Two days ago, I said that “…Lazio… free from Champions League duty, will be focused solely on Italian matches.”

After today’s performance, I’m gonna go out on a limb and say that yeah… Lazio look pretty damn focused.  So focused, in fact, that Juve were lucky… and they know it.

Simply put, Lazio played with the energy of kids just let out of school for the summer.  Free from homework, free from essays, free from the difficulties of their Champions League schedule, they appeared rejuvenated, and the numbers show it:

Shots (on Goal) 

• Lazio - 14(9)
• Juventus - 10(3)

Time of Possession

• Lazio - 63%
• Juventus - 37%

Saves

• Lazio - 0
• Juventus - 7

Unfortunately for the Biancocelesti, the statistic that matters the most (der… goals?) went in Juve’s favor, thanks to the heroics of Buffon, and yes, that guy Del Piero. (For more on the match, check out Martha’s write-up.)

Still though, there are 22 weeks left in the season - certainly enough time for Lazio to cause problems for other squads, assuming they can stay healthy.  Looking ahead, March is their tough month, as they face Milan, Udinese, Roma, Fiorentina… and Inter.  That said, if they come out of March with more than three points (Livorno’s in there too somewhere), Lazio are the real deal, boys and girls. Until then, just watch out for them at the playground.

Other Stuff:  From Foggia to Mancini to Berlusconi

Alright. We know that Cagliari has recently played host to WWE-style drama involving top-kid Foggia, but the news today is that said drama is probably responsible for his exclusion from the squad this weekend.  So yeah. Cagliari are closing the door on their best player on the eve of a match with Inter… as if chances of a Cagliari upset weren’t slim enough.

Speaking of Inter (aren’t we always?), Coach Mancini has played down Milan’s efforts in the Club World Cup, calling the length of the tournament “absurd,” while likening it to a friendly-fest.  Whether or not I agree with Mancini, it seems petty for him to be belittling what he knows is Milan’s primary focus this season.  At least Berlusconi was more diplomatic in his response, as usual.

Categories: Cagliari, Inter, Juventus, Lazio
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(ESPN: Roma and Juve have a chance.)

If ESPN is to be commended for one thing in relation to their calcio coverage, it has to be positive thinking.

They’re reporting that Juve and Roma have a “chance to close the gap” with Inter this weekend. While I would absolutely love to share their optimism, a quick look at their analysis has me thinking that their gap closing conclusion may be based upon a foundation of quicksand.

First of all, they point out, either explicitly or in passing, just about every factor that goes against Roma and Juve’s chance at closing the gap with Inter. For instance:

• Juve have won only once away from Turin this season, and they visit Olimpico this weekend.
• At Olimpico, Juve face Lazio, who, free from Champions League duty, will be focused solely on Italian matches.
• Juve will be without Camoranesi until January.
• Roma, who have had less rest due to Champions League duty, play Torino, who will be raring to go after taking a 4-0 pounding from Inter last weekend.
• Matrix is fit enough to start again, as evidenced against PSV.
• Barring an upset that would have me shedding tears of joy, Inter are sure to snag three points from Cagliari, who sit at the very bottom of the table.

So… yeah, ESPN, what were you saying about closing gaps again? The only news I’ve seen that could hinder Inter’s dominance in the near term centers around their list of injured players; ESPN is reporting that Viera, Figo, Dacourt, Jiminez and Stankovic are all injured. Oh - I almost forgot - The Great Zaltan is suspended, apparently. Yeah. Too bad he’ll probably be backed up by friggin’ Hernan Crespo. Oh. What a relief for Cagliari. It’s only Crespo. From Cagliari’s point of view, this has to be like Ken subbing in for Ryu in Street Fighter II.

Now that I’ve gotten all of the doom and gloom out of the way, here’s something… else. (What? I’ve already likened him to a Street Fighter II character. Is this that much worse? OK. Yeah. It is. The Great Zaltan can take it though, I’m sure.)

One more (unrelated) thing before I go… All Lucarelli needs is a buyer, and he’s back. I know, I know. We all pretty much knew it was going to happen, but it’s good to hear straight talk right from the player. I can’t wait to see where this guy ends up.

Categories: Inter, Juventus, Roma
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(Problems in Rome - as Usual)

What is it about Roma vs. Manchester that sets people off?

La Gazzetta dello Sport is reporting that today, seven fans (five Manchester supporters and two Roma supporters) were injured in clashes that took place in the vicinity of Stadio Olimpico. Thankfully, none of the injuries appear to be serious, although it sounds like there was quite a scene, with chairs, tables, bottles (from nearby bars), and smoke bombs, being thrown. Also, five people were arrested, four of whom were British or Romanian (the fifth presumably was Italian).

Update: Channel 4 Italia now has a piece about the incident, in which they specify that some of the injuries were stab wounds. Also, Ansa has upped the number of injured to nine. This next part is pure hearsay, but I did read in an Italian discussion thread that the Manchester fans involved in the incidents sought out the Roma supporters. I can’t find any articles to verify that, although La Gazzetta did point out that all went smoothly at all the stadium gates, including the one set aside for Manchester supporters. (See the video linked below. Obviously, La Gazzetta was wrong.)

Another Update: A police chief in the UK is running his mouth off, stepping light years outside of his jurisdiction.  He’s probably a Manchester supporter.  Here’s a video of the incident, after the stupid ad.  Things don’t look too calm at the gates after all.

In Other News…

Lazio must be stupid. (No offense intended to any Lazio tifosi; that comment is aimed squarely at the team’s management.) Having just crashed out of the Champions League with the grace of a three-legged water buffalo, Lazio need to be reminded that Tommaso Rocchi is (as far as I’ve seen) the best player on the squad. Perhaps before they start looking to sign new players, they should work to keep their current stand-outs.

Man, I hear ya, Giorgio. Chiellini has made some comments in agreement with those of Daniele De Rossi, remarking that it’s unbelievable pain in the a$$ to trail Inter. While at the beginning of the season, it seemed like the Nerazzurri were getting lucky here and there, now it appears that they’ve turned it up a notch, which I didn’t even think was possible. It’s maddening, and a look at Inter’s schedule doesn’t do anything to restore my sanity.

Speaking of Inter… they actually fielded three Italians today against PSV. I know - My jaw almost dropped through the floor too! In honor of this vast Nerazzurri achievement, I have refrained from calling them ArgentInter in this post. If anyone’s wondering what Italians they even own, Bolzoni and Matrix started, and Puccio came on late. Wonders never cease.

Categories: Champions League, Inter, Lazio, Roma
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(Mancini! Are you afraid?)

Woah, woah, woah! What’s with all of the high-profile matches in Week 14? With each of the top five squads facing each other (or Milan), you’d think that we were in some kind of a knockout stage!

Tonight, it’s Juventus at Milan, while tomorrow, Inter visit Fiorentina and Udinese travel to Roma. Now - with those fixtures in mind - take a peek at the upper quarter of the table:

• Inter - 28 pts
• Roma - 25 pts
• Juventus - 25 pts
• Udinese - 25 pts
• Fiorentina - 24 pts

(That’s how it looks as of today, prior to tonight’s Juve - Milan match.)

As you can see, Inter’s situation is a little… shall we say… tight?

It wouldn’t be surprising then, if the Nerazzurri coach, Roberto Mancini, was feeling a bit of pressure.

What is be a surprise, however, is the fact that he has decided to verbally undermine Fiorentina’s credentials as a Scudetto contender.

Yep. His exact words were as follows:

“It will be a very difficult match and we need a great performance to overcome this obstacle.”

“Over the years they will become a great side. Although not Scudetto contenders now because with a lot of young players there can be a lack of consistency, if they remain united for a number of years then they can create a winning cycle.”

Roberto, you do realize that up until two weeks ago, Fiorentina were the only squad undefeated in Serie A play (other than Inter, of course), right?

At least he acknowledges that Inter face a difficult test, but his suggestion that Fiorentina “will become a great side… if they remain united for a number of years” doesn’t quite sit right with me.

News flash: Fiorentina are one of the best sides in Calcio, Mancini, and they’re “great” enough to be right on your a**.

His comments make even less sense on the eve of a match in which Inter will be without Vieira, Toldo, and Figo, while the Viola are getting back Ujfalusi, Gamberini, and Pasqual. Not only that, but it’s an away match for Inter, and as of late, when Inter doesn’t win, it’s been outside the protection of the San Siro.

So, is Mancini just trying to wind Fiorentina up, or is this how his fear of finally losing has manifested itself? I say it’s the latter, and I truly hope the Viola can bring the Nerazzurri down a notch.

By the way, I would just like to point out that I didn’t call them ArgentInter anywhere in the post above… but now I need to get it out of my system, so here goes: ArgentInter! A-R-G-E-N-T-I-N-T-E-R, as in Argentina + Inter = ArgentInter!  Now go out and get some Italian players, damnit!  Freakin’ ArgentInter! Damn!

Now I feel better.

Categories: Fiorentina, Inter
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(Serie A has returned!)

Aaaaannnd we’re back to our scheduled programming. So, what’s going on, you ask? Well, here’s my best attempt at a round-up:

First off, two matches were played already:

Genoa 0-1 Roma

• There are actually two things to talk about here. First off, Cristian Panucci (a.k.a. The Old Man) - the guy responsible for the Azzurri’s game-winner in Scotland - saved the day here as well, this time with a header in the 89th minute. Whatever you’re doing, Old Man, can you please get your teammates to start? Thanks.
• Speaking of which (and this brings me to our second talking point), Roma need to start taking vitamins or something. As Chris at Offside pointed out before the match, to say that Roma has caught the injury bug would be a gross understatement. Injury bear is more like it.

Inter 2-1 Atalanta

• Everyone, your attention please! ArgentInter fielded an Italian today, when Materazzi came on for Dacourt in the 88th minute. [crowd]Oooooohhhhh! Aaaaaaaaaahhhh![/crowd] Thank you. That is all.
• Actually, that’s not all. I have to point out that Inter got lucky… again. With all of the non-Italians on the team, I’m starting to wonder whether or not there’s a lucky Irishman in the mix somewhere. They are that lucky. If one of them starts riverdancing, or if someone mentions a pot o’ gold or charms of any kind, (is that how they pay for The Great Zaltan and the Argentinian Superstars?) we’ll know something is afoot. Seriously, Atalanta should have at least drawn level. Actually, if you read between Mancini’s words, you can tell that he soiled his pants during the match.

Elsewhere in the Lega Calcio:

• FatRon is set to return against Cagliari… maybe. Ugh. In the same match, Pasquale Foggia of Cagliari may play the role of trequartista. If there’s any action from the home team, expect Foggia to be involved. Unfortunately, Gattuso will probably scare the poor kid off of the pitch.
• I fully expect Fiorentina to leapfrog Roma and slip into second place, as they face Reggina tomorrow. If not, the Viola could go on an untimely slide, as they were upset by Udinese back in Week 12.
• I think Juventus will have a hard time with Palermo, but will come away with the win in the end. Juve will be without Lanky Chiellini, but they’ll be looking to pick up the pace after drawing in their last two matches.
• Catania are visiting Napoli this week, and although they’re a solid side (relatively speaking), they’re 0-5-1 on the road. That said, I am expecting a win for Napoli.

It sure is nice to have calcio back, isn’t it? I know it was only a couple weeks, but it feels like we were caught in an international wormhole or something. (Speaking of international stuff, the draws for World Cup 2010 qualifying groups are set to take place tomorrow; it’s going to be a busy day.)

Categories: Atalanta, Cagliari, Catania, Fiorentina, Genoa, Inter, Juventus, Milan, Napoli, Reggina, Roma, injuries
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(The Man who Speaks to His Leg)

• He’s Inter’s only Italian starter, and may be Serie A’s most infamous defender.
• He leveled the score with a righteous header in the World Cup final.
• He was the recipient of the most famous headbutt in sporting history.
• He talks to his leg.

Wait… what?

Everyone knows that Marco Materazzi has a touch of the pazzo, but did anyone know (until now) that he speaks to his leg? Well… in all fairness, he may not speak to his leg anymore, but he did while recovering from his thigh injury, apparently.

Leg-talking or not, many will be happy to see Matrix back in action when Inter face Atalanta (with no Atalanta fans in attendance) this weekend. Even more will be happy that The Don now has another rock-solid defender at his disposal (assuming he’s the same ol’ Matrix).

Welcome back, Marco!

Poor Montella! Poor Sampdoria!

I can’t think of anything worse that could possibly happen to Samdoria. With Cassano typically either hurt or acting like a complete jacka*s (or both), I saw Vincenzo Montella as the blucerchiati’s only hope. Now, due to an injury picked up last week, he’s headed for a surgery that will sideline him for two months.

Sorry Montella. Hopefully, you’ll be back on track in January.

Totti In… No… Totti Out

I haven’t been posting much about Totti’s injury, mainly because it’s been misinformation since day one. Whether it’s mind games from Spalletti or honest confusion, I don’t know.

First, we were told that Il Capitano’s injury was minor. Then, for weeks, we were told that he’d return against the next opponent, only to be let down as each match approached.

Anyway, he’s out again for the Genoa match, and I’m not even going to mention his name again until he puts on the maglia Giallorossi and steps onto the pitch ready to play.

So there.

Everyone Loves Pirlo

Maybe it’s because Andrea isn’t a vocal guy, and others feel the need to make sure his presence is known. Maybe it’s because he is the second coming of the Codino (well… sort of). Whatever the reason, the big guns of calcio have been keen on pointing out the greatness of Andrea Pirlo as of late.

Most recently, Gianni Rivera has made a case for Pirlo, and not long ago, the normally reclusive Roberto Baggio (only like… the greatest Italian footballer ever) has given Pirlo his endorsement.

I’ll say one thing, if there’s a dead-ball specialist in Serie A, it’s Pirlo for damn sure:

Categories: Inter, Milan, Roma, Sampdoria, injuries
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(Blatter: Inter should be more Italian.)

Gosh, Sepp… ya think?

Blatter, who has had a rocky relationship with Italian soccer, recently pointed out what many have been saying for quite a while now: with only one Italian starter (Matrix) and only five Italians on their 28-man roster, Inter doesn’t look very Italian.

A little digging reveals that Blatter has been on the “we should use home-grown players” bandwagon for a while now. In fact, he’s recently been pushing for a ruling that would limit the number of foreign on-field starters to five, a move that would surely end Inter’s reign at the top of the table. While a current EU law hinders such a move, Blatter contends that it does not apply to soccer.

According to the Goal.com article linked above, changes could be implemented as early as next month, which leaves me scratching my head. Surely, Inter’s management are aware of the possibly impending changes. That said, why aren’t they preparing? Is Inter going to put up a “Help wanted: Italians inquire within” sign in January, or do they just not believe that it can happen?

I’ll have my ear to the ground on this in case there are any other developments.

Meanwhile, back on the peninsula…

• The Atalanta-Milan match that was interrupted by Atalanta ultras following Gabrielle Sandri’s death will be played (date TBA). That said, the match will take place behind closed doors. Additionally, Atalanta fans are banned from their team’s Week 13 tie with Inter.

• Despite hopeful whispers to the contrary, Totti will not be returning to the Azzurri… or at least, not any time soon. In other news, “retired” still means “retired.”

• Giancarlo Abete, top dog at the FIGC, says The Don isn’t going anywhere at the moment. (Good for you, Don. Now if you could just get over your penchant for substitutions that don’t make sense. *cough*IaquintaForDiNatale*cough*)

• Although everyone seems to have forgotten about it, the Azzurri have a date with Faroe Islands coming up. Faroe Islands are likely to start three Jacobsens (no, seriously), and The Don will most likely have Quagliarella, Gilardino, and maybe even Palladino on the pitch from the start. Hopefully, they’ll keep the carpenter at an arm’s length. Forza Azzurri!

Categories: Atalanta, Azzurri, Euro 2008, Inter
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