MILAN, PERFECT EVENING!
PALERMO DESTROYED, NAPLES RECOVERED POINTS.
ALLEGRI'S PLAN: "NOW WE HAVE TO WIN THEM ALL".
VOTE: 7,5
Two weeks ago we left a tired and listless Milan, in need of rest and training. Yesterday evening, we had the confirmation that the Rossoneri really needed the break like air. Allegri's team, in the most difficult night against the bete noire ever, found themselves once again winning and putting on a show. The 3-0 victory over Palermo coincides with Milan's best performance of the season, and it can't be a coincidence that this happened with the return of Robinho. The Brazilian may not be an infallible sniper in front of goal (but last year he scored 14 goals and yesterday he scored one), but he does a job that no one else is able to do. And so, thanks to the spaces opened up by his plays, the others have also returned to shine. Wonderful Ibrahimovic, who remained dry but still protagonist of a super performance, topped off with an assist for Robinho and a sensational play for Nocerino's first goal. Milan's perfect evening, already made enjoyable by the defeat of Inter, became perfect with the news from San Paolo (we talk about it below). Now, despite a difficult start, the Rossoneri are only 3 points away from Napoli. Allegri is well aware that the championship is still very long, but he absolutely wants to shorten the standings as soon as possible. And there is only one way to do it: “We won by playing good football and that's important. We have a month before the next stop and we need to score as many points as possible to get closer to the summit. We have to start again with enthusiasm, with this competitive wickedness and with determination".
NAPLES, THE EVE OF THE CHAMPIONS IS STILL FATAL!
LITTLE PARMA BANKS THE SAN PAULO.
CONTROVERSIAL MAZZARRI: "THERE WAS A PENALTY FOR US, IT WOULD HAVE CHANGED EVERYTHING..."
VOTE: 5
The defeat you don't expect. Or maybe yes. Because re-reading Mazzarri's statements on the eve of today, the doubt arises that perhaps the coach had perceived a certain superficiality in his players: "We have to be careful about Parma, we'll think about Bayern from Sunday morning" warned the Napoli coach. However, the message did not reach the players, who played a bad first half, along the lines of what they already did against Fiorentina 20 days ago. Then as now, the championship match preceded a Champions League match. Just a case? Maybe, but the feeling that the big-eared cup takes away too much energy from the blues remains. Let's not talk about legs but about the head, because the Europe that matters is heavy to manage on a mental level, especially in a city like Naples, which experiences everything with great excesses. Apart from these considerations, the Azzurri played a dull game, at times confused, but they could have at least drawn it if Mirante hadn't saved the unimaginable. Deserved victory for Parma, who came to the San Paolo to play it openly. The only yellow card in the first half, when Lavezzi called for a penalty kick. The episode, predictably, unleashed Mazzarri's anger: “There was that penalty, and it would have changed the whole game. The thing that bothered me most, however, was the general attitude of the referee. The first booking for a Parma player came only in the final, but they committed fouls throughout the match." Compliment your opponents? Not even the shadow. And this really does not honor the Napoli coach.
INTER, ANOTHER DEFEAT!
NERAZZURRI IMMEDIATELY IN ADVANTAGE, THEN A CLAMOROUS COMEBACK FROM CATANIA.
RANIERI: "WE THROW EVERYTHING AWAY IN TWO MINUTES".
VOTE: 4,5
The extra half vote is because Lodi's (decisive) penalty wasn't there. This time however, sticking to the refereeing episodes would be at least inappropriate, as Claudio Ranieri admitted with great honesty at the press conference: “There wasn't a penalty, but at normal speed it could have been there. Everything is going wrong for us, we have to do mea culpa ”. Shared opinion, because although a non-existent penalty (Castellazzi's foul on Bergessio wasn't there) can condition a match, the Nerazzurri practically had the entire second half to straighten it out. The problem, however, is that this Inter is out of breath. The heroes of the trio have grown old, worn and tired, and to continue to pretend otherwise is to tarnish their careers. What was an invincible army up to a year and a half ago is now the worst defense in Serie A (13 goals conceded in 6 actual matches), furthermore the bleeding from muscle injuries continues. Yesterday Samuel also stopped, the emblem of an Inter that no longer exists. Ranieri can do little, who had compacted the team to wait for Catania and restart: "We squandered everything in those five minutes, they caught us on the counterattack twice, we knew about Catania's counterattacks and their speed, so giving them those chances when we were ahead was a mistake.". The first half had gone exactly according to Sor Claudio's plans: Cambiasso's goal after a few minutes and an armored defense. But the current Inter only need a breath of wind to collapse, and so the terrible one - two signed by Almiron - Lodi (with the complicity of the referee Orsato) nullified everything. To the delight of Montella, who enjoys Catania's 9 points in the standings, 5 more than Inter. Which he really has to worry about now.
PROVOCATIONS, SPARKS AND LOTS OF RIVALRY: WELCOME TO THE ROME DERBY.
REJA ON TOTTI: "HAS CLASS ONLY ON THE FIELD"...AND LOTITO ATTACKS DIBENEDETTO!
THE CALM OF LUIS ENRIQUE: "WE ARRIVE IN THE DERBY AT THE BEST TIME".
Here we are. One of the most heartfelt games of the season, the ones that fans circle in red on the calendar, has arrived. If Lazio - Rome (tonight, 20.45) will give the field half of the emotions offered in the press conferences on the eve, well then we will see a truly spectacular match. To set fire to the atmosphere, which seemed strangely muffled (the fault of the break?), the Roma captain Francesco Totti thought about it. The now ex Pupone won't be in the match, due to the muscle injury he sustained against Atalanta, and maybe that's why he decided to score a goal in the press room: “The derby man? It's Reja, our good luck charm”. The laughter of the journalists present in Trigoria (we imagine all Roma supporters) did the rest. Lazio didn't take Totti's jokes well, who didn't even spare the eagle Olimpia, a true symbol of Lazio's Roma: "He should go to the beach for a walk - the captain said laughing - the seagulls are the same anyway" . The first to reply was Tommaso Rocchi, equal to Totti at Lazio: “Nice jokes – he said a few hours later – on the other hand, he's a comedian on TV, it's normal that he does them…”. Edi Reja, on the other hand, was bitter, he reflected for 48 hours, to then say that "Totti has great class... but only on the pitch". However, not even Claudio Lotito escaped the media battle, who moved the shot much higher, picking on Thomas DiBenedetto, guilty of receiving a salary from Rome under his contract: "I've never taken money from Lazio - he said Lotito - and I can say the same about all the other members of the club's management and supervisory board".
In short, a frenetic free-for-all, from which (at least for now) only Luis Enrique has escaped, who as a good Spaniard preferred to concentrate on technical issues: "I am well aware that the derby is not a match like any other - declared the 'ex Barça B – but we get there at the best time. I had never seen my team train as well as these days. We have to win it for our fans."
AFTER THE HANGOVER AGAINST AC MILAN, JUVE SEEKS CONFIRMATION IN VERONA.
SAFE COUNT: "WE WILL NOT MAKE A MISTAKE APPROACH TO THE COMPETITION".
TO CLEAN THE BENTEGODI, HERE'S THE DEL PIERO – VUCINIC COUPLE.
“We won't make a mistake in approaching the match, maybe we may have other problems, but not this one. I'm sure". As a true leader, Antonio Conte defends his troops, who this afternoon (15.00 pm) will face the "terrible" Chievo, former executioner of Mazzarri's Naples. Juventus are clearly superior to their opponents, which is why everything revolves around the concept of the "right approach", which last year wasn't exactly Delneri's strong point. Conte is well aware that, beyond the suggestions of the fans, there is no difference between a match against Milan and one against Chievo: both are worth 3 points, both can win or lose a scudetto. That's why there is great curiosity about today's Juve, called for a real maturity exam. So far, in fact, the bianconeri have been perfect on the most glamorous occasions (debut in the league in the new stadium against Parma and big match against Milan) but they left something to be desired when they went around the provinces of Italy (narrow victory in Siena and complicated draw against Catania). So today we will understand what the real Juventus is, whether the opaque one of Massimino or the glittering one of the victory over Milan). Antonio Conte would have liked to prepare better for today's match (“You know very well that I don't like having half a team around the world, here in Vinovo there were only 10”), but he will be able to count on the eternal class of captain Del Piero, who he should start from the first minute alongside Vucinic. Another bench for Quagliarella, on which market rumors continue (and will continue until January 31st).
