1. Bari was on the brink of returning to form
Bari have been going through some tough times recently, and although they lost 3-2 at home to AC Milan, they showed signs of promise. Bari are currently at the bottom of the table with 8 points, and while the situation looks bleak, if Bari can pull off a win or two in their upcoming matches, they'll be out of the relegation zone. The Galletti lost to AC Milan this weekend, but they still played well enough to score two goals, and both were beautiful. The first one for Bari was a weaving run by Kutuzov past the Milan defense, and a perfect finish past Abbiati, and the second was by the Brazilian Barreto. A wonderful volley from a long ball, no first touch or anything, he just smashed it into the back of the net right away, truly a wonderful goal by Barreto. But can Bari make it out of the relegation zone? I think that they will survive this season, what about you? Comment below!
2. Mihajlovic is safe... for now
Fiorentina have been in a similar situation to Bari, while they've begun to recover now, Mihajlovic was leading the sack race for a while. But Fiorentina stole three points against Chievo over the weekend, defeating the away side in a scrappy 1-0 win for the Viola. The goal was a tap-in for the substitute Alessio Cerci, Mutu had created the chance for Gilardino, and when the Italian's shot was stopped by Sorrentino, Cerci followed up for the goal. But Fiorentina fans shouldn't be rejoicing right away, mainly because Mihajlovic's side will be travelling to Rome in the midweek day of the Serie A to face Roma. So is Mihajlovic safe? While fans won't be expecting too much from their game against Roma, they'll be expecting at least a Europa League place by the end of the season. Can Mihajlovic deliver? Share your thoughts by commenting below!
3. Lazio are finally stopped
Yes, the day has come where Edy Reja's Lazio has lost. They even lost what's technically a home game, but the Stadio Olimpico is shared by both Lazio and Roma, so it's not like Lazio had much of an advantage. The Rome derby finished 2-0 for Roma, with two penalties being scored by Borriello and Vucinic. But if the penalties awarded to Roma were actually penalties, then Lazio had at least one clear cut penalty which should've been given. Both sides played well, with both of them having spells of dominance where they created danger. With this win, Roma rise up to 7th place, seven points away from their city rivals who are still at the top of the table. Lazio remain top of the table, but their cushion is reduced to just two points with AC Milan right behind them. Lazio have been finally stopped, is this the beginning of a slump, or can Reja's side bounce back to continue their good run? What are your thoughts regarding the derby? Comment below!
4. No Cassano, no goal
Cassano is still not being chosen in the Sampdoria squad, and Mimmo Di Carlo's side is suffering from the lack of creativity, big time. A 0-0 draw between them and Catania could've used Cassano's flair, danger, and trickery, yet he's not being allowed to participate in matches right now. If you notice, last weekend they had a similar problem, and Di Carlo's side could only find the back of the opponent's net in the 90th minute with Pazzini who gave his side a 1-0 win over Cesena. So will this "No Cassano, no goal" trend continue? We'll just have to wait and see until this midweek when they play Parma.
5. Walter Samuel out for the season
It's been confirmed that Walter Samuel has damaged his cruciate knee ligaments after hyperextending his knee in Inter's 1-1 draw against Brescia. Samuel was stretchered off, and from seeing the incident, I could tell that he'd be out for quite some time. But I didn't expect him to be out for the entire rest of the season, sadly that's what it seems like after his terrible incident. Really bad news for Inter Milan fans, and the question arises, who will partner up with Lucio at the center of defence? Will it be Cordoba? Or will Chivu slide over into the middle, letting Santon play some more? Or could we see the return of Marco Materazzi? Benitez has options, but maybe they're not exactly the best ones. We'll have to see how badly yet another injury affects Inter's season.
5 comments… read them below or add one
It is always sad to see any player get injured. I am certainly disappointed for W. Samuel because he was one of Inter’s better players this season.
I think Juve fans are all pleased to see Benitez in charge of the Nerazzurri and not their team because I think he’s the wrong choice for Italian football. Let us see if he can prove me and others wrong.
I’d have Santon play as left-back and probably go with Ivan Cordoba at centre-back. Cordoba can jump higher and tackle better than Chivu. The only concern is Cordoba cannot play the whole season at the same level considering his age.
I agree with you for the Inter backline changes, but I feel like Chivu is more solid in the middle of defence. Cordoba can be used for backup in my opinion, and don’t forget there’s always Materazzi!
Have to disagree re: Bari. Milan would’ve torched them had Robinho not been so wasteful.
I have no feelings for Samuel since he left Roma. Same for Chivu. I suppose I don’t wish them harm, but best not to think about it. Mancini’s not even worth hating, he’s such a failure. Chivu would work better in the middle, though. He doesn’t offer anything going forward, just the occasional left-footed free kick. Tiny Córdoba hasn’t fully recovered from his serious knee injury, and may never do so. The less said about Matrix the better.
After Roma’s 1st goal they sat back & invited Lazio in, but Lazio could do very little with their possession apart from cry for penalties. Anyway, Dias was offside in the build-up to the one sure penalty for Lazio, so they can’t complain too much. As for Baptista’s supposed foul before Roma’s 2nd penalty, it looked to me like the Lazio players ran into each other. Why should Roma stop play for opponents who can’t get out of the way of each other?
Samp weren’t exactly an offensive dynamo last season, even with Cassano, so no surprise they’re utterly toothless w/o him. They’ll sink straight down the table until/unless Garrone repents. If he was stupid enough to believe he wouldn’t have the occasional bust-up with Cassano, and be willing to sweep it under the table, he deserves Samp’s fate.
Being a Liverpool fan, I hate to see Benitez get the blame for Inter’s difficulties. No one seems to be realizing that if it weren’t Benitez it would be someone else they’d be crying about. Nobody can follow a treble-winner w/o looking bad, whether it’s Mourinho or not. They bought him nothing over the summer & expect another minor miracle.
Benitez should get massive praise just for not being afraid to take the job, knowing what was in store for him. Inter are due for a fall. They barely won the league last season, and several players had the season of their lives. To expect that to be repeated is to be deluded beyond all sense.
David, you have a point when you say that AC Milan would’ve certainly done better if Robinho had put away a couple of his fantastic opporunities. But I still think that it’s a bit of a revival to score two goals against AC Milan.
I agree with what you say about Inter, I think that Benitez is being judged way too harshly, and I think that Moratti needs to make some funds available to revitalize the back line. Benitez wants to spend in January, and I think he should get David Luiz from Benfica, a great up-and-coming central defender with similar qualities to Lucio. A perfect replacement.
Thanks for the comment!
Well seems its true that Cassano is the key player..Thats for sure…