Internazionale Main Thread IV

[Messinterista]

We cant catch a fecking break (no pun intended).

[Messinterista]

Official: Ranocchia will miss Derby

Inter defender Andrea Ranocchia will miss the Milan Derby on Sunday after damaging ligaments in his right knee.

The Italy international limped off during the Nerazzurri's Europa League win over CFR Cluj on Thursday.

And there were initial reports this morning claiming that the 25-year-old would not be fit for the game with the Rossoneri this weekend.

Those reports have since been confirmed by ANSA, who have insisted Ranocchia will not be fit enough for the Derby della Madonnina.

Andrea Stramaccioni is already without Matias Silvestre, Diego Milito and Joel Obi amongst others.

Source: http://www.football-italia.net/31091/of ... miss-derby

[Messinterista]

MATCH PREVIEW
Serie A Week 26 - 24 Feb 2013 (19.45 UK)
Inter - Milan
Stadio Giuseppe Meazza

The grand Derby della Madonnina returns with Inter on a downward spiral, while city rivals Milan fly high in third position.

Inter were humiliated in Florence last weekend, crashing to a 4-1 defeat. Adem Ljajic and Stevan Jovetic caused the damage by scoring two apiece. Antonio Cassano netted a consolation minutes from the end of a match the Viola utterly dominated. Inter responded with a comfortable Europa League victory over CFR Cluj on Thursday.

Champions League football is a major focus of the 180th Serie A edition of the Derby. Andrea Stramaccioni has received the backing of captain Javier Zanetti and President Massimo Moratti, but a defeat will harm morale and their Champions League aspirations. The Nerazzurri currently sit fifth, just a point behind Milan but having secured only two wins from seven encounters.

Diego Milito is out for the season, joining Gaby Mudingayi, Luca Casetallazzi, Walter Samuel and Joel Obi on the injured list. Andrea Ranocchia could miss the Derby after picking up an injury midweek, while Alvaro Pereira is suspended.

In contrast to their neighbours, Massimiliano Allegri’s Milan have roared up the ladder. Their shocking start to the campaign has been substituted by a scintillating run of results that has propelled the Diavolo to third. They lead Lazio via goal difference. Milan have lost just twice since that poor opening which consisted of five defeats in eight matches.

Their latest victory arrived at San Siro on Friday. Mario Balotelli scored again, curling in a free-kick to secure a 2-1 victory over Parma. That was followed by a magnificent Champions League victory over Barcelona in the first leg of their Round of 16 tie. Goals from Kevin-Prince Boateng and Sulley Muntari capped off a tactically astute Rossoneri display.

Daniele Bonera and Nigel De Jong are certainties to not play, while Bartosz Salamon, Marco Amelia, Luca Antonini, Antonio Nocerino and Mathieu Flamini must pass a fitness test to be included in the squad.

In the modern Serie A era, results have been evenly split in Nerazzurri-hosted affairs. Inter have won 29 of 80 matches, with 27 draws and 24 Milan triumphs. Last term Inter ended their rivals Scudetto chances with a Milito-inspired 4-2 win.

Keep an eye on: Mario Balotelli (Milan) – The enigmatic figure makes his Madonnina return, now in a Rossoneri shirt. Never one to shy from a situation, it will be intriguing to see how Balotelli performs given his fantastic start at Milan and the attention he is sure to receive from Inter’s supporters.

Form guide: Inter (D D L W L) Milan (W W W D W)

Last season: Inter 4-2 Milan

Stat fact: Diego Milito and Zlatan Ibrahimovic are the joint-highest Madonnina goalscorers currently still playing. Both have scored six goals, with Milito’s all coming in a black and blue shirt. The Swede netted four for Milan and two in Inter colours.

Inter (probable): Handanovic; Zanetti, Chivu, Juan Jesus, Nagatomo; Cambiasso, Kovacic, Kuzmanovic; Guarin; Cassano, Palacio

Milan (probable): Abbiati; Abate, Zapata, Mexes, Constant; Ambrosini, Montolivo, Muntari; Boateng, Balotelli, El Shaarawy

Source: http://www.football-italia.net/SerieA/m ... view/22355

[Lombardiamia]

Chances of game being postponed due to heavy snow expected this weekend on Milan...given our current situation that would be a blessing.

[p_maldini_3]

http://www.milannews.it/?action=read&idnotizia=104839

yessssssss

[Lombardiamia]

[Lombardiamia]

Losing a whole half like that against such a mediocre Milan team made me sick to the stomach. Mind you, we are even more mediocre, but you can't just give such an advantage.

[Totally FRANK]

I caught a bit of the PSG game against Marseille. They have 2 of the front 3 that Strama wanted at Inter. Lavezzi and Lucas flanking Ibra. Lucas is the real deal. We should have closed that deal long ago, he is worth the 25m we would have paid.

No surprise we are so mediocre, that's what you get when you get cheap replacements for real talented players.

[Messinterista]

tbh, I would have taken a draw before this match started and I guess a draw is quite fitting.

[Lombardiamia]

[RomaShield27]

Mario Balotelli stays calm after abuse from Inter fans in Milan derby
• Inflatable bananas waved at striker playing against former club
• 'He did very well not to react,' says Milan's manager, Allegri

Associated Press
guardian.co.uk, Monday 25 February 2013 00.12 GMT

Massimiliano Allegri reflects on the Milan derby, which finished 1-1
Mario Balotelli managed to keep his composure in the Milan derby after being subjected to insults and reported racial taunts by fans of his former club.

Internazionale supporters waved inflated bananas and whistled at the former Manchester City striker during the derby at San Siro on Sunday.

The Milan forward, who was born in Italy but is of Ghanaian descent, responded by holding a finger to his mouth midway through the second half.

Playing against Inter for the first time since transferring from Manchester City to Milan last month, Balotelli missed a number of presentable chances, most notably when his header was spectacularly saved by the Inter goalkeeper, Samir Handanovic.

Balotelli played for Inter from 2006-10, helping the club to a treble in his final season with the team before moving to Manchester City. He already has four goals for Milan.

"Balotelli did very well not to react to the provocations, I'm just sorry he wasn't able to score," said the Milan manager, Massimiliano Allegri, after the game. "He had a great first half. Let's not forget that he's 22 years old and he was playing against his former squad. It's to be expected that he felt pressure for this match."

The derby ended 1-1 after the Inter substitute Ezequiel Schelotto scored his first goal for the club three minutes after coming on to cancel out Stephan El Shaarawy's first-half goal for Milan.

---------------

Internazionale face fine over reported racial abuse of Mario Balotelli
• Abuse by fans at Milan derby to be focus of Serie A meeting
• Reports of inflatable bananas being waved by Inter fans

Press Association
guardian.co.uk, Monday 25 February 2013 12.42 GMT

Serie A will meet on Tuesday to consider sanctions against Internazionale after their fans reportedly directed racial abuse at Mario Balotelli during the Milan derby. The former Inter striker was facing his former club for the first time since signing in January. The match finished in a 1-1 draw.

Balotelli was always likely to be the target of abuse for the Inter fans but reports suggest a section of supporters may have targeted him for his colour.

A Serie A official said that the disciplinary council would rule on incidents at San Siro among others from the weekend's fixtures at a meeting in Milan on Tuesday afternoon.

Gazzetta dello Sport also reported that inflatable bananas were waved at Balotelli by Inter supporters and in the second half, the player was seen to raise a finger to his lips in an apparent bid to silence his detractors.

If fans are found to have directed discriminatory or racist language at Balotelli then Inter face a fine of at least €15,000 (£12,300). The club were fined that amount when fans chanted racist songs about the striker during a game against Chievo. The Inter president Massimo Moratti did apologise while expressing his hope there would be no repeat in the derby.

The Chievo incident was the second time that Balotelli had been the victim of racism since he returned to Italy from Manchester City.

The Milan vice-president Paolo Berlusconi – the younger brother of the club's owner Silvio – was filmed at a political meeting in Monza near Milan describing Balotelli as "negretto della famiglia" - translated as "the family's little nigger".

It led to accusations of hypocrisy at the Rossoneri only four weeks after Silvio Berlusconi praised the midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng for walking off the pitch after he was racially abused during a friendly against Pro Patria.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013 ... nter-milan

[Lombardiamia]

Hah that's typical Italy for you. You bring a couple of inflated bananas (as if these aren't used in every other sport around the globe) or chant 'Balotelli pezzo di merda' (Balotelli piece of shit) and automatically it's racial abuse (funny how I don't remember these same sanctions against other clubs when he was at Inter). Then the other side chant (they still do) 'Materazzi figlio di puttana' (Materazzi son of a bitch) knowing very well his mother died when he was young, 'Milito saltella con noi' (Milito come jump with us) knowing he just had a knee surgery, or a banner 'Montolivo playmaker, Cassano peacemaker'... and I see no one mentioning these at all.
Now Balotelli is a modern hero because he didn't react (react to what? and how should he react exactly?), yet when he was at Inter, these same chants weren't racial, but because he was an arrogant prick (I'm sure he's a totally different person today...lol).
The power of the media can make miracles indeed.

[Messinterista]

Carew his having his medical soon and will probably be announced as an Inter player for the rest of the season (300k going in his direction).

Hoooooooooooray!!!!!! /sarcasm

What was the point of getting Rocchi in the last transfer window and surely there is a youngster that we can promote from our Primavera that can do a better job than these two put together?

[Messinterista]

Cassano set for contract extension

Antonio Cassano is set to renew his contract at Inter until June 2016, reports this evening have suggested.

Sport Mediaset believe that the 30-year-old will put pen-to-paper on a two-year contract extension worth around €3m per season.

The former Milan forward has been virtually ever-present for the Nerazzurri this season, playing in 23 League games and scoring seven goals.

Source: http://www.football-italia.net/31225/ca ... -extension

[RomaShield27]

[Lombardiamia]

[red]

[p_maldini_3]

footbal fans can be a very morbid lot of idiots.

although you have to admit, the 'milito come jump with us' was pretty funny.

What that article doesn't say is that we got fined too, not as much though.

[RomaShield27]

[RomaShield27]

Article from the Daily Mail about Balotelli suffering racist abuse:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/footba ... -home.html

Article from Gazzetta reporting on the article from the Daily Mail about Balotelli suffering racist abuse:

http://www.gazzetta.it/Calcio/Squadre/M ... 7379.shtml

The English do jump all over it for sure, and I understand Lomba's points that it is a small minority who were persisting with the racist abuse (the banana thing is sad, though, Lomba, you can't seriously claim it wasn't a racist insult. Although also worth pointing out that Zanetti told the Inter fans to stop with the bananas), but there is a big difference in attitude in how racist abuse is perceived and reported in the media.