Another step back. Inter leaves Bergamo with a draw that leaves them unsatisfied both in terms of play and in the standings, so much so that it is Atalanta who recriminates for several wasted opportunities. Only a great Handanovic meant that the match ended 1-1, otherwise Mancini would have been in much worse trouble. There's no need to talk about a crisis, of course, but the last 4 results (only 1 victory, moreover undeserved, against Empoli) raise many perplexities.
Now Napoli, led by the usual Higuain in the 3-1 win over Sassuolo, has "escaped" by more than 4 and Juventus and Fiorentina, in case of victories in today's matches, would go ahead. In short, the Nerazzurri's braking was far from painless, although the point collected, in the light of the performance, was still earned. “I'm not happy with the performance of some players, they can and must do much more – explained Mancini. – We struggle too much to score and you can't always win with a single goal difference, we don't lack quality and therefore we have to be more incisive".
Paradoxically, the draw in Bergamo is a step backwards compared to the defeat against Sassuolo: last Sunday Inter had created many chances, yesterday however they limited themselves to exploiting Toloi's own goal (25'), which arrived a few minutes after Murillo's ( 17'). The great protagonist, as previously mentioned, was Handanovic, author of some sensational saves (in particular the one on Cigarini) which prevented Atalanta from taking the lead again and, perhaps, from winning the game. The script didn't change even in the second half when Mancini, in an attempt to revive him, added Perisic to the already present Ljajic, Icardi and Jovetic. And so a not very incisive draw arrived, which takes the Nerazzurri away from the Scudetto dream and complicates the race for the Champions League area, the real great goal of the Mancini gang.
Today the coach from Jesi will be forced to support Udinese and Milan, opponents of Juventus and Fiorentina, in the hope of not finding himself off the podium. Sinisa Mihajlovic would gladly do her old friend a favor, also because he is the first to play for something big. The postponement against the Viola (20.45 pm) is very delicate, so much so that some insiders speculate that they will be exonerated in the event of a defeat. “I still believe in Mihajlovic – Silvio Berlusconi said on the sidelines of a political event. – We have to go ahead, give it our all and continue with the Milan we have”. A nice injection of confidence that pleased the person concerned, grappling with the umpteenth "last chance" of his AC Milan experience. “I've heard this expression so many times that next summer I'm going to the mountains – the coach's ironic comment. – I hear from the president at least once a week, he is always kind and affectionate with me. I decided to take his advice and not read the articles against me, it's the same tactic Margareth Thatcher used, and I told the boys to plug their ears and play."
The climate is heavy and only a victory could really calm it down. Mihajlovic knows this well but is equally aware of Fiorentina's value, so far clearly superior to Milan in terms of play and points collected. “It won't just depend on us but we know we are not inferior to anyone – he reiterated from the Milanello press room. – They are not in that ranking position by chance, but they have flaws and we will have to exploit them". The idea is to confirm the anti-Roma formation with just one change, the return of Montolivo from the first minute in place of Kucka. So it will be 4-4-2 with Donnarumma in goal, Abate, Zapata, Romagnoli and Antonelli in defense, Honda, Bertolacci, Montolivo and Bonaventura in midfield, Bacca and Niang in attack.
Delicate match also for Paulo Sousa's Fiorentina, looking for a success that would bring them back on the championship podium. The Portuguese will confirm the 3-4-1-2 of the last few weeks, net of the heavy absences of Gonzalo Rodriguez (suspended) and Badelj (injured): Tatarusanu in goal, Roncaglia, Tomovic and Astori in defense, Bernardeschi, Vecino, Borja Valero and Marcos Alonso in midfield, Mati Fernandez on the trocar behind the attacking couple Ilicic-Kalinic.
