Internazionale Main Thread II

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[Dejan-Stankovic]

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[Messinterista]

[Dejan-Stankovic]

[Lombardiamia]

[zafferano]

[Lombardiamia]

[Totally FRANK]

[Lombardiamia]

[Messinterista]

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Wednesday 17 September 2008 14:30
The rehabilitation of Jose Mourinho, the world’s most charismatic coach, took a giant step forward in Athens on Tuesday night.

Inter’s efficient 2-0 win over Panathinaikos was exactly the kind of result the Nerazzurri so seldom produced in Europe under Roberto Mancini. With only one game played – and their other rivals drawing in Bremen – Inter already look odds on to win the group.

Bookies have Inter as fourth favourites to win the Champions League. Those odds owe more to Mourinho’s reputation than Inter’s recent European form, which has varied from barely competent to terminally mediocre.

So why do I say rehabilitation? Because this season could define Mourinho’s career.

He is loved and loathed by the public, and adored by the media for his ability to give good soundbite, but the audience he really needs to impress is that small elite – there may be no more than 50 of them – of presidents, tycoons and billionaires who can afford to hire Mourinho and who run the clubs with a realistic shot at winning the trophies he craves.

His exit from Chelsea enraged and disappointed fans. But chairmen and presidents, while making allowances for the Byzantine intrigue at the court of Roman Abramovich, instinctively sympathised with the Chelsea owner.

If his Inter mission ends with similar fireworks, Mourinho will find his next job that much harder to come by. He's still only 45, too young to settle for a seven-figure salary coaching in the Middle East.

So the Mourinho we see at Inter is a third incarnation of the coach. At Porto, he was a miracle worker, conquering Europe through team spirit, tactical ingenuity, meticulous preparation and a touch of gamesmanship.

At Chelsea, that team spirit, ingenuity and meticulousness was backed by Abramovich’s millions as Mourinho proved, for a season or more, that he could build the same esprit de corps among a squad of superstars and focus ruthlessly on winning.

At Inter, with a squad that hasn’t changed much, he is trying to prove his coaching alone can make the difference and that he can win in style.

What hasn’t changed is the way Mourinho sets out his team. Against Panathinaikos, Zlatan Ibrahimovic excelled in the classic centre-forward role that made Didier Drogba famous at Chelsea.

Ibrahimovic is better and worse than Drogba. Better because he can, like Messi, destroy an opponent with the ball at his feet. Worse because he has yet to achieve the kind of consistency Drogba showed when he banged in 26 goals in 2006/07.

Ibra can be brilliant or awful. But brilliance is gaining the upper hand. Last season he scored 22 in 33 matches, including five in seven Champions League games, although he was inconspicuous as the Nerazzurri were outfought and outplayed by Liverfekkin'wankscum.

The hug between the Swede and Mourinho after the star had made Adriano’s goal in Athens suggested that coach and Inter’s reigning enigma have already bonded. So maybe this season we will finally see the great Zlatan.

Supporting the Swede in Athens were Ricardo Quaresma and Mancini, switching flanks. Ibrahimovic made both goals: he created the first with Drogbaesque persistence and, with a selflessness Drogba has not always exhibited, passed perfectly for Mancini to finish first time.

His through pass for Adriano to seal the win was even better. The rejuvenated Brazilian was able to blast the ball into the net first time without even changing his stride.

In midfield, Javier Zanetti and Patrick Vieira had licence to roam while Esteban Cambiasso swept up efficiently in front of the back four. Much of the time, the centre-backs Ivan Cordoba and Marco Materazzi and left-back Maxwell were asked to defend Julio Cesar’s goal while right-back Maicon bombed forward.

Lawrie McMenemy once said that every great team contains four violinists and seven roadsweepers. Mourinho’s Inter roughly fits that mould, with Ibrahimovic, Mancini and Quaresma as violinists, the fiendishly versatile Cambiasso and Maicon able to sweep up and play the fiddle, and the other six firmly focused on roads and brushes.

Are they good enough to win the competition? Possibly. Inter should get better as injuries ease and players get to know Mourinho’s approach. They do not have the awesome efficiency of his Chelsea side, but they are genuinely entertaining – Quaresma, Mancini and Sulley Muntari have injected some much-needed pace into a team that could be too deliberate in attack.

And against Panathinaikos, they showed much of the stubborness that defines Mourinho’s teams, something which Nerazzurri fans have been desperately hoping to see in Europe.

So the special one is most definitely back. And if he wins Inter’s first European Cup in 44 years he will, as Bobby Robson once said of Neil Webb, be “special specialâ€

[RomaShield27]

Inter Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic back to his best in defeat of Panathinaikos
www.telegraph.co.uk – By Charles Carrick Last Updated: 7:47PM BST 17 Sep 2008

Sweden striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic laid to rest any doubts over his form and fitness with an outstanding display in Inter Milan's 2-0 win at Panathinaikos in their Champions League Group B opener.

Although Ibrahimovic, 26, did not find the target, he did force one superb save from home goalkeeper Mario Galinovic, and laid on the goals for Mancini and Adriano.
"He did a magnificent job," Inter manager Jose Mourinho said. "He played an absolutely fantastic pass [for Adriano]. We did enough to win; I was very happy with the performance."

Ibrahimovic has been struggling with a knee injury but his performance in Athens suggests that he is back to his best, combining a physical presence with a crisp touch that can produce the kind of killer pass that set up Adriano.

Panathinaikos coach Henk Ten Cate had no doubts that Ibrahimovic was a crucial factor in his team's defeat. "I thought we played fairly well," he said. "The decisive aspects were experience and quality – especially the individual qualities. I think we played against the best striker in the world right now. He is fantastic at holding the ball up and giving his fellow players time."

The victory, along with Weder Bremen's failure to win in the other Group B match – the German side were held to a goalless draw at home to Anorthosis Famagusta, of Cyprus – left Mourinho a content man. "The result in Bremen was very important for us," he said. "At the moment I can say that if we win the three home games at San Siro we will qualify."

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Inter coach Jose Mourinho believes Zlatan Ibrahimovic should win the Golden Ball soon and he described the Sweden international as a 'phenomenon'.
Ibra has a brilliant relationship with his coach and has been outstanding during the first few weeks of the new season.

Mourinho has praised the striker and he believes Ibra can go on to achieve great accolades, including the prestigious Golden Ball award.

“I really hope he (Ibrahimovic) wins the Golden Ball soon. I believe it’s possible because Ibra is a phenomenon,â€

[Lombardiamia]

Talking about today, its certainly blown out of proportion. Ibra has no chance in hell to win the Ballon DÓr this year. But if Ibra can produce this kind of performances on a regular basis, then why not? I dont see much players around with that same amount of quality. His biggest downside is consistency. If he manages to find that, then he will certainly be a contestant.
I hate to over praise a player after a single performance, but if the Italian media keeps over-hyping a player like The Waterboy because of a free-kick (had it been someone like Mihajlovic, he would have barely been mentioned), then to hell with them and give Ibra the golden ball already..

[Messinterista]

[Totally FRANK]

Cordoba in panchina!

30 Settembre 2008

Ivan Cordoba dovrebbe partire dalla panchina anche nella gara contro il Werder Brema. Mourinho potrebbe schierare la seguente formazione (4-3-3): Julio Cesar Maicon Burdisso Materazzi Chivu Cambiasso Muntari Zanetti Mancini Ibrahimovic Adriano.

This is the expected line up tomorrow.I don't know why its burdisso and matrix again.I want to see cordoba and chivu.

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AS I said in other thread on this forum before the milan game,that it will be a big mistake to play them both together,now I will go a little bit further if he continues to play both of them it will cost him his Job.

Our backline when everybody is fit should be Maicon,Cordoba,Chivu or samuel and Maxwell.

[Lombardiamia]

I guess maybe Cordoba isnt 100% fit? He has to play next saturday, since both Materazzi & Burdisso are suspended, so maybe he tries not to risk him. I dont know, its just a guess.