Just as in the last few years, I figured I’d do one giant Pagelle for the entire season before the new season gets too hectic, as I did in 2007-2008, and 2008-2009. I’ve tried to remain objective of course- I’m no fan of Zebina or Melo, but I’m trying to rate them based on their performances, not their fighting with the fans. Besides, they ended up playing terribly anyways. In general, I follow similar numbering systems to the pagelle in Italy:

These judges gave better ratings than I did

4- Dreadful. Consistently producing horror shows and generally completely incompetent.
4.5- Poor.
5- Subpar. Never impressing, and while not terrible, never playing well either.
5.5- Mediocre. Not something a player should be pleased with.
6- Decent.
6.5- Solid. Putting in consistently good shifts, though not exemplary.
7- Excellent. Playing well typically, and capable of brilliance.
7.5- Outstanding. Consistently winning MOTM awards.
8- Phenomenal.
9- Legendary.

Injuries don’t directly factor, as that has weighed enough on their performances as is. So without further ado, the Juventus Pagelle for season 2009-2010.

We made it, we actually made it. I never in my wildest imagination thought I would be doing a preview for the Champions League final. It is not that I dont think Inter are a good enough team, but that playing up that potential in Europe was just not something Inter did. Not for years and years and years. To the point where I just wrote it off. Now I find myself utterly emotionally unprepared for the reality of this game. Sure, we have already had an incredible season – a success by any measure. We have already won the Coppa Italian (the baby bear), the Scudetto (the mamma bear), but now we have the huge, mac-daddy pappa bear of all the club tournaments staring us in the face. It sort of give a person pause. Not only that, but the clubs are actually quite evenly matched (talent-wise), as is almost always the case at this level of competition. Both teams want it, both teams have the same dream, but someone is going home empty handed. Fingers (and toes) crossed that it wont be Inter.

What: Bayern Munich v Inter Milano
Where: Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, Madrid
When: Saturday, May 22, 8:45 local time (11:45am pacific, 2:45pm eastern)
How to Watch: This is on Fox – like regular, free over the airways Fox. In addition, Fox Soccer Channel is having a pregame show starting at 10am pacific, 1pm eastern. If you dont have access to the TV, you can watch this ppv at UEFA’s web page ($9.95), or find a stream (MyP2P, Rojadirecta, Ustream, and ATDHE.net).

Dont forget, everyone, I will be hosting a liveblog here on the Inter board starting 15 minutes before kick off. Look for the Cover it Live applet on a new page at about 11 am pacific, 2pm eastern.
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Ok, so there is not a whole lot left to say. By now, we all know the formation Mou likes. Except for a couple quibbling details, we all pretty much know the formation (with Thiago Motta out, I think Chivu will start as leftback and Zanetti in the midfield. Pandev vs Balotelli is a toss-up), there is nothing left to do but for Inter to take the pitch. There are probably literally hundreds of previews for this game floating around out there. Really, take your pick. All or any of them are probably more insightful as to the technical aspects of this game than anything I could write. For me, the more pressing matter is sussing out Bayern. Since I dont know squat about them, Luke from the Bayern board was nice enough to answer some questions for me:

The press is making a big deal of Bayern losing Ribery for the final, is this really a big a loss as they make it out to be?

It’s hard to quantify these things, but: it’s probably not as dire as it seems to members of the media who haven’t been following Bayern all season. For one, Ribery has not played quite up to the stratospheric level he’s capable of this season; but also, Bayern supporters are disappointed but confident on the whole I would say, because Bayern have won big matches all season while facing a variety of suspensions and injuries. The best example of course is beating Man Utd. in the first leg without Robben and Schweinsteiger.

Is there an indispensable Bayern player?

The fact that I can’t just say Robben and move on, is the reason Bayern are in this final. Certainly, Robben’s been on an incredible tear of clutch goals. The stats for the Champions League season on the whole would tell you the answer is Olic. And the stats don’t tell you how instrumental Schweinsteiger has been to the success this season. It’s less of a one-man team than highlight reels would indicate.

Which Bayern player(s) should Inter be most worried about? Which is the weakest link?

Here, I can say without qualification, the answer is Robben. Even when teams have rolled 3 players over to him to cut him off, he has found ways to beat them. This is no surprise to anyone I think, and how Mourinho decides to approach containing Robben will dictate a lot of other moves. As far as weakest link, I still think Martin Demichelis is Bayern’s most error-prone player. Both Bayern CB’s (Demichelis and Van Buyten) are capable of being left in the dust by quick attackers and maddening displays of ineptitude with very little warning. The good news for Bayern fans is that we’ve been seeing less and less of that, and really not at all in the semi-final against Lyon.

Which Inter player(s) do you think will make the most trouble for Bayern?

Personally, I think that’s going to end up being Eto’o. Bayern’s left is a concern because Hamit Altintop will most likely be filling in for Ribery at LM, but has hardly ever played there. The most likely starter at LB is Holger Badstuber, who is more of a natural CB, and had a lot of problems with Antonio Valencia against Man U. To make matters worse, Badstuber and Altintop have not played those positions at the same time in any match this season. I think Eto’o will win many challenges if he is deployed wide, and I expect Inter to threaten much more frequently from their right. If Bayern start the less experienced but more dynamic Diego Contento as LB, the overall effect is less predictable.

How would you characterize Bayern’s style of play?

Bayern still maintain the fundamental 4-4-2 that they’ve played for some years now, but under Louis van Gaal it is less static and much more attack-oriented. I think it is fair to say that Bayern are sometimes able to paper over their defensive frailties through sheer effort of the upfield players (best embodied by Olic) and skilled passing. Bayern almost always maintain possession dominance, and will not commit many giveaways. They are a team that always appears to be in better condition than their opponents as a match goes on, and will try to run the opponent ragged-they are indisputably a 2nd half team. A final important aspect often overlooked, is that there is a great deal of versatility in the starting 11-Schweinsteiger, Müller and Van Buyten in particular will at times morph into a completely different type of player if the situation calls for it.

I probably could (should?) have paraphrased it and worked it into some prose of my own, but this way you get it straight from the Bayern-fan’s mouth. Once again, thank you Luke for your perspective. And boy, am I glad I dont have to remember how to spell all those German names… Schweinsteiger? Yikes!

It is all down to them, now…

Moving on

In the lead up to this game there have been countless interviews with coaches, players, staff members, and various hangers on. What I seem to read a lot is that for some reason, Bayern has got it into their heads that Inter only play defense. Which is sort of nutty, I think, but a preconception that I can live with, especially as it means they are totally underestimating us. For their part, clearly the Bayern we will be playing tomorrow is not the same team who should have been knocked out by Fiorentina. They have found their pace and that makes them dangerous – probably more so than the bookies are giving them credit for. Not that we cant take them, though.

One analogy that I found particularly interesting was from some Bayern hanger-on or other (maybe a staff member), Paul Breitner. He said that only Barcelona could compare with the imposing and dominant Bayern we are seeing right now: “We’ve taken a huge step forward in recent months – we are always attacking and trying to score. There is just one team similar to us and that’s Barcelona.” And that works for me. After all, we already know how to take out Barcelona.

Eyes on the prize, Ragazzi, eyes on the prize.

And that right there may be our biggest advantage for the upcoming match. We have met great European teams and knocked them out. The fact that our road was long and arguable harder than Bayern’s has shown the squad that they can take on these greats and beat them – even away from home. That has built a well of confidence that may prove to be that little something extra that carries the day. If we can manage to play this game like we did against Barcelona at the San Siro (without Maicon’s brain fart, thank you very much), or the Chelsea game at Stamford Bridge, we just may have a shot.

This is the face of a man who know he can win.

In the end, I am pretty proud of the team for getting to this game in the first place. Sure, I will be disappointed if we dont win tomorrow (it is always better to win), but I will still be proud of the accomplishment of reaching this stage in the first place. Besides, now that we know it is possible, we might just find ourselves here again in the coming years. For now, though, everything is possible – the dream still lives – and as long as there is a hope, I am there. I am sure that if Inter play like they can, they will win… but I will still say a little extra prayer to the calcio gods tonight. Every little bit helps!

We stand at the edge of history

FORZA INTER

I thought, as we all desperately look for something to do while we wait the 2 days, 3 hours, 12 minutes, and 18 17 16 seconds until the final starts, that I would post our road to Madrid. It wont take your mind off the upcoming match but it might kill a few minutes (2 days, 3 hours, 11 minutes…)

Sept 16, 2009 Inter 0-0 Barcelona

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Sept 29, 2009 Rubin 1-1 Inter

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Oct 20, 2009 Inter 2-2 Dynamo Kyiv

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Nov 4, 2009 Dynamo Kyiv 1-2 Inter

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Nov 24, 2009 Barcelona 2-0 Inter

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Dec 9, 2009 Inter 2-0 Rubin

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Feb 24, 2010 Inter 2-1 Chelsea

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March 16, 2010 Chelsea 0-1 Inter

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March 31, 2010 Inter 1-0 CSKA Moskva

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April 6, 2010 CSKA Moskva 0-1 Inter

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April 20, 2010 Inter 3-1 Barcelona

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April 28, 2010 Barcelona 1-0 Inter

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May 22, 2010 Bayern – Inter

FORZA INTER

In the comments yesterday, Romabaha said we were being overdramatic about the season, given that we are only 3 points from a CL spot. I figured it deserved it’s own post. So why is this such a dreadful season? All the reasons after the jump.

First, the injury crisis. I won’t go too far into this, because it’s well documented, but the unprecedented amount of injuries have robbed us of continuity, talent, and well, it saps our morale.

Second, we may be only 3 points from a Champion’s League spot, but our form means we aren’t going to get it, it was all from a great start to the season. Over the last 4 months, we have 9 losses, 5 wins, and 3 draws. 18 points out of a possible 51. If we started the season that way, we’d be looking at finishing at 40 points, which is the magic number for avoiding relegation. So over the last 4 months, it is not an exaggeration at all to say we are playing like a relegation-battling team.

I miss Nedved.

Third, our play in general is awful. We are leaking goals like crazy. For a team that always prides itself on defense first, that’s horrible. We have not kept a clean sheet in 17 games, the all-time record for Juventus is 18 games in 1954-1955. We’ve conceded 43 goals, nearly double Inter, and the 6th worst defensive record in Serie A. Our offense looks static and uninspired. Trezeguet bangs in the goals, Del Piero’s form is conditional on how rested he is, Iaquinta is constantly injured, Amauri is just shit, and Diego isn’t scoring as freely as we expected. Absolutely dreadful on both sides of the pitch.

Fourth, the losses keep mounting. Kinda the same as point #2, but these stats deserve their own point. We have lost all 6 games against teams from southern Italy thus far. The club record for the most defeats is 19 in all competitions (15 in league play), with 70 goals leaked, in 1961-1962. Thus far, we’ve lost 11 in the league, and 4 in all other competitions, leaking 58 goals. Our goal differential in the league is 3. So we’re only 4 defeats and 12 goals from matching our worst ever season.

Absolutely heartbreaking.

Fifth, the losses are bad and all, but particularly galling is the way we’re losing them. We’ve been booted out of Europe, twice, when we had our foot into the next round. We lost to both teams 4-1, having scored first. We score early, then concede like mad, hence the Napoli disaster. We lost at home to a shaky Milan 3-0. The team looks beaten, and there is no longer the legendary never-give-up Juventus spirit. In the last few weeks, we’ve been thumped by Napoli having gone ahead first, beaten by a goalkeeper’s error, and conceded 3 after going up 3 in 10 minutes. It’s hard to imagine more disgusting ways to give up matches.

Sixth, is the way of course the season started. Last season we finished 2nd, we spilled out millions of euros this summer mercato, signing big names- Felipe Melo, Diego, Grosso, and Cannavaro. And for the first two months, it looked like we were entering a new era for Juventus. Diego was playing brilliant, Cannavaro was back to his old self, Melo was proving me wrong, and Grosso was actually playing well. Flash forward to today. We aren’t winning, and our transfers have all been pretty crap.

Their faces say it all.

Lastly, it’s the way the Old Guard is leaving. These guys are heroes of Juventus, some of the greatest players ever in our history, and not just for their performances on the pitch. Nedved, Del Piero, Buffon, Camoranesi, Trezeguet, all deserve to be retiring at the highest level, fighting for the Scudetto and the Champion’s League. Nedved retired last year, silverwareless for 3 years. ADP, Trez, and Camo all look set to move on or retire in the next 2 years, and the looks on their faces against Napoli was heartbreaking. Of the Old Guard, the only one who will be at Juventus for a while longer is Gigi Buffon. Let’s hope we don’t disgrace ourselves for when he leaves.

I’m tired of constantly being beaten, I’m tired of assholes wearing our jersey, I’m tired of losing on comebacks, I’m tired of leaking goals endlessly, but most of all…I’m just sick of the season. I think I speak for us all when I say I wish this season would just end now, whether we are in 5th or 15th.

The typical Serie A squad is like an Italian table or diet. Your defenders are like cheese, Central Backs are preferred a little toughened up and experienced, like a caciocavallo left to dry a little, making the outside rugged but the inside still flexible and chewy.

The midfield needs to adapt to your diet but yet remain somehow consistent without being predictable or boring. That’s the pasta ; corte, lunghe, fresche, al forno, all uovo, artigianale… you name it. Your attack is the Meat. Various cuts of beef, some game, salsiccia… depending on what’s fresh at that time. You want something hearty and substantial that will fill you up. The Coach, sauce and spices ; dictating the tone and tastes all throughout the meal.

The bench being the fridge and pantry ; It’s got stuff you can throw out there depending on how the meal is going. You got your backups ; good old emergency snacks, like nuts, bread & fruit. Primavera players freshly picked up from the garden to see what they taste like and the super sub, your coffee if in need of a pick me up.

Don’t forget those novelty items you forgot in the back of the cellar , like bizarre Romanian Mozzarella di Buffala ; Adrian Pit. That American prosciutto your friend brought that you left to hang in the cantina just to be polite ; Oguchi Onyewu. French Berry Chutney like Vikash Dhorasso. Semi-old dates from Libya ; Saadi Al-Ghedaffi. That seed from the Brazilian avocado ,that turned into to a delicious guacamole, that you neatly put on top of a glass of water, stuck some toothpicks in it and left it on the counter just ’cause you were curious to see what would happen ; Digao. Old cabbage in the freezer in Marco Ballotta. Bosnian Salami Ham sandwiches at Juve ; Hasan Salihmadzic and the list goes on… (Feel free to add your own in the comments)

And no meal would be complete without the oh so important wine; Italian keepers. Il Portiere, like wine, is believed to only get better with age. They are usually sent to mature a while in either Serie B barrels, Serie C cellars or sometimes left on oak shelves in Serie A.

Well Salvatore Sirigu wants you to know that he’s a fan of Vino Nuovo and that some wines just aren’t worth the wait and should be uncorked right away and enjoyed.

The rosanero stopper is just now starting to shine on the big stage. The 1987 born Sirigu has been touted as one for the future for about 5 years now. And at 23 years old, that’s pretty young for a goalie to be coming of age.

Considering that Italian squads not named Fiorentina still consider 23 year old outfield players as ” Future Prospects”, let alone ‘keepers, Sirigu’s recent displays are noteworthy. Marcello Lippi agrees having called up the Sardinian stopper for today’s Azzurri clash with Cameroon.

Gigi Buffon who’s idol,Thomas N’Kono, played for Cameroon in Italia ‘90, has also noticed the yound custodian. Following Juve’s recent 2-0 loss to Palermo, Superman had nothing but kind words for Sirigu ;

“I must say that Sirigu of Palermo has show he is a serene keeper with some excellent qualities. In fact he is like me from a physical point of view. Like Sirigu, Emiliano Viviano of Bologna is also doing well.”

The 192 centimeter long Sirigu, born in Nuoro, Sardinia, moved to the peninsula as a 15 year old, joining Venezia. Salvatore never got a call up to Venezia’s senior squad but did well enough in the youth ranks to earn 5 caps with the Italia U18 & U19 squads.

After showing off on the little International stage Sirigu moved to Palermo in 2005 where he instantly became the #1 stopper for an excellent Palermo Primavera side. The tall Sardinian graduated to the U21 side as of 2007 while getting some much needed pitch time on loan to Cremonese & Ancona.

The young Palermo ‘keeper has come a long way since running Rubinho out of town and establishing himself firmly between the Sicilian sticks in 2009.

Now Sirigu is drawing interest from squads like Bayern Munich !

God I hate German food…

Just because this is a national team blog doesn’t mean that we don’t care about club teams. On the contrary- both me and Paul care a lot about the state of the clubs in the peninsula. And so should you.

There’s one issue that is hanging over Italian clubs like ominous clouds over the peninsula. It’s something that’s been a problem for a few years now, but few of us really want to talk about it: it’s just too painful, too difficult to think about, something that we can perhaps avoid. Put off. Get out of mind altogether. Yet, as time goes on, it seems like more and more a possibility: Italy, home of legends like Maradona, Baggio, and the second greatest Champions League club of all time, might just lose the fourth spot for the competition.

The impotence of any Italian club to make it far in the Champions League has become increasingly apparent since 2007. It may seem like Milan won it just a few years ago (and they did), but since then there’s been a dearth of success for Italian teams. In many ways, it’s just been an outright failure since that legendary day against Liverpool. Inter have been knocked out in the round of 16 by Valencia, Liverpool, and Man U, and even brought in Mourinho to change their fortune. Milan were knocked out by Arsenal the year after they won and didn’t qualify to make it last year. Roma did well, making it to the last 8 two years in a row, but their perennial bogey team knocked them out time and time again. As for Juve, calciopoli kept them out for a couple years and this year was just an unmitigated disaster.

Juve fans, avert your eyes.

Doing well this year is of tantamount importance: there is a tangible risk that Italy could lose the fourth spot for the Champions League to Germany. In a big sense, it’s a country vs country situation but it’s best exemplified on a club level: Juve went crashing out of the group stages with a final game thrashing by Bayern Munich- the same team that Fior have to face next. Should Bayern beat a second Italian team, and Inter and Milan also fail to progress, it puts that fourth spot in huge jeopardy.

Allow me to explain. Each country is given a number of spots to compete in the Champions League. Italy, along with Spain and England, have four, which means the four clubs that finish at the top of the table in Serie A get to participate in the Champions League every year. If Italy were to lose a spot, only 3 clubs could compete, costing the fourth club massive amounts of revenue as well as a chance at glory- not to mention it would be a huge embarrassment.

The number of spots given to each country depends upon a coefficient. The three countries with the highest coefficient get 4 spots, with the rest of the countries getting 3, 2 or 1 depending on their coefficient. This coefficient is calculated using based on the following:

This coefficient is determined by the results of the clubs of the leagues in UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League games over the past five seasons. The number of points awarded each season (two for each win by a club from that league, one for a draw) is divided by the number of teams that participated for that nation in that season. This number is then truncated after three decimal places (e.g. 2 2/3 will be truncated to 2.666).

For the league coefficient the season’s league coefficients for the last five seasons must be added up. In the preliminary rounds of both the Champions League and Europa League, the awarded points are halved. Bonus points are allocated for:

-Qualifying for the Champions League group phase. (4 bonus points)

-Reaching the second round of the Champions League. (1 bonus point)

-Reaching the quarter, semi and final of both Champions League and Europa League. (1 bonus point)

So should Bayern beat Fior and make it to the next round, it not only bars Italy the chance to gain a point but actually takes one from us and gives us right to Germany. And we’re perilously close in the standings: our total for the past 5 years is 62 points and they’re at 56. In recent years, they’ve been doing better than us, gaining roughly 13.5 points in 07-08 compared to our 10.25, for example. And since it only goes back five years, after this year the 04-05 season won’t count, in which we gained 4 more points than Germany.

In short- the gap could shrink a lot. If all the Italian clubs get knocked out here and Bayern goes on, it may be enough to lose us the fourth spot.

So this week, all of us should be Milan and Fior fans. For the good of the peninsula.

In Spain it’s ”Cantera” , in England it’s the ”Academy” and in Italy it should just be called Fiorentina.

The Fiorentina project, unlike this stupid McItaly bullshit , is not piloted by a dumb douche. Contrary to the idiotic – Government stamped sandwiches – McItaly , Fiorentina’s purple project embraces the Italian quest of being proud of that unique, regional identity, be it linguistic, culinary, etc… The richness of the diversity. That’s intrisically Italian.

Led by mercato mastermind Pantaleo Corvino, Fiorentina proudly speak their own unique dialect in Serie A ; La Viola’s style is one of the smartest, most sustainable and fun to watch in all of Italy.

Since Fiorentina’s triumphant return to Serie A, La Viola have been breeding and developing young talent at an amazing pace.

They have started a cycle by investing on youth. Florence is now a place were youngsters can flourish into world class players for an ambitious club. It seems as tough Pantaleo Corvino no longer wants football pundits to refer to a 21 year old as a ”young player”. Let’s take Keirrison for example ; Libertadores cup experience, Top scorer of the Campeonato Brasileiro in 2008, Part of the Brazilian National team…Born in 1988.

Fiorentina might be in 11th place in Serie A at the moment, only a handful of teams can successfully chase more than one rabbit at a time, but Fio is probably the most exciting Italian team left in the Champions League. Fiorentina is building for the future while competing on the European level. Comparisons with Arsenal are inevitable, the London club is known for giving space to youngsters…From Cesc Fabregas to Aaron Ramsey. All homegrown, even if some players were poached abroad in their teens. Stefan Jovetic is the perfect example, not exactly a Fiorentina ”youth product” but you get the idea. Born in 1989, Jovetic is already considered a world class player after his recent Champions League displays. Italian Calcio followers, especially Fio fans, knew it was just a matter of time before the rest of Europe would notice. The young Montenegrin, a pillar of the Viola play, holds huge responsibilities for a 20 year old. We should ask Liverpool what they think of JoJo

Fiorentina are counting on this mix of Young with old, eagerness guided by experience to make the perfect purple pie.

This is the plan, for the long term, stars will come and go but Fiorentina implemented a system that is sustainable in the long run, financially and on the field. The Viola fans know they’ll be losing, or cashing in, on big time players every so often. ”No Worries” is the Viola modus vivendi ; It could be Luca Toni leaving to Bayern or Adrian Mutu checking in to rehab. Fiorentina already have alternatives in mind or homemade remedies ready to be tested on a big stage.

Fiorentina know they have solid youngsters and are more than willing to promote from within. From Khouma El Babacar(16 year old Le phénomène Sénégalais) to Haris Seferovic(Swiss\Bosnian who goldentbooted the 2009 U17 World Cup winning it for the Swiss but has shown interest at possibly playing for Serbia one day), for the future Gilardinos…Ljajic, Di Tacchio, Bolatti, Agiyei and Carraro are willing to step in the midfield. This is a squad that already fields Gilardino, Montolivo, De Silvestri, Vargas, Jovetic and Felipe, all young yet experienced.

All of this while playing high quality, enjoyable football. Even La Viola’s recent defeat at the hands of Roma showed Europe how spectacularly dangerous this squad is, even without Mutu. The on going Viola project of : Everyone has a price and Make way for the youngsters is already paying dividends. It continued in January with the arrivals of youngsters Mario Bolatti, Felipe, Adem Ljajic, Keirrison and Harris Seferovic while Dainelli, Jorgensen and Mutu left.

Viola fans can remain serene, even if Cesare Prandelli replaces Marcello Lippi on the Azzurri bench come August. With a competent man behind the wheel in Pantaleo Corvino, you just know he’s properly prepared. As Bob Marley once told Bobby Mcferrin ; ” Dont Worry ”