Tuesday 16 December, 2008
Blog: It’s Inter’s title
This weekend demonstrated the eternal potential of Serie A to entertain and amaze but, as Scott Fleming argues, it also showed that the League remains a one horse race
Juventus versus Milan at Turin’s Stadio Olimpico was the showdown the season had been crying out for. Almost every other game between the Division’s top sides had ended 1-0, after intense, tactical affairs.
In contrast, Juve’s 4-2 win was scintillating, like a battle from the middle ages, contested in typhoon conditions. Instead of hindering the match as a spectacle, the conditions made it.
There would have been more dismissals if the referee hadn’t realised tackles appeared worse than they were on the soaked turf, and there would have been more than six goals if not for the goalkeepers, the woodwork, and some abysmal finishing from Massimo Ambrosini.
Now in the aftermath Juve have been widely portrayed as the anti-Inter, and the title race can begin in earnest it seems. I just don’t buy it however. As much as I enjoyed it, the reason Sunday night was quite so exciting was the inadequacies of both sides.
Milan do not seem to be able to defend crosses. Or indeed anything that involves the ball entering their penalty box. The powers that be, Silvio Berlusconi and Adriano Galliani, have responded in typical fashion, like 10-year-olds let loose on a copy of Football Manager, by signing Thiago Silva, a defender who can’t play until next season.
Just like the Alexandre Pato signing, the patron and his deputy think they can deceive the supporters with one signing, instead of dealing with genuine and persistent problems that exist, and need sorting ASAP, not next summer.
In addition Sunday night proved the midfield is, as it has always been in Carlo Ancelotti’s tenure, too narrow, and the argument that the squad is too old, while pretty ancient itself, can’t be ignored.
Juventus, meanwhile, are not much better. They get by on sheer hard work and desire. Claudio Ranieri’s side seem unable to dominate games for any significant length of time, perhaps due to their lack of a fantasista to dictate play. Against Milan their goals came from nowhere, not prolonged periods of pressure.
As the season comes to the boil teams’ true natures are revealed. Once again it is Roma who seem the only foes worthy of challenging Inter. For them it is far too late though, meaning we could see a procession, not a race, to the Scudetto
channel4.com