I was actually heartened and moderately impressed by most of our first half performance. Inter made better chances, but we had a couple of chances also. We were NOT second to every ball. We fought as well as Inter fought. Marchisio and Melo in the middle were both in fine form. It was one of my favourite 40 minutes or so of Melo this season...perhaps the same of Marchisio, as both were true central midfielders, cleaning up at the back, moving the game left, right, forward.
Momo was wretched. His best moment of the game came after yet another truly shocking Give Away pass. His recovery was perfect, but when a player's best moments are recovering from his own awful errors, he obviously doesn't offer anything positive to the team. The more mistakes he makes, the more frustrated he becomes, the more likely he is to pick up cards and get sent off, and conribute largely to another loss for our team. I used to love him, but not now. His passing game has become far more hurtful to our cause than his tackling and athelticism aids our cause. He is ONE of the very few reasons, my opinion of Benitez isn't dully rock bottom, because the dirty spaniard had the intelligence to realize, obviously, that Momo cannot play as part of a team which wants to pass fluidly and rapidly.
Diego...it was cool to see him back, and yet again he showed that of all our players he is the one hardest to steal the ball from, as well as without Camo, his passing is the best on the field.
DP...up for it, but up against it also. Especially with an overly static, headless chicken Iaquinta as his strike partner.
Both centrebacks, I thought, were quality.
As others have suggested...it was our fullbacks that really cost us. Zebina and Grosso are of a level that even the lower ranking teams in Serie A, would have to be desperate to use as starters.
Overall...I take some pleasure from the definite increase in spirit, from the last few weeks to last night. There was an obvious difference, but then again, I expected it, as we were playing our most bitter of rivals. And there is more than historical jousting at the top to consider...there is also the recent revelations and ongoing caliopoli trials.
The only swipe at Zach is aiming for the point once Momo got sent off and replacing a poor Iaquinta with an even poorer Amauri.