty of goals would be great as well.

Final – 22/05/2010 – 20:45CET ( 20:45 ) – Santiago Bernabéu – Madrid

Click on the image below to visit Marc’s football blog…


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INTER HEAD FOR HALLOWED GROUND

Thursday, April 29th, 2010

The Special One does it again…

It was a hard-fought Champions League semi-final. Barcelona had opportunities to win, but couldn’t penetrate Mourinho’s defensive line for a second goal. We didn’t really see anything special from Barça until Pique scored brilliantly in the final 10 minutes of play. From there, you felt as if Xavi, Pique and Bojan would combine for something miraculous. It didn’t happen.

And now, Inter head to their first European final since 1972. They have a shot at winning their first European trophy since 1965.


Barcelona v Inter Milan

Danny | MySpace Video

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EUROPEAN LEAGUE LEADERS

Monday, April 26th, 2010

Seasons are drawing to a close rather dramatically across Europe.  Here is what we’re seeing in each of the top leagues.

* many thanks to Marc Roseblade for the stats.

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THE CURIOUS CASE OF MARIO BALOTELLI

Wednesday, April 21st, 2010

Is Super Mario being neglected at Inter or has he brought the negativity upon himself?  As you can imagine, it’s a combination of both.  The real question is, would the 19 year old be better off elsewhere?  He claims allegiance to A.C. Milan (funny, but not a terrible idea) and clubs all over the world would sign him in a heartbeat.

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INTER BACK ON TOP

Friday, April 16th, 2010

With a 2-0 win over Juventus today, Inter Milan saw their way back to 1st place in the Serie A.

Maicon had a beautiful goal. Check the highlights!

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THE BEST OF EUROPE: The Bridge Is Over! Inter Advance, Chelsea To Focus on Premiership…

Wednesday, March 17th, 2010


Disappointment. Disappointment not only for Chelsea’s players, not only for Chelsea’s fans, but also, disappointment for me.  The best Champions League matchup in the current round ended up being one huge disappointment. Unless, of course, you are an Inter Milan fan.

The Italian leaders did what Italians do best; defend and counter.  And they did it magnificently.  As difficult as it is for me to give credit to him, I shall give credit where it is due. Mourinho did a wonderful job in preparing his titans for this titanic clash. Some questionable first half refereeing decisions proved to be the only truly serious chances from the home side who were simply unable to crack the rock hard defense of Inter.

Samuel Eto’o finished clinically with what should have been at least his second goal of the night but Inter’s true heart and soul came from probably the only single Inter player who I respect: Wesley Sneijder.  He was simply everywhere.  Defending, attacking, passing, dribbling, but most importantly directing.  Everything went through him and nearly every touch he took went the right way.  The Dutch international who started his career at Ajax before having a short and unsuccessful run at Real Madrid, once again proved what an asset he is to Jose’s otherwise bleak side. Yes, I’ll say it again, bleak.

For me this is disappointing because I feel like the best side lost. Argue what you will, Chelsea in my opinion are the third best team in the world, trailing only Manchester United and Pep’s Barça, but from now on in the Champions, I guess I’ll just have to do without them.

-Yoni Ginsberg

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INTER NOT SO LONELY AT THE TOP

Thursday, February 25th, 2010

By Jake Glavies

Just a few days before its weekend match against Udinese, Inter is trying to juggle roster spots and coaching duties to keep from losing more ground to AC Milan and AS Roma.

A 0-0 draw with Sampdoria Saturday was just the beginning of Inter’s woes. Not only did it allow title challengers AC Milan and AS Roma – who sit just four and five points back respectively – to narrow the gap atop the Serie A table, but the Nerazzurri lost four players and their coach to suspensions this week.

Defenders Walter Samuel and Ivan Cordoba were both shown red cards against the Blucerchiati and automatically ruled out of this weekend’s meeting with Undinese; once the final whistle blew though, the news went from bad to worse as the squad learned that coach Jose Mourhino would be suspended for three matches for a gesture he made toward referees during the contest. Midfielders Esteban Cambiasso and Sulley Muntari were also slapped with bans after the draw.

Even more, defender Cristian Chivu will miss the clash with Undinese with a head injury, while Marco Materazzi and Davide Santon may be rushed back from injury to fill vacancies in the defense. With three regular players missing from the defense, Inter will certainly field a makeshift back line at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, Sunday. If all injuries and suspensions hold, the group will consist of Maicon, Lucio, Matterazzi and Santon.

Inter’s rough and ready defense will be pushed to its limits by one of Serie A’s most feared goal scorers, Antonio Di Natale. Currently leading the league with 18 goals – Inter’s Diego Milito is second with 14 – Di Natale has had three multi goal matches this season, with the most recent coming when he accounted for all of Udinese’s scores during a 3-1 win over Napoli Feb. 7.

If Matterazzi and Santon aren’t yet fully recovered from their injuries and Inter is forced to dig deep into its roster for substitutes Sunday, the Nerazzurri might find themselves in a much tighter title race come Monday.

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LONELY AT THE TOP: Inter Milan and the Serie A

Tuesday, February 9th, 2010

By Jake Glavies

Italian football is proving to be a one-horse race this season and it’s Inter Milan out in front galloping down the home stretch. Inter has been unstoppable over the past two months, compiling a 5-0-2 record since it’s last loss Dec. 5 to Juventus; the squad has also recorded 14 goals in the span. The most impressive victory of the stretch came Sunday in a 3-0 win over Cagliari.

Forward Alberto Diego Milito has been at the head of the charge as of late, accounting for six scores over the span.  Samuel Eto’o, one of the game’s most feared strikers, has added eight league goals on the year with 12 scores in all competitions.

And the squad is only getting stronger. After a lengthy layoff, Macedonian forward Goran Pandev is beginning to hit his stride. Finding the back of the net in three straight league matches, Pandev gives Inter one of the most scoring minded front lines in all of Serie A. Coach Jose Mourinho will look to the trio to avenge the squad’s first defeat of the season, a 1-0 loss at Sampdoria, when the Nerazzurri travel to the Stadio Luigi Ferraris Feb. 20.

Just two weeks ago, Inter further demonstrated its dominance, trouncing second place AS Roma 2-0 at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza. With an eight point lead over Roma and the season more than half over, it would take a disastrous turn of events for Inter not to claim a fifth straight league title.

As for Roma, a slim 1-0 win over Fiorentina Sunday gave Claudio Ranieri’s club a leg up on third place AC Milan, who has failed to find the win column in its last four matches – most recently drawing 0-0 at Bologna.

Upcoming matches against Napoli, Palermo and Roma, will certainly put Inter to the test. Beyond his front line, Mourinho will look to goalkeeper Julio Cesar to keep a long list of talented scorers from stealing a victory. Facing the likes of Francesco Totti, Edison Cavani and Marek Hamsik, Cesar will be key if Inter is to win a fifth straight league crown.

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JOHNSON, KEANE AMONG TOP TRANSFERS AS WINDOW CLOSES

Monday, February 1st, 2010

By Jake Glavies

Adam Johnson heads to Man City/photo credit: Lee Smith/Action Images

The Premier League transfer window closed with a slight thud rather than a bang today.

The biggest true transfer of the day came as Manchester City brought in former England U-21 winger Adam Johnson from Middlesbrough. Johnson, who’s scored 11 goals in 25 English League Championship matches this season, was widely regarded in England as one of the best players not playing in the Premier League. The move cost City a reported $11 million; Johnson will be under contract until 2014.

At just 22 years old, Johnson still has a lot of growing to do. Playing under the tutelage of Roberto Mancini should help expedite his maturation. That being said, Johnson will have to fight for every minute he gets at City.

In the hopes of making a push for the Championship playoffs, Middlesbrough took to the Scottish Premier League, bringing in strikers Scott McDonald of Celtic and Lee Miller of Aberdeen. The pair will bring experience and power to The Boro, combining for 197 league appearances and 79 goals.

Victor Moses will also make the move from the Championship to the top flight, as he jumps from Crystal Palace to Wigan on a three-and-a-half year contract. The forward had been linked with a number of notable European clubs, including Arsenal and Barcelona, but at just 19 years old, Moses may have been viewed as too inexperienced to make such a move. So far this season he’s turned in six goals in 18 appearances. Midfielder Marcelo Moreno also joined the team on a loan deal Monday.

In what could be the final move of his career, 32-year-old Benni McCarthy made the switch from Blackburn Rovers to West Ham for an undisclosed fee. The South African will look to regain his form with the Hammers leading up to this summer’s World Cup.

The most notable loan deal of the day came when Robbie Keane – who has fallen out of favor at Tottenham and also lost his starting job to Peter Crouch – signed to move to Celtic until the end of the season. After leaving Spurs for a short stay at Liverpool, Keane rejoined Harry Redknapp’s squad but couldn’t regain the form that led to some 80 goals in 200 appearances at White Hart Lane. Keane will be joined by other transfer day signings Diomansy Kamara, Edson Braafheid and Paul Slane.

Other moves on transfer day included: Spurs defender Alan Hutton to Sunderland on-loan for the rest of the season; West Ham inks Leeds striker Mido to loan deal and also signs AS Saint-Etienne’s Ilan.

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