AC Milan general spiel 2.0

[p_maldini_3]

thanks for the article thredzo, i can agree with gazzetta in labeling the pharoah our anti-depressant. it's good to see his progress, and i hope the finished product is miles better than what we see of him now.

[San Paolo]

on a related not El Shaarawy scored again tonight, it's going to get pricey for Ambrosini i feel.

[RomaShield27]

AC Milan Release Video To Encourage Fans To Attend The Derby
http://forzaitalianfootball.com/2012/10 ... the-derby/

In an unprecedented act of desperation, AC Milan have released a video to encourage fans to attend the derby against Inter at the San Siro on Sunday. A recent spell of poor form after selling superstars Thiago Silva and Zlatan Ibrahimovic without replacement in the summer transfer market has created an army of disgruntled fans who are beginning to show their levels of disgust by boycotting matches.

Attendance figures have been declining steadily. The first home match against Sampdoria brought in 49,000. The attendance for the second home match against Atalanta dropped to 34,763. Both matches ended in disappointing 1-0 losses for the home team. On the home tie of the Champion’s League against Anderlecht, the San Siro only gathered 27,000 spectators.

In a magnificent stadium that holds 80,000, the empty seats are beginning to visibly outnumber those purchased.

On October 7th Milan will host cross-town rivals Inter, another team that has had a shaky start to the 2012-13 campaign. Only a few days before the match many tickets still remain unpurchased in the box office, something which has not occurred in years.

With a long tradition of sold-out stadiums and dramatic action both on and off the field in one of the world’s most famous derbies, this tie is set to be one of the most underwhelming in history.

But after Wednesday’s encouraging 3-2 away win against Zenit St. Petersburg in the Champion’s League and Stephan El Sharaawy’s newly discovered scoring form, Milan attempts to reinspire enthusiasm among their most faithful, and perhaps remind those who are losing faith that their presence is especially necessary in difficult times.

The video features some of Milan’s players talking to the camera and impressive scenes of supporters from past derbies.

[red]

Decent effort from Milan, even if they were pretty fortunate.

Don't get the fuss some people are making about Abiatti's performance.

Only the freekick from Hulk in the first half and the volley late on were really good saves, while he fucked up for Zenit's equaliser. Other saves were decent enough, but there would have been questions asks had he let them in.

Milan look more comfortable with the 4-2-3-1, since it covers the pitch a bit better when they don't have the ball.

It also stretched the game a bit more, which means that Milan don't have to play so much in tight spaces where their indifferent technical ability would be more likely to be exposed.

Thought Montolivo was poor. He needs to take the responsibility to get on the ball more and do more with it when he playing with De Jong.

[p_maldini_3]

i thought we looked comfortable initially with the 4-2-3-1 because zenit sat back and let montolivo and de jong have plenty of time on the ball. then we scored 2 goals and by the end of the first half zenit were pressing us all over the pitch and we couldn't hold onto the ball at all.

even though we matched them 3v3 in the midfield, we still looked outnumbered because boateng didn't know who to pick up when they ran circles around us, and he never offered the right passing angles for either montolivo or de jong. then allegri decided to bring in nocerino, going back to a diamond and we were finally able to hold the ball for awhile leading to the goal.

i agree with you about abbiati, he made some stunning saves but he could've done more on BOTH goals. i think for the first goal he was standing way too close to his near post, maybe i'm being too harsh, but hulk shot right through the middle of the goal and i feel that the middle should be covered in such situations.

i'm not sure how much more montolivo can contribute with such a static offense. the forwards were dropping deep to pick up the ball, but they were always well marked, our formation was the same as zenit's and they both just cancelled each other out in a way.

[p_maldini_3]

i'm secretly hoping that we got rid of ibra so we could bring in guardiola next season.

[red]

I'm not saying that Milan looked particularly good playing 4-2-3-1, just better than they were playing with a diamond midfield.

Between Montolivo not doing enough with the ball and Boateng, as you said, not doing enough without the ball, Milan's midfield was still far from great.

Didn't really view it as going to a diamond when Nocerino came on - not a conventional one, anyway.

I thought the key thing in Milan getting back into the game and getting the winner was Pazzini managing to hold the ball up to give Milan time to push up. Bojan didn't manage to do that at all.

[RomaShield27]

SERIE A BETTING: MILAN V INTER
Paolo Bandini / Sun, 10/07/2012 - 14:07 / http://bet.unibet.com/football/serie/20 ... v-inter/48

So much for that curse. Each of Milan and Internazionale arrive at this weekend’s derby having finally exorcised whatever psychological demons were preventing them from winning a game at San Siro. Following the installation of a new, partially synthetic, surface at their home ground this summer, the two teams had gone a combined eight games without victory there before Milan finally beat Cagliari on 26 September. Inter followed up by besting Fiorentina four days later.

In truth that had less to do with the ending of any curse than with a simple improvement in both teams' performances. Milan, unsurprisingly disrupted by the departures of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Thiago Silva, Alessandro Nesta, Gennaro Gattuso, Clarence Seedorf, Antonio Cassano and others over the summer, have finally altered their tactical shape and in doing so found ways to get more out of players such as forward Stephan El Shaarawy and full-back Mattia De Sciglio.

Inter, too, have found success with a new formation, switching to a three-man defence. Gian Piero Gasperini was derided for even considering such a tactic during his brief tenure with the club at the start of last season, but such is Stramaccioni’s standing with Massimo Moratti that he received the owner’s outspoken approval. The move was an instant success, bringing victory away at Chievo before the win over Fiorentina.

Yet if both teams seem at last to be moving in the right direction – each also recording a win in Europe this week, with Milan especially against Zenit St Petersburg – then any mood of triumphalism might quickly be subdued by the ticket sales for this fixture. As of Wednesday afternoon the derby was still more than 20,000 shy of a sell-out.

That is indicative of general trends in Italian football, where attendances for many teams have been gradually declining over a number of years, as well as a difficult economy in which fans’ disposable income has been hit. But it is also true that as recently as last season this fixture drew a crowd of 79,612. At present it is not clear if the figure for this weekend will even exceed 60,000.

“A derby without you is pointless,” said the Milan captain Massimo Ambrosini this week, as the club sought to engage its supporters, but it will take more than platitudes to win back their audience. Already this season Milan have experienced their worst season ticket sales since Silvio Berlusconi bought the club in 1986. Against Cagliari, they also recorded their lowest attendance figure for a single match in that period – just 28,005.

There are factors at play here which cannot easily be reversed – from a gradual diminishing of Italian football’s standing in the world order, to a shortage of funds and the well-known problems with outdated stadiums. But if one thing is known to bring fans back to the stadiums it is the straightforward currency of games won.

Which team, then, looks better equipped to satisfy its supporters on Sunday? Inter certainly seem to have done the better recent transfer business, with astute summer signings such as Samir Handanovic complimenting previous additions including Juan Jesus and Fredy Guarin. The Nerazzurri also seem thus far to have got the better of the Cassano-Giampaolo Pazzini trade, with the latter’s three goals all coming in a single game against Bologna.

But if you were looking for a bet in the goalscorers’ market then the better move might be to back Milan’s El Shaarawy – who scored just two in his first 25 league games for the club, but now has five in his last four across all competitions. My instinct is to back Inter for the win, available at 2.7, but the smarter wager might be on a red card being shown in the game. There have been five in the last three Milan derbies.

Prediction: Milan 1-2 Inter

[San Paolo]

It's a fairly long article so i thought i'd just post the link instead, anyway, Forza Kakha Kaladze!

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/ar ... 71dc1c.331

[p_maldini_3]

it's very difficult to comment on our current run of form. for a team that has the highest wage bill in the league, we are not getting any bang from our buck. the fault for that lies entirely on the shoulders of the management. and while allegri has been given half the quality squad he had from the previous seasons, 2 points from bottom after 7 games is unacceptable. he has to get more out of this team.

and the players need to show some drive, they played with absolutely no confidence today, and as much as i love abate, his days should be numbered. he's a fully matured player now and we have yet to see any end-product from his attacking plays.

[vtec]

can we burn this team to the ground and start from scratch yet?

[red]

Can I be the one that sets fire to Boateng?

[maro]

The tourists love to go boateng in Cambridge.

[red]

[Bagg10]

^nice

[Bagg10]

Jesus. Last post was by me nearly two weeks ago...

I didn't see the game, just the highlights. Horrific defending on the Borja Valero goal. And wtf was that pk?

[RomaShield27]

Jasus. Shinpin? Greg? vtec...................?! wtf

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http://www.milanobsession.com/2012/11/b ... guide.html

[p_maldini_3]

as much as i disliked him, i miss this badassed motherfucker.

[San Paolo]

We have nothing to say. our team is a mess and the management even worse. i have very little to say as i'm not watching the matches as they are a waste of my time at the moment. until the situations are resolved i shall carry on thusly.

[maro]

"thusly"? no such word.