Internazionale Main Thread IV

[Totally FRANK]

Lomba, were you going for a 4-3-3? I think we will switch to that next season.

We need a good RB as a back up for Zanetti. Perraira has disappointed this season and we can't rely on Nagatomo and Zanetti to play all games and deliver.

[Lombardiamia]

Oops indeed I made a 3-3-3 formation...

Presumably we will be looking at something resembling a 4-3-3 formation next year. Strama always preferred going with a 3-men forward line and has more than once insisted for a wide forward. Coutinho & Sneijder's departure show the intention of going with something without using a trequartista.
Indeed a RB is essential. Nagatomo has greatly improved on the left flank but even though he is a natural right-foot, he seems to be much less effective on the right. Unfortunately a good, modern right back isn't easily found on the market especially considering our low budget.

[kros]

[red]

Nah, it's just making fun of the silly '30 sul campo' thing Juve have on their shirts.

[Messinterista]

Sampdoria 0 - 2 Inter
Palacio 43, 93 (I)
Stadio Luigi Ferraris

Rodrigo Palacio’s brace allowed Inter to snatch a 2-0 victory away to Sampdoria in a rescheduled Serie A fixture, as they go joint fifth alongside Lazio.

This Week 29 game was originally scheduled for March 17, but called off after flood warnings in the city. Juan Jesus returned from suspension, though Esteban Cambiasso was banned and the likes of Yuto Nagatomo, Cristian Chivu, Dejan Stankovic, Diego Milito and Joel Obi injured. Eder sat out a ban for Samp with Andrea Costa sidelined. Antonio Cassano returned to face his former club.

In the opening minute a Gianluca Sansone header was straight at Samir Handanovic, then moments later Sergio Romero got his fingertips to the ball when Rodrigo Palacio was clear on goal, taking him wide.

Handanovic was again tested, as he had to palm an Icardi header out from under the bar on Sansone’s corner kick.

Andrea Poli was booked for simulation against his former club and will be suspended for Sampdoria’s next game. Sansone fired a weak effort straight at the Inter goalkeeper and Angelo Palombo held his ground to stop Fredy Guarin on the edge of the box.

Handanovic was easily the busier goalkeeper in the first half and flew to fingertip a fierce Nenad Krsticic strike out of the far top corner on 34 minutes.

Jonathan almost gave away a goal when he slipped over twice inside his own penalty area, but Icardi was unable to make the most of the howler.

Samp were pouring on the pressure, but it was Inter who took the lead just before the break. A cross was whipped in from the left by Alvaro Pereira and Palacio got between the centre-backs for a precise glancing header. Romero got a hand to it, but could not keep the ball out from the far top corner of the net.

The Blucerchiati tried to fight back immediately, as Poli’s shot was charged down and Marcelo Estigarribia’s follow-up dipped just over the bar. At the other end, Palacio’s angled drive flashed across the face of goal.

Palombo’s free kick was off target after the restart and Handanovic got down to palm a Sansone snapshot round the far post. Icardi nodded a Lorenzo De Silvestri cross over and Shkodran Mustafi blocked Palacio’s attempt from a Cassano assist.

Handanovic smothered a Pedro Obiang strike on the volley and De Silvestri left two Inter defenders on the ground when he skipped down the right, but none of his teammates could get on to the end of the pull-back from the by-line.

A powerful Maxi Lopez free kick was plucked out from under the bar by Handanovic, who also smothered another effort from the Argentine.

Guarin should’ve scored Inter’s second in the final minute when Palacio got away from Mustafi and rolled across for the Colombian, who blasted over the bar from an excellent position.

Palacio decided to go for goal himself and it proved a wise plan, as he dribbled past three defenders to slip a delicate angled drive beneath Romero at the near post.

This result ended a run of four consecutive home wins for Samp, who in that period had scored 12 goals and conceded only one.

Sampdoria: Romero; Mustafi, Palombo, Gastaldello; De Silvestri, Poli, Krsticic (Munari 86), Obiang, Estigarribia (Poulsen 77); Sansone (Maxi Lopez 59), Icardi
Inter: Handanovic; Jonathan (Silvestre 58), Ranocchia, Juan Jesus, Pereira; Zanetti, Kovacic, Gargano; Guarin; Palacio, Cassano (Kuzmanovic 67)
Ref: Banti

Source: http://www.football-italia.net/SerieA/match/22389

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Finally 3 points away from home.

[RomaShield27]

Mourinho delays Inter return
Thursday April 4 2013 / Football Italia

Real Madrid tactician Jose Mourinho says he will return to former club Inter, but not for the 2013-14 campaign. It had been suggested that the Portuguese Coach, who led the Nerazzurri to an historic treble, could replace Andrea Stramaccioni over the summer.

“I want to go back to Inter at some stage, but not next season,” he said after Real’s 3-0 win over Galatasaray in the Champions League. “That is not a lie, that is my heart talking.

“I repeat, I want to go back to Inter, like I want to go back to England, but it won’t be next season” the ex-Chelsea man continued. “My next club will certainly not be Inter.”

Mourinho, who spent two years at San Siro after his arrival in 2008, was also asked for an opinion on Juventus’ 2-0 loss at Bayern Munich on Tuesday.

“Both are great teams who could win the competition,” he added. “I wasn’t surprised that the Germans won and I wouldn’t be surprised if Juve won the return.”

[Lombardiamia]

Missed the match yesterday. Didn't know we were playing that early...but seems I haven't lost much.

[kros]

No, but at least the improvement that was seen vs Tottenham and Juve was still present. Anyone else agrees that Palacio's second goal was pure class?

[kros]

[Messinterista]

Did Inter sign a 35-year-old West?

Taribo West may have been 12 years older than he claimed while appearing for Inter and then Milan, reports suggest.

Partizan Belgrade chief Zarko Zecevic has alleged that the former Nigerian defender lied about his date of birth during his playing career.

“He said he was 28 when he joined us,” Zecevic stated. “We later found out he was 40, but he was still playing well that I don’t regret having him on the team.”

Partizan signed the stopper in 2002 and he spent two years with the outfit.

If the allegations are correct then West was signed by Inter in 1997 as a 35-year-old rather than a 23-year-old.

He moved to city rivals Milan in 1999.

Source: http://www.football-italia.net/32666/di ... r-old-west

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For lols because my next post is going to be too depressing...

[Messinterista]

Palacio out for up to a month

Inter striker Rodrigo Palacio could be out for up to a month after limping out of this afternoon's training session.

The Argentine forward pulled up today reporting a muscular problem, with the Nerazzurri due to carry out tests over the next few hours to determine the extent of the injury.

It seems almost certain that the thigh strain will see him miss the match against Atalanta this weekend, but some outlets are claiming that it could see the 31-year-old sidelined until May.

The news will be devastating for fans of the San Siro side, as the club are already without main goal-threat Diego Milito following a long-term knee injury.

Source: http://www.football-italia.net/32683/palacio-out-month

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FUCK FUCK FUCK! Sums up our season eh?

[Totally FRANK]

[red]

Is John Carew still available?

[Lombardiamia]

[Messinterista]

MATCH PREVIEW
Serie A Week 31 - 7 Apr 2013
Inter - Atalanta
Stadio Giuseppe Meazza

Inter hope to build on their victory at Sampdoria and continue to chase down a top-three spot as they host Atalanta at San Siro.

Inter put in an efficient performance against the Blucerchiati on Wednesday as two goals from Rodrigo Palacio saw them climb level with Lazio in fifth place. The Nerazzurri still have a lot of work to do though, if they are to make up the seven-point gap to rivals Milan and the final Champions League spot.

However, the team has shown positive signs since the victory over Tottenham and despite the defeat to Juventus last weekend, Andrea Stramaccioni will still believe they can pull off an unlikely comeback in the race for third.

But just when the Nerazzurri’s injury problems seemed to be clearing up, they were rocked by news of a muscular injury to Palacio that is likely to keep him out for up to 20 days. One can expect to see Walter Samuel feature again, though, after he was rested for the trip to Marassi. Stramaccioni went back to a four-man defence against Delio Rossi’s side, and will probably stick with the 4-3-1-2 formation again for the visit of the side from Bergamo.

Mateo Kovacic is developing into a key player for this Inter side and he is maturing with every passing game. With Walter Gargano suspended, the young Croat should keep his place in the starting XI on Sunday night. By contrast, Fredy Guarin, who impressed all at the start of the season, has suffered a blip in form and could be dropped to the bench.

For visitors Atalanta, this small trip down south doesn’t have too much bearing. They sit 16th in the table, but a full eight points clear of Genoa and can feel relatively safe at this stage. They do need to be careful though as they have some important games coming up.

The Orobici also played Sampdoria in their last match and were held to a 0-0 draw by the Blucerchiati at home. Their defeat of Inter from earlier this season will give them a model to work with for this game. In fact, the Nerazzuri’s clean sheet against Samp was only their second since early December.

Atalanta’s front pairing of German Denis and Inter-loanee Marko Livaja could pose problems for the hosts’ rather fragile defence. Both forwards read the game quite well, and will try and catch Inter’s centre-backs unawares. The visitors will miss out on Stefano Luchini and first-choice keeper Andrea Consigli for this game through suspension.

There is a lot riding for Inter on Sunday night, and with Milan and Fiorentina facing off earlier on the same day, this could be their chance to make up some ground in the race for third.

Keep an eye on: Marko Livaja (Atalanta) – The young Croat will be eager to impress against his parent club, and given Inter’s vast number of injuries in the striker’s department his loan move to Bergamo is looking increasingly like a wrong move.

Stat fact: Inter are yet to lose a single game where they have been leading at half-time this season. In fact only on three occasions, have the Nerazzuri managed a win without being in front at the midway point.

Form Guide: Inter (D W L L W)Atalanta (L W W L D)

Inter (possible): Handanovic, J. Zanetti, Samuel, Ranocchia, Juan Jesus; A. Pereira, Kovacic, Cambiasso, Guarin; Cassano, Palacio

Atalanta (probable): Polito, Raimondi, Canini, Stendardo, Del Grosso; Carmona, Cigarini, Biondini, Bonaventura; Livaja, Denis

Source: http://www.football-italia.net/SerieA/m ... view/22405

[Lombardiamia]

I'm pretty sure the ref will get his well earned promotion after this match. Well done.
Having said that, we suck horse cock....

[kros]

I don't give a fuck about yesterday's defeat (we had previously lost at home to Bologna and Juve .... another home defeat does not make a difference and a 3rd place chance has always been elusive) ... Yesterday's score should not distract ANYONE FROM THE SCANDALOUS REFEREES DECISIONS. The pity is that since we lost, everyone will be talking on Inter's poor form and the referee will get away with it once more!

[Messinterista]

How long is Cassano out for?

[maro]

On a positive note, Rocchi scored a nice goal. That should be good for his confidence and Strama can concentrate on building the side around him next season.

[Lombardiamia]