pre season matches (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Badass J Elkann
- Start date
PSV Edge Milan 4-3 On Penalties
A tight game of football between PSV Eindhoven and AC Milan had to be decided on penalties, with the Dutch side just edging their more famous opponents.
Chances were few and far between during the 90 minutes as it finished scoreless.
During the shoot-out that followed, Kaka, Serginho and Pirlo were on target, but Gourcuff and Seedorf were denied.
Ronald Koeman's side this progress to the finals, and will await the winners of the Real Madrid - Lokomotiv Moscow game.
Milan will, meanwhile, play for third place.
This could mean that they fail to play Real Madrid, in what was expected to be the highlight of the competition. Of course, that will change if Madrid are also defeated
Lokomotiv Moscow 2 - 0 Real Madrid HT.Ivanovic scored
Liverpool 2-0 Shanghai Gerard scored superb goal
A tight game of football between PSV Eindhoven and AC Milan had to be decided on penalties, with the Dutch side just edging their more famous opponents.
Chances were few and far between during the 90 minutes as it finished scoreless.
During the shoot-out that followed, Kaka, Serginho and Pirlo were on target, but Gourcuff and Seedorf were denied.
Ronald Koeman's side this progress to the finals, and will await the winners of the Real Madrid - Lokomotiv Moscow game.
Milan will, meanwhile, play for third place.
This could mean that they fail to play Real Madrid, in what was expected to be the highlight of the competition. Of course, that will change if Madrid are also defeated
Lokomotiv Moscow 2 - 0 Real Madrid HT.Ivanovic scored
Liverpool 2-0 Shanghai Gerard scored superb goal
Friendlies: Giuly scares Hammers --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Roma were extremely unlucky to lose 2-1 at West Ham after dominating the game, but their lack of match fitness told in the end.
The Giallorossi had a dream start at Upton Park, as Ludovic Giuly curled a splendid strike from the edge of the area into the far top corner.
Soon after there was almost a second, as Christian Panucci broke on the counter and Mauro Esposito’s volley smashed the bar.
The atmosphere was far from friendly, as Giuly was infuriated by a Lee Bowyer tackle and kicked out at the West Ham man, but the referee gave both players a talking to.
Panucci had a free header from a Francesco Totti free kick parried, then Rodrigo Taddei went for glory rather than pass it across to the unmarked Esposito.
Totti’s intelligent step-over released Alberto Aquilani at the back post, bringing a tough save out of the West Ham goalkeeper.
Former Cagliari man Esposito left Robert Green stranded, but went too wide and couldn’t squeeze the finish into an empty net.
Despite the fact their season begins in a week and Roma are far behind in their pre-season training, the Hammers only had their first shot on target on the hour mark with Ashton’s shot tipped over the bar by Gianluca Curci.
It really should have been 2-0, though, as Giuly waltzed round the goalkeeper only to nestle his finish into the side-netting.
That proved to be a costly error, as West Ham equalised moments later. Freddie Ljungberg curled a corner kick towards George McCartney’s header.
Incredibly, the Premiership side turned it around within a few minutes of play, having been fortunate to survive conceding only one goal up until now.
Dean Ashton sprung the offside trap and slipped his shot between Curci’s legs to make it 2-1, as the lack of match fitness eventually showed through in the final stages.
Substitute Mirko Vucinic fired straight at Wright and Under-21 international Curci parried an Ashton strike.
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Friendlies: Inter unravel at Villa--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Just days after conquering Old Trafford, Inter were thumped 3-0 by Aston Villa in a sluggish end to their English tour.
Roberto Mancini experimented with a three-man defence for the opening 20 minutes, but the team was clearly tired from the pre-season training regime and a shadow of the side that defeated Manchester United earlier this week.
Gareth Barry’s left-foot finish into the bottom corner opened the scoring and prompted Mancio to switch back to his favoured 4-3-1-2 system.
Julio Cesar was kept busy and Dejan Stankovic struggled to create anything in midfield for the Nerazzurri.
Luis Jimenez thought he had created a goal for Zlatan Ibrahimovic just before the break, but the Swede left two defenders standing only to lob wide.
Santiago Solari, David Suazo and Luis Figo came on for the second half, but within 120 seconds former Milan defender Martin Laursen had doubled Villa’s advantage.
Petrov tested Julio Cesar before Cristian Chivu was judged to have brought down Agbonlahor for Barry’s penalty kick.
Inter will have to hope the form of Old Trafford returns quickly, as they face Roma in the Italian Super Cup on August 19.
Aston Villa 3-0 Inter
Scorers: Barri 18, pen 68 (A), Laursen 47 (A)
Aston Villa: Taylor; Cahill (Gardner 46), Mellberg (Berger 71), Laursen (Osbourne 80), Bouma; Young (Maloney 72), Barry, Reo-Cocker, Moore; Petrov, Agbonlahor (Harewood 71)
Inter: Julio Cesar; Materazzi (Solari 46), Samuel (Fatic 78), Chivu; Cesar (Figo 46), Stankovic, Dacourt, Maxwell; Cruz (Suazo 46), Ibrahimovic (Adriano 63)
Friendlies: Udinese crush Coventry
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Udinese are already in fine form three weeks before the start of the season as they crushed Coventry City 2-0 at the Ricoh Arena.
Pasquale Marino has taken his squad to new levels even without internationals Antonio Di Natale and Fabio Quagliarella, who did not take part in today’s friendly test.
Ghanaian striker Gyan Asamoah fired just over and Victor Boudianski tested Andy Marshall before Gaetano D’Agostino broke the deadlock with a splendid free kick from 25 yards.
Asamoah again forced Goalkeeper Marshall into a tricky save, while Coventry only really threatened with Dias Felipe’s goalline clearance from a Michael Doyle shot.
Asamoah ensured the result was safely in Udinese’s hands with a trademark counter, as the pacey youngster hooked a loose ball over the 'keeper and into an empty net.
Coventry City 0-2 Udinese
Scorers: D’Agostino 18 (U), Asamoah 80 (U)
Coventry City: Marshall; Osbourne, Page (Ward 68), Hall (Hawkins 72), Borrowdale; Birchall (Tab 60), Doyle, M Hughes (S Hughes 68), Gray (McKenzie 76), Best (Adebola 64)
Udinese: Handanovic (Chimenti 46); Mesto, Gokhan, Coda (Felipe 70), Dossena; Siqueira (Candreva 46), Zapata, D’Agostino, Boudianski (Sivok 46); Asamoah (Masiello 81), Floro Flores (Paolucci 62)
Roma were extremely unlucky to lose 2-1 at West Ham after dominating the game, but their lack of match fitness told in the end.
The Giallorossi had a dream start at Upton Park, as Ludovic Giuly curled a splendid strike from the edge of the area into the far top corner.
Soon after there was almost a second, as Christian Panucci broke on the counter and Mauro Esposito’s volley smashed the bar.
The atmosphere was far from friendly, as Giuly was infuriated by a Lee Bowyer tackle and kicked out at the West Ham man, but the referee gave both players a talking to.
Panucci had a free header from a Francesco Totti free kick parried, then Rodrigo Taddei went for glory rather than pass it across to the unmarked Esposito.
Totti’s intelligent step-over released Alberto Aquilani at the back post, bringing a tough save out of the West Ham goalkeeper.
Former Cagliari man Esposito left Robert Green stranded, but went too wide and couldn’t squeeze the finish into an empty net.
Despite the fact their season begins in a week and Roma are far behind in their pre-season training, the Hammers only had their first shot on target on the hour mark with Ashton’s shot tipped over the bar by Gianluca Curci.
It really should have been 2-0, though, as Giuly waltzed round the goalkeeper only to nestle his finish into the side-netting.
That proved to be a costly error, as West Ham equalised moments later. Freddie Ljungberg curled a corner kick towards George McCartney’s header.
Incredibly, the Premiership side turned it around within a few minutes of play, having been fortunate to survive conceding only one goal up until now.
Dean Ashton sprung the offside trap and slipped his shot between Curci’s legs to make it 2-1, as the lack of match fitness eventually showed through in the final stages.
Substitute Mirko Vucinic fired straight at Wright and Under-21 international Curci parried an Ashton strike.
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Friendlies: Inter unravel at Villa--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Just days after conquering Old Trafford, Inter were thumped 3-0 by Aston Villa in a sluggish end to their English tour.
Roberto Mancini experimented with a three-man defence for the opening 20 minutes, but the team was clearly tired from the pre-season training regime and a shadow of the side that defeated Manchester United earlier this week.
Gareth Barry’s left-foot finish into the bottom corner opened the scoring and prompted Mancio to switch back to his favoured 4-3-1-2 system.
Julio Cesar was kept busy and Dejan Stankovic struggled to create anything in midfield for the Nerazzurri.
Luis Jimenez thought he had created a goal for Zlatan Ibrahimovic just before the break, but the Swede left two defenders standing only to lob wide.
Santiago Solari, David Suazo and Luis Figo came on for the second half, but within 120 seconds former Milan defender Martin Laursen had doubled Villa’s advantage.
Petrov tested Julio Cesar before Cristian Chivu was judged to have brought down Agbonlahor for Barry’s penalty kick.
Inter will have to hope the form of Old Trafford returns quickly, as they face Roma in the Italian Super Cup on August 19.
Aston Villa 3-0 Inter
Scorers: Barri 18, pen 68 (A), Laursen 47 (A)
Aston Villa: Taylor; Cahill (Gardner 46), Mellberg (Berger 71), Laursen (Osbourne 80), Bouma; Young (Maloney 72), Barry, Reo-Cocker, Moore; Petrov, Agbonlahor (Harewood 71)
Inter: Julio Cesar; Materazzi (Solari 46), Samuel (Fatic 78), Chivu; Cesar (Figo 46), Stankovic, Dacourt, Maxwell; Cruz (Suazo 46), Ibrahimovic (Adriano 63)
Friendlies: Udinese crush Coventry
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Udinese are already in fine form three weeks before the start of the season as they crushed Coventry City 2-0 at the Ricoh Arena.
Pasquale Marino has taken his squad to new levels even without internationals Antonio Di Natale and Fabio Quagliarella, who did not take part in today’s friendly test.
Ghanaian striker Gyan Asamoah fired just over and Victor Boudianski tested Andy Marshall before Gaetano D’Agostino broke the deadlock with a splendid free kick from 25 yards.
Asamoah again forced Goalkeeper Marshall into a tricky save, while Coventry only really threatened with Dias Felipe’s goalline clearance from a Michael Doyle shot.
Asamoah ensured the result was safely in Udinese’s hands with a trademark counter, as the pacey youngster hooked a loose ball over the 'keeper and into an empty net.
Coventry City 0-2 Udinese
Scorers: D’Agostino 18 (U), Asamoah 80 (U)
Coventry City: Marshall; Osbourne, Page (Ward 68), Hall (Hawkins 72), Borrowdale; Birchall (Tab 60), Doyle, M Hughes (S Hughes 68), Gray (McKenzie 76), Best (Adebola 64)
Udinese: Handanovic (Chimenti 46); Mesto, Gokhan, Coda (Felipe 70), Dossena; Siqueira (Candreva 46), Zapata, D’Agostino, Boudianski (Sivok 46); Asamoah (Masiello 81), Floro Flores (Paolucci 62)
Friendlies: Lazio tumble to Atletico
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Lazio paid the price for poor finishing and even worse defending as they fell 3-1 to Atletico Madrid in the Amsterdam Tournament.
The Biancocelesti had the better of the first half, but did not turn enough of their possession into chances.
Tommaso Rocchi’s header went over and Stefano Mauri was very unlucky not to take the lead, as his glancing touch on a Cristian Ledesma set-piece was palmed on to the bar by the Spanish goalkeeper.
Atletico took the lead just before half-time when a Jose Antonio Reyes free kick was curled to the back post for a Braulio volley, although Mobido Diakhite’ completely missed the ball and should have intercepted.
Goaan Pandev came on to give the attack more vigour, moving Mauri to his more habitual Trequartista position.
Third choice 'keeper Tommaso Berni flew to fingertip a Reyes curler round the post, although he had been flagged offside anyway.
Substitute Pandev unleashed a left-foot rocket from the edge of the box that the Atletico 'keeper pushed round the near post. From the resulting corner the ball came off the post and Diakhite’ turned it over the bar from six yards.
The Madrid shot-stopper had an embarrassing moment on Ledesma’s free kick, but made up for it with his reaction to the loose ball.
Once again, Lazio had the possession, Madrid got the goals, as former Liverpool midfielder Luis Garcia thumped a left-foot screamer into the far top corner.
Just 98 seconds later the Biancocelesti finally managed to hit the back of the net, as Pandev’s through ball sent Mauri clear to slot past the 'keeper.
That lasted only a couple of minutes too, as more poor defending at the back post allowed Reyes to volley home Atletico’s third unmarked.
Lazio lose 3-1 and end the Amsterdam Tournament with just two points, having also lost their first match 2-1 to Arsenal.
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Friendlies: Marvellous Miccoli
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Fabrizio Miccoli continues to shine as Palermo beat Triestina 3-1, but Bologna’s problems go from bad to worse.
The Rosanero summer signing from Juventus has been the star player so far in pre-season and hit the back of the net again.
Miccoli is forging a solid partnership with Edison Cavani and it was the young Uruguayan who opened the scoring after 21 minutes with a solo effort.
Triestina were dangerous with Allegretti’s free kick, but Jankovic made it 2-0 by intercepting a loose ball in midfield and charging forward for the powerful finish.
The Serie B outfit certainly did not sit back and got into the game through Mattia Graffiedi after Alberto Fontana had only parried a Luigi Piangerelli strike.
Miccoli completed the scoring when he hooked down an Aimo Diana chipped pass over the defence and smashed the angled drive past the goalkeeper.
Amauri was able to play the entire second half – a definite improvement from the 20 minutes he had managed so far in his recovery from knee ligament surgery – and he earned the applause of the fans with an impressive backheel touch.
If Palermo are back on track, then the same cannot be said of Bologna, as the promotion contenders are struggling badly this summer.
They fell to an embarrassing 2-1 defeat to Serie C1 side Sassuolo, despite having taken the lead with a Carrus penalty kick.
Palermo 3-1 Triestina
Scorers: Cavani 21 (P), Jankovic 29 (P), Graffiedi 35 (T), Miccoli 45 (P)
Palermo: Fontana (Agliardi 46); Zaccardo, Rinaudo (Cossentino 76), Biava (Dellafiore 14), Cassani; Diana (Velardi 67), Migliaccio (Guana 46), Simplicio (Tedesco 46), Jankovic (Matteini 46); Miccoli (Amauri 46), Cavani (Matusiak 61)
channel 4
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Lazio paid the price for poor finishing and even worse defending as they fell 3-1 to Atletico Madrid in the Amsterdam Tournament.
The Biancocelesti had the better of the first half, but did not turn enough of their possession into chances.
Tommaso Rocchi’s header went over and Stefano Mauri was very unlucky not to take the lead, as his glancing touch on a Cristian Ledesma set-piece was palmed on to the bar by the Spanish goalkeeper.
Atletico took the lead just before half-time when a Jose Antonio Reyes free kick was curled to the back post for a Braulio volley, although Mobido Diakhite’ completely missed the ball and should have intercepted.
Goaan Pandev came on to give the attack more vigour, moving Mauri to his more habitual Trequartista position.
Third choice 'keeper Tommaso Berni flew to fingertip a Reyes curler round the post, although he had been flagged offside anyway.
Substitute Pandev unleashed a left-foot rocket from the edge of the box that the Atletico 'keeper pushed round the near post. From the resulting corner the ball came off the post and Diakhite’ turned it over the bar from six yards.
The Madrid shot-stopper had an embarrassing moment on Ledesma’s free kick, but made up for it with his reaction to the loose ball.
Once again, Lazio had the possession, Madrid got the goals, as former Liverpool midfielder Luis Garcia thumped a left-foot screamer into the far top corner.
Just 98 seconds later the Biancocelesti finally managed to hit the back of the net, as Pandev’s through ball sent Mauri clear to slot past the 'keeper.
That lasted only a couple of minutes too, as more poor defending at the back post allowed Reyes to volley home Atletico’s third unmarked.
Lazio lose 3-1 and end the Amsterdam Tournament with just two points, having also lost their first match 2-1 to Arsenal.
channel 4
Friendlies: Marvellous Miccoli
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Fabrizio Miccoli continues to shine as Palermo beat Triestina 3-1, but Bologna’s problems go from bad to worse.
The Rosanero summer signing from Juventus has been the star player so far in pre-season and hit the back of the net again.
Miccoli is forging a solid partnership with Edison Cavani and it was the young Uruguayan who opened the scoring after 21 minutes with a solo effort.
Triestina were dangerous with Allegretti’s free kick, but Jankovic made it 2-0 by intercepting a loose ball in midfield and charging forward for the powerful finish.
The Serie B outfit certainly did not sit back and got into the game through Mattia Graffiedi after Alberto Fontana had only parried a Luigi Piangerelli strike.
Miccoli completed the scoring when he hooked down an Aimo Diana chipped pass over the defence and smashed the angled drive past the goalkeeper.
Amauri was able to play the entire second half – a definite improvement from the 20 minutes he had managed so far in his recovery from knee ligament surgery – and he earned the applause of the fans with an impressive backheel touch.
If Palermo are back on track, then the same cannot be said of Bologna, as the promotion contenders are struggling badly this summer.
They fell to an embarrassing 2-1 defeat to Serie C1 side Sassuolo, despite having taken the lead with a Carrus penalty kick.
Palermo 3-1 Triestina
Scorers: Cavani 21 (P), Jankovic 29 (P), Graffiedi 35 (T), Miccoli 45 (P)
Palermo: Fontana (Agliardi 46); Zaccardo, Rinaudo (Cossentino 76), Biava (Dellafiore 14), Cassani; Diana (Velardi 67), Migliaccio (Guana 46), Simplicio (Tedesco 46), Jankovic (Matteini 46); Miccoli (Amauri 46), Cavani (Matusiak 61)
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Friendlies: Milan pip Moscow thriller
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Milan took third place in the Moscow Tournament on penalties after a 3-3 draw with Lokomotiv Moscow.
The tie was eventually decided on spot-kicks – just as their first encounter of this competition with PSV Eindhoven earlier this week – but this time the Rossoneri emerged 8-7 winners.
Once again Carlo Ancelotti’s men were clearly tired from their pre-season training regime and almost disinterested in the game during the first hour.
Lokomotiv Moscow were given a helping hand to take the lead, as Dario Simic accidentally nodded the ball into his own net past the stranded Zeljko Kalac.
Kaka was the liveliest of his squad and managed to draw level, beating former Roma goalkeeper Ivan Pelizzoli with a solo effort sparked by Cristian Brocchi.
However, before the break the Russians were able to score another couple of goals through Ivanovic and Odemwingie left totally unmarked.
Kalac also made way for Nelson Dida after taking a knock to his right ankle during the first half, while Willy Aubameyang – the only striker at Ancelotti’s disposal – missed at least two sitters.
Milan fought back with a late flurry of goals to make it 3-3 practically on the final whistle, when the tactics had been reshuffled so much that Marcos Cafu was playing upfront!
Clarence Seedorf gave his teammates hope and 90 seconds later Brocchi sealed the six-goal thriller, both goals set up by Marek Jankulovski.
So for the second time in this tournament, it went to penalties. Massimo Oddo, Jankulovski, Andrea Pirlo, Alessandro Nesta and Brocchi all successfully converted their kicks, but Dida’s one save on Kontsadelov proved decisive.
Lokomotiv Moscow 3-3 Milan
Scorers: Simic og 17 (L), Kaka 20 (M), Ivanovic 29 (L), Odemwingie 41 (L), Seedorf 88 (M), Brocchi 90 (M)
Milan: Kalac (Dida 33); Cafu, Bonera, Simic (Nesta 67), Favalli; Gattuso (Pirlo 67), Brocchi, Gourcuff, Serginho (Jankulovski 46); Kaka (Seedorf 46); Aubameyang (Oddo 67)
Lokomotiv Moscow: Pelizzoli, Spaic (Efimov 70), Ivanovic, Asatiani, Yanbaev, Gurenk, Samedov (Maminov 57), Bilyaletdinov, Odemwingie (Korchagin 89), Sychev (Draman 78), Traore (Kontsedalov 72)
Friendlies: Toon frustrate Samp
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Vincenzo Montella hit the woodwork as Sampdoria were unfortunate to lose 1-0 in a friendly at Newcastle United.
The Blucerchiati have already played competitive matches this season, eliminating Cherno More Varna from the Intertoto Cup 2-0 on aggregate.
They continued their preparation for the upcoming UEFA Cup second qualifying round clash with Hadjuk Split by playing this friendly at St James’ Park.
Former Fulham striker Montella was given a rare start to help gain match fitness, while Mark Viduka and Alan Smith both made their Toon debuts.
The Sampdoria shirt may well be reviving Montella, as he forced a difficult tackle out of David Rozenhal and moments later only a wonderful one-handed reaction save from Shay Given denied him the opening goal.
Ex-Chievo midfielder Paolo Sammarco skimmed the upright from distance and Gennaro Delvecchio (pictured) also caused problems as the Blucerchiati dominated the early stages.
Montella would have given the Italians the lead on 13 minutes when he pounced on a Charles N’Zogbia error, but the linesman flagged him offside.
Newcastle only really started to make an impact after 24 minutes, as Antonio Mirante rushed out to clear Smith’s flick towards Viduka.
The Australian fired just over, but Montella went even closer on the stroke of half-time with his marvellous volley clipping the crossbar.
Former Inter starlet Obafemi Martins came on for the second half, but Samp continued to have the better of the game and Rozenhal flung himself at Salvatore Foti’s strike to deny the youngster.
Smith had a goal disallowed for a tight offside decision, but Steve Harper had to work overtime with a fingertip save on Delvecchio’s looping header from a Hugo Campagnaro cross.
Martins wanted a penalty for his collision with Mirante and Newcastle broke through against the run of play soon after. Smith soared above the defence to nod Geremi’s corner into the net, but Samp should have marked the striker more closely.
Montella lasted 75 minutes, so he is well on the way to rediscovering his match fitness after several seasons blighted by injury.
Christian Maggio and N’Zgobia had free kicks palmed away, though Samp were very unlucky not to grab an equaliser in the final minute when Claudio Bellucci burned a hole in Harper’s gloves with a 20-yard screamer.
Newcastle 1-0 Sampdoria
Scorers: Smith 59 (N)
Newcastle United: Given (Harper 38), Carr, N’Zogbia, Rozenhal, Taylor, Solano (Ameobi 46), Milner (Ramage 69), Geremi, Butt, Smith, Viduka (Martins 46)
Sampdoria: Mirante, Sala, Lucchini, Bastrini, Maggio, Sammarco, Franceschini, Ziegler, Foti (Bellucci 58), Delvecchio, Montella (Caracciolo 75)
channel 4
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Milan took third place in the Moscow Tournament on penalties after a 3-3 draw with Lokomotiv Moscow.
The tie was eventually decided on spot-kicks – just as their first encounter of this competition with PSV Eindhoven earlier this week – but this time the Rossoneri emerged 8-7 winners.
Once again Carlo Ancelotti’s men were clearly tired from their pre-season training regime and almost disinterested in the game during the first hour.
Lokomotiv Moscow were given a helping hand to take the lead, as Dario Simic accidentally nodded the ball into his own net past the stranded Zeljko Kalac.
Kaka was the liveliest of his squad and managed to draw level, beating former Roma goalkeeper Ivan Pelizzoli with a solo effort sparked by Cristian Brocchi.
However, before the break the Russians were able to score another couple of goals through Ivanovic and Odemwingie left totally unmarked.
Kalac also made way for Nelson Dida after taking a knock to his right ankle during the first half, while Willy Aubameyang – the only striker at Ancelotti’s disposal – missed at least two sitters.
Milan fought back with a late flurry of goals to make it 3-3 practically on the final whistle, when the tactics had been reshuffled so much that Marcos Cafu was playing upfront!
Clarence Seedorf gave his teammates hope and 90 seconds later Brocchi sealed the six-goal thriller, both goals set up by Marek Jankulovski.
So for the second time in this tournament, it went to penalties. Massimo Oddo, Jankulovski, Andrea Pirlo, Alessandro Nesta and Brocchi all successfully converted their kicks, but Dida’s one save on Kontsadelov proved decisive.
Lokomotiv Moscow 3-3 Milan
Scorers: Simic og 17 (L), Kaka 20 (M), Ivanovic 29 (L), Odemwingie 41 (L), Seedorf 88 (M), Brocchi 90 (M)
Milan: Kalac (Dida 33); Cafu, Bonera, Simic (Nesta 67), Favalli; Gattuso (Pirlo 67), Brocchi, Gourcuff, Serginho (Jankulovski 46); Kaka (Seedorf 46); Aubameyang (Oddo 67)
Lokomotiv Moscow: Pelizzoli, Spaic (Efimov 70), Ivanovic, Asatiani, Yanbaev, Gurenk, Samedov (Maminov 57), Bilyaletdinov, Odemwingie (Korchagin 89), Sychev (Draman 78), Traore (Kontsedalov 72)
Friendlies: Toon frustrate Samp
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Vincenzo Montella hit the woodwork as Sampdoria were unfortunate to lose 1-0 in a friendly at Newcastle United.
The Blucerchiati have already played competitive matches this season, eliminating Cherno More Varna from the Intertoto Cup 2-0 on aggregate.
They continued their preparation for the upcoming UEFA Cup second qualifying round clash with Hadjuk Split by playing this friendly at St James’ Park.
Former Fulham striker Montella was given a rare start to help gain match fitness, while Mark Viduka and Alan Smith both made their Toon debuts.
The Sampdoria shirt may well be reviving Montella, as he forced a difficult tackle out of David Rozenhal and moments later only a wonderful one-handed reaction save from Shay Given denied him the opening goal.
Ex-Chievo midfielder Paolo Sammarco skimmed the upright from distance and Gennaro Delvecchio (pictured) also caused problems as the Blucerchiati dominated the early stages.
Montella would have given the Italians the lead on 13 minutes when he pounced on a Charles N’Zogbia error, but the linesman flagged him offside.
Newcastle only really started to make an impact after 24 minutes, as Antonio Mirante rushed out to clear Smith’s flick towards Viduka.
The Australian fired just over, but Montella went even closer on the stroke of half-time with his marvellous volley clipping the crossbar.
Former Inter starlet Obafemi Martins came on for the second half, but Samp continued to have the better of the game and Rozenhal flung himself at Salvatore Foti’s strike to deny the youngster.
Smith had a goal disallowed for a tight offside decision, but Steve Harper had to work overtime with a fingertip save on Delvecchio’s looping header from a Hugo Campagnaro cross.
Martins wanted a penalty for his collision with Mirante and Newcastle broke through against the run of play soon after. Smith soared above the defence to nod Geremi’s corner into the net, but Samp should have marked the striker more closely.
Montella lasted 75 minutes, so he is well on the way to rediscovering his match fitness after several seasons blighted by injury.
Christian Maggio and N’Zgobia had free kicks palmed away, though Samp were very unlucky not to grab an equaliser in the final minute when Claudio Bellucci burned a hole in Harper’s gloves with a 20-yard screamer.
Newcastle 1-0 Sampdoria
Scorers: Smith 59 (N)
Newcastle United: Given (Harper 38), Carr, N’Zogbia, Rozenhal, Taylor, Solano (Ameobi 46), Milner (Ramage 69), Geremi, Butt, Smith, Viduka (Martins 46)
Sampdoria: Mirante, Sala, Lucchini, Bastrini, Maggio, Sammarco, Franceschini, Ziegler, Foti (Bellucci 58), Delvecchio, Montella (Caracciolo 75)
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