18 yards

Sunday meant a lot to Milan for various reasons. The debut of Alexandre Pato, the return of Ronaldo from injury and a convincing display against Napoli to remove the jinx of playing at home this season (Milan had not won at home all season).  The Brazilian connection between Ronaldo, Pato and Kaka’ did not disappoint.

Ronaldo had a good opportunity early on, although it was blocked, he didn’t have to wait long to begin celebrations. On 10 minutes the phenomenon was set up by Kaka’ and found the goal after his shot deflected off the keeper. The Napoli defence tried to clear it off the line but it had already crossed. Pato had a furious long-range effort blocked as it proved to hot to hold on to. Napoli equalised on 27 minutes through a lovely team play that Milan’s defense had no answer for.

On 31 minutes Milan took the lead again. Although Napoli’s keeper, Iezzo was on fire, he could only block so many attempts. Pato had two chances which were blocked before the ball fell in front of Seedorf for him to smash into the back of the net. A few minutes later Iezzo was called on again to block Pato’s near post shot and soon after Kaladze gave away a penalty. A rare event of late that the Milan attack was doing so much better than their defense. The match was tied again 2-2 going into the break.

Less than a minute after the restart, Ronaldo found the back of the net again, heading in a Seedorf cross. Reminding everyone that he’s the world player of the year, Kaka’ added his name to the score sheet in the 68th minute. Finally Pato wrapped things up and completed a memorable debut to confirm the hype surrounding him. A great display of strength and poise in front of goal fitting of one much older than him. The youngster dedicated the goal to his family and girlfriend. Pato also paid his respects to Ronaldo who he idolised growing up and considers it a dream playing alongside him.

Ronaldo has send out a message that he’s not quite ready to call it quits in Europe and return to Brazil. He wishes to repay the faith and patience that Milan has given him, the living legend Maldini himself commended Ronaldo’s efforts during training, labeling him as one of the hardest workers on the team. If he continues to do well, he will surely get a contract extension, Berlusconi was also quick to state that “His love story with Milan will not end in six months’ time”.

Ancelotti has applauded Ronaldo’s performance last night, he commented how Milan played very well, especially Ronaldo. It’s a great start after being out for 6 months, it’s only the second appearance for the team this season so hopefully with increasing fitness he can continue to improve. The coach was also full of praise for Pato who not only scored in his debut but was also provider for a great number of scoring chances. He commended his pace, ability to turn and shoot and that now the job is just to ensure he’s getting enough of the ball. However, Ancelotti reserved his man of the match vote for Clarence Seedorf. He was involved in all of the plays and adapted to the deeper role without fuss, a true team player.

Check out the highlights, well worth it.

There seems to have been a lot of speculation and drama surrounding Ronaldo over the last few weeks. It seems that Flamengo (The Rio-based club) have been pulling out all stops and schemes to sign the phenomenon.

It all started when the press in both Italy and Brazil quoted the Flamengo president as saying that Milan had authorised talks to begin taking place between Ronaldo and the Brazilian club. To me it seems that someone over there got a little too excited when Adriano was loaned to Sao Paulo by Inter so he can try to recover from his problems and rediscover his form. AC Milan actually released an official announcement the day after Christmas which clearly denied any authorisation to begin transfer talks with any club.

Ronaldo has been back in Brazil for a while, seeking help from the Selecao doctor to cure his injury woes (he doesn’t seem to have a great relationship with the Milan doctors after they botched up his last injury diagnosis), as well as partying it up with another out of form Brazilian striker. The latest injury to Ronaldo was a first-grade calf injury which happened while warming up for his return during a match but the Selecao doctor was happy with the progress and cleared him to meet up with Milan in Dubai for a winter-break training camp.

The Flamengo president, Kleber Leite, continued to stir the pot by saying that Ronaldo was keen to join the club. He continued by saying that he wasn’t interested in Milan’s refusal to sell the striker and that within two weeks there would be an offer. He was expecting Ronaldo to buy out the rest of his own contract and play with Flamengo until 2010 after which he would be an ambassador for the club. The club hoped to pay his salary by allowing to hold on his image rights, probably a fair amount of cash there but still hardly tempting for one of Ronaldo’s prestige.

The fans certainly want Ronaldo to wear the Flamengo black and red over the Milan version, as you can see in what they lifted from the stands in a recent game. It’s no secret that the club is in his heart and that he’s always been a supporter but a return is still a bit early I think, he can still make some impact in Europe. Flamengo will be turning to their sponsors (probably Nike especially) in a desperate bid to raise enough money to lure him back to Rio.

Ronaldo played 45 minutes in the friendly against the UAE which ended 2-0 in favour of Milan. He was quoted as saying that he is recovering well and will be fit for when Serie A resumes on Sunday and that although he is aware of Flamengo’s interest, he is still keen to prove himself at Milan. He is keen to repay the faith Milan have shown in him and earn a spot in the team. Hopefully this will be easy enough with Inzaghi injured again and Gilardino not playing very consistently or well for that matter. Although January both bring about the debut of “The Duck”, Alexandre Pato. A powerful Brazilian trio could be formed with the duck, the phenomenon and world player of the year, Kaka’, helping to lift Milan from their mediocre standing in the middle of the table. Galliani has said that he would consider a new contract depending on how Ronaldo’s fitness holds up over the rest of the season.

Here are some highlights from the UAE game, Ronaldo came be seen in action coming close with a header!

A quick post to summarise the result between Inter and Milan in the classic Milan derby.

The game ended 2-1 in Inter’s favour with goals from Julio Cruz and Cambiasso on either side of half-time. Adrea Pirlo opened the scoring to put Milan up 1-0 from a trademark free-kick just outside the box around 17 mins although Ibrahimovic was unlucky not to score early on with a powerful volley just above the bar from a Maicon cross.

Dida saved Milan on 19 minutes by tipping away a cross that was about to hit the feet of an Inter player. He took a knock from one of his players for his trouble and almost conceded as the ball was shot into the bar from the deflection. Around 32 minutes, Kaka’ went on a blazing run that had Samuel not knowing which way to turn, in fact it looked like he twisted his knee on the final turn. On 35 minutes, Julio Cruz leveled the score with a pin-point accurate shot, slotting the ball through defenders, legs and the near post.

There were signs a second goal was coming and on 62 minutes, Cambiasso took a shot that wrong-footed Dida who could only helplessly wave his legs aroung in a futile attempt to deflect the ball away, 2-1 Inter. Finally towards the end of the game Kaka’ had a volley saved by his fellow country-man, Julio Cesar. He was also unlucky not to score and could very well have tied the match.

So Milan and Juventus will square off this weekend in what is usually a much anticipated match up. Unfortunately the season is far from nearing crunch time and Milan are well off the pace at the moment anyway, so it won’t be as decisive a match as it usually is. Milan is sitting in 9th place with 17 points while their Turin rivals are only 3 points behind Inter on 25 (although Inter have a game in hand). The outcome will be important for Juventus but not so much for AC Milan who could end up doing their city-rivals a favour if they win.

Buffon has stated that he is confident Juventus can beat Milan and spoke out about Milan’s inability to win at home this season. Seedorf believes that Juventus will play a more open game than the smaller teams which tend to close up the back and prevent many scoring chances. I think that Milan will have their work cut out for them as Juve is in fine form and has proven many who said they would not be competitive this season wrong. With a focus only on the league, they do not have to be careful about which players to use and which to rest.

In terms of injuries, Milan may not have Seedorf’s services after he picked up an ankle injury against Benfica in the champions league. Camoranesi is a doubt for the match after muscle fatigue during training, he had returned from a long spell on the side lines but Ranieri insists that he will not use him unless he is one hundred percent. Ronaldo is also out after injuring his calf during his warm up on the sidelines for the match against Benfica. He played well during Cagliari but it looks like his injury woes will continue again. It’s a shame because I’m sure he wanted to pay Juventus back for the way they cheated Inter in 1998. A match that more than likely cost Inter the Scudetto of that year.

Have a look at the footage and decide for yourself, a clear and definite penalty denied at one end and a soft one given at the other within seconds. At least Juve have cleaned their act up since then.

Just a quick post about another new up and coming star. Brazil’s hero of the under-17s south american cup. His name is Lulinha and he currently plays for Corinthians in Brazil. He’s also attracted the attention of Chelsea with a couple of scouts sent to watch him in league action impressed with what they saw! They’re apparently very keen to sign him in the January transfer window because they already missed out on another rising star in Alexandre Pato (signed by Milan).

He ended up scoring 12 goals during the south American championships which is highly impressive as a midfielder/second striker and considering that was in only 7 matches! Check him out in action below, as Brazil hand Bolivia a hefty drubbing.

I love it whenever a player speaks out hypothetically and the press goes wild. Kaka’ was interview earlier this week by Esquire magazine and was quoted as expressing interest in playing in England or Spain if he were to ever leave Milan… Well shock, horror! If you’re not playing in Italy, what are the other major leagues in Europe? That’s right, in England and Spain.

He merely stated that he’d want a move to a club with the history, ability and stature of Milan. He did elaborate somewhat and went on to say that he prefer’s Arsenal and Manchester United over Liverpool and Chelsea. He was actually quite diplomatic in his manner of basically saying that neither Liverpool or Chelsea are playing the sort of inspiring, attractive football he’d want to be involved in. Can’t blame him!

He was also recently named FIFPro World Player of the Year. Many saw him as not only the inspiration but the main driving force in taking Milan to their seventh European trophy earlier this year. He was the top scorer in the competition (don’t forget he’s a midfielder, not a striker!) and was voted as the best player by footballers from all around the globe (45,000 were eligible to vote!). In fact, Christiano Ronaldo has praised him as the best player of the moment (although he did rate Man U over Milan).

Kaka’ joins three others from Milan to enter the running for the Fifa World Player 2007. An award voted by the coaches and captains of all the national teams. Many are already tipping him to win this award (although I think he would’ve boosted his chances had he player in the Copa America winning selecao side). Kaka’ himself said he is confident that he has a good chance to win but also returned the favour in stating that Christiano Ronaldo may take the award because of his blistering performances that took Manchester United to a domestic title. Either way, sit back for some great Kaka’ footage!

Ronaldo is in more hot water, which is probably a good thing to help heal his thigh injury which has been revealed to be more serious than initially thought.

It looks like Ronaldo will miss at least another month of action. The AC Milan medics have admitted to getting the diagnosis of his thigh injury somewhat wrong. Earlier Ronaldo’s Brazilian doctor, Jose Luis Runco, blasted the medical staff for their diagnosis and treatment. Ronaldo travelled to Antwerp to get a second opinion because his progress had stalled and since received permission to return to Rio de Janeiro to receive treatment there.

It is this very treatment that is stirring up a lot of controversy currently because of the use of gene therapy (which is banned in Italy but a-okay in Brazil! :). The Italian Olympic Committee’s anti-doping prosecutor indicated that he may open an investigation on the use of this therapy. The therapy uses a natural protein to stimulate cell proliferation and is called “growth factor” and was initially developed to treat cancer. This could be regarded as doping by the committee and would be yet another blow to Ronaldo getting things back on track! Personally I don’t see how using your own blood’s proteins to heal yourself could be doping or banned!?

If you’re actually interested in the science behind the treatment, see the video below for a good explaination.

It seems that the main reason for Ronaldo’s weight problems over the last few years has been found. Milan labs have discovered that hypothyroidism caused him to gain a considerable amount of weight, even though you could hardly call him unfit. It seems that a strict training regime in conjunction with medication for the condition has helped him shed an extra 5kgs and he is well on track to returning to his ideal weight and hopefully, the amazing form that lead to him being known as the phenomenon.

The illness means that insufficient thyroid hormone is produced in the thyroid gland and this can cause weight gain among many other symptoms that wouldn’t have helped Ronaldo to be his best either! The spanish media and fans were ruthless in ridiculing his weight problem, calling him “el gordo” (the fatty) and constantly questioning him over it. Apparently when he arrived at the 2006 world cup training camp he was over 100kgs. Thankfully he is already appearing much more slimmed down, so the training and medication are already helping.

Unfortunately Ronaldo is still recovering from a thigh injury but Ancelotti is suggesting he should be back for the match against Sienna. I sure hope so, in the meantime, see below for what a slender Ronaldo used to be able to do and cross your fingers with me in the hopes of seeing more beautiful football.

It seems that the big Italian clubs have been busy securing (or at least trying to) transfers before the deadline.

Roma seem to have sealed the Cicinho deal which works out well for the player since Real Madrid’s new coach has him playing on the left but mostly had the Brazilian out of his plans anyway. Since Cicinho has an Italian passport, he won’t take up a foreigners spot which is advantageous for Roma.

As for Juve, they’re madly chasing after Gilberto Silva, but will Arsenal sell another of their experienced, core players? It seems that they’re at least considering it by asking for about 50% more than Juve have offered so far…

Inter have Deco in their sights but so do Newcastle. Inter has more money to throw at Barca but an auction isn’t going to help get Deco for a reasonable price. He’s definitely a player that can make the difference with creative play and hard work, Inter can surely do with him.

AC Milan are trying to nab Emerson from Real Madrid. They seem to like their older players. Failing that, they may go after Motta who seems to have had his fill at Barca. He has just under a year on his contract so Barca would be keen to prevent a free transfer at the end.

Sure are a lot of Brazilians moving about…

An unlikely heroe of late sealed a 1-0 victory for Inter Milan against arch rivals AC Milan in the final of the TIM cup (A small preseason tournament). See the goal below, pure Recoba of old, so good to see again.

I’ve always admired Recoba, he’s been at Inter for such a long time, it’s always been said that he could(’ve) been the worlds best. What happened to all that immense potential? I guess some of it was realised from time to time but he has always been plagued with injuries. It’s pretty tragic and I know what it’s like to have long term niggling injuries that don’t seem to go away.

It seems like he’ll move away from Inter finally which is probably a good choice for him as he’s now on the wrong side of 30 and probably doesn’t have much playing time left. He finds world-class competition for a starting spot with Ibrahimovic, Crespo, Adriano, Cruz and now Suazo.

Check out below why he was always highly rated and the moments that etched him into the hearts of many an Inter fan…

PS: The music is pretty dodgy but you forget about it pretty quick after seeing that lethal left foot!

2007 - Sept - 15; Update: Recoba is now on loan to Torino. Good luck El Chino! He has been at Inter since 1997, made 261 appearances and scored 72 goals.