Translated material
Off schedule again
The Italian Serie A traditionally started with a delay
Initially, the elite calcio division was going to premiere on August 26th. But the protracted trail of proceedings and appeals related to the massive investigation into game-fixing in the “Moggi case” postponed the start of the tournament two weeks ahead. Last season, the championship also started late due to problems with television rights, and two years ago due to the Genoa match-fixing scandal.This time, four clubs, including such giants as Milan, Lazio and Fiorentina, as well as Regina who joined them, started with a negative indicator in the “points scored” column.
And he benefited from relegating the favorites to the basement of the Inter standings. Not only did Massimo Moratti explode the transfer market, snatching a hefty chunk, but the Nerazzurri also started with a brilliant away victory over Fiorentina, strengthening their personal position as the main contender for the Scudetto.
Considering the way Inter dealt with Roma in the Italian Super Cup match (losing 0:3, scoring four unanswered goals and snatching the trophy), Roberto Mancini’s team received a phenomenal boost of confidence in their abilities, which they lacked before. Having completely retained the core of the team, the Interists acquired a quartet consisting of Ibrahimovic and Vieira (both Juventus), Crespo (Chelsea) and the opening of the last World Cup in Germany, the “shuttle” Grosso from Palermo. The hero of the meeting was the 26-year-old midfielder of the Argentina national team, Esteban Cambiasso, who twice upset the Violets and also assisted Ibrahimovic. By the way, Milan applied for the Swede of Bosnian origin, but Silvio Berlusconi offered an amount equal to 25 million euros, refusing to seek a compromise. But the bargaining did not last long. Inter, who came to the rescue, had a conversation with Ibrahimovic, and he, threatening Juventus with legal action for trying to keep him in Serie B, freed his hands.
Fiorentina, led by Cesare Prandelli, also did not sit idle in the off-season. The Florentines were forced into vigorous activity by a 19-point deficit. By the way, Milan's deficit was 8 points, Lazio's - 11, and Regina's - 15. If the chances of the team from Reggio Calabria to remain in Serie A are minimal, then the Violets can be saved. Powerful forward Luca Toni, not invited by Roberto Donadoni to the new Italian national team, rammed Inter's defense twice, making a significant bet on winning the sniper dispute. Liverani (Lazio), Mutu and Blasi (Juventus) and Santana from Palermo, who appeared in Florence, will clearly help him in this. Prandelli, whose name is associated with the last two brilliant seasons of Parma, which twice stopped within a step of the Champions League despite financial problems, has enough material at hand to calmly ride out the storm.
Unlike their fellow countrymen, Milan carried out the selection rather with a minus sign. The Rossoneri are going to compensate for the chaotic departure of Andrei Shevchenko to Chelsea, the departure of Rui Costa and Jaap Stam by purchasing defender Daniele Bonera from Parma, who has been knocking on the doors of the superclub for a long time, as well as the transfer, estimated at 15 million euros, of the Brazilian goalscorer from Spanish Betis Ricardo Oliveira. In the first round, the South American, who entered the field wearing number 7, which previously belonged to Shevchenko, immediately rushed to justify the advances, scoring the winning goal against Lazio. The only drawback of Oliveira, who played an incomplete half, is his susceptibility to injury. If the Milanese doctors give the Brazilian special hours for recovery and prevention, then Milan will not have any problems in attack. After all, he still has Gilardino and Filippo Inzaghi, who at 33 found a second youth by scoring the first goal against the Sky Blues.
The absence of significant personnel problems and last year's 11-match winning streak, which became a record in Serie A in history, testify in favor of Roma, which will certainly compete with Inter in the fight for the Scudetto. Moreover, the Gialorossi coach Luciano Spalletti managed to lure the experienced creative midfielder David Pizarro from Udinese, as well as the talented Tonetto from Sampdoria and Cassetti from Lecce, who were in their prime.
Other notable events of the tour include two points lost in the last minutes by Parma, which will meet Rubin Kazan in the UEFA Cup. The Parmesans missed a goal from Torino in the last minute of the meeting, which returned to Serie A led by the eminent Alberto Zaccheroni.
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Italian Championship. 1st round. "Roma" - "Livorno" - 2:0, "Fiorentina" - "Inter" - 2:3, "Atalanta" - "Ascoli" - 3:1, "Cagliari" - "Catania" -- 0:1, "Chievo" -- "Siena" -- 1:2, "Messina" -- "Udinese" -- 1:0, "Milan" -- "Lazio" -- 2:1, "Palermo" "-"Regina" - 4:3, "Sampdoria" - "Empoli" - 1:2, "Torino" - "Parma" - 1:1.