[han2503]

Milan 4 - 1 Anderlecht
Kaka pen 7, 22, 56 (M), Juhasz 61 (A), Gilardino 87 (M)
Stadio Meazza

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Kaka's splendid hat-trick and Alberto Gilardino's first ever Champions League goal thumped Anderlecht 4-1, but there were two injuries.

The Rossoneri needed a confidence-booster after two consecutive Serie A home defeats against Palermo and Inter. With a win tonight and AEK Athens failing to beat Lille, they would be automatically qualified for the knock-outs.

Daniele Bonera was suspended following his dismissal in the last match and Kakha Kaladze pulled up with a suspected thigh strain during the warm-up, so Marek Jankulovski stepped in at the last moment. Yoann Gourcuff returned from a long injury lay-off for a cracked rib, as Andrea Pirlo and Gennaro Gattuso were rested.

Gourcuff's cross from the right found Ricardo Oliveira's looping header off target, then on three minutes the Brazilian skipped past a defender on the left and rolled across the face of goal where Alberto Gilardino incredibly missed the ball completely from six yards. Gila has never scored in the Champions League and that pass only needed to be touched in.

Gilardino was about to open his account moments later when he sprung the offside trap on Clarence Seedorf's through ball, but Roland Juhasz clipped his heels as he prepared to shoot. The referee pointed to the spot and Kaka buried the penalty into the top corner. The Brazilian had also scored in the 1-0 victory in Belgium a fortnight ago.

Goor's free kick floated well over, but the Rossoneri had an excellent chance to double their lead with a corner kick finding Dario Simic for a point-blank Zitka save.

Gilardino acrobatically tried to reach a Seedorf cross to the back post and Dida captured a Vanderhaeghe strike from a corner, but Milan's bad luck with injuries continued, as Alessandro Nesta came off with a shoulder problem. Cafu took the right-back role, moving Simic to central defence.

The Rossoneri went 2-0 up with a splendid team effort. Gourcuff set Kaka running from midfield and he exchanged passes with fellow Brazilian Cafu before rifling in a powerful yet graceful finish over the goalkeeper.

Gilardino's shot on the bounce was well smothered by Zitka on Cristian Brocchi's cross, while Dida parried a Boussoufa effort. Gourcuff was again impressive on a solo run and was sent flying by a late Juhasz challenge. The French talent landed awkwardly, but was not seriously injured.

Paolo Maldini went to left-back and he crossed for Seedorf's header to skim the near post. Anderlecht threw on Turkish striker Serhat Akhin before the break and Jankulovski charged down a Vanden Borre effort.

The Belgians were more attacking in the second half, Tchite firing two opportunities over the bar, but Kaka again sprinted past his marker down the left and his cross was flicked off the head of an unmarked Gourcuff by a crucial defensive intervention.

There was no doubting the Man of the Match at San Siro, as Kaka completed his hat-trick with a simply magnificent goal. He skipped past a defender out wide on the left and unleashed an unstoppable right-foot rising missile into the far top corner.

But the Rossoneri's disappointing record from set-pieces was confirmed when Anderlecht got a goal back with Juhasz allowed a free header from a corner kick.

Moments later it was nearly 3-2, as Serhat's cross was deflected on to the frame of the goal by Jankulovski, then Dida blocked Goor's long-range attempt. Gennaro Gattuso replaced the tired Gourcuff, who had been out for six weeks.

Anderlecht's tails were up and Dida parried a Serhat strike and soon after performed a great reaction save on Tchite's effort from point-blank range following another defensive error.

Cafu saw the Belgian goalkeeper off his line and an ambitious cross-shot skimmed the crossbar.

The visitors nearly scored an own goal with Kaka on another driving run down the left that De Man prodded wide of the net. Andrea Pirlo replaced Oliveira to further strengthen the midfield.

Gattuso found space and preferred to cut across for Seedorf, whose shot was charged down by an arm, but the referee considered it to be an involuntary gesture.

Milan were fortunate that Anderlecht wasted a good chance from another set-piece. The free kick was twice turned back across the face of goal until Hassan came sliding in at the back post and turned wide from six yards.

Gilardino scored his first goal of the season on Saturday against Inter and finally broke his career Champions League duck in the final minutes. He ran on to a long pass over the defence and thumped a fine angled drive into the far corner. The ex-Parma striker's wild celebrations along with the Milan fans earned him a booking.

Dida had a scare in stoppages on Hassan's snapshot and Kaka was stopped by a desperate challenge as he again sprinted up the field looking for his fourth of the game.

Milan: Dida; Simic, Nesta (Cafu 19), Maldini, Jankulovski; Gourcuff (Gattuso 65), Brocchi, Seedorf; Kakà; Ricardo Oliveira (Pirlo 72), Gilardino

Anderlecht: Zitka; Vanden Borre (Legear 84), Juhasz, De Man, Deschacht; Goor, Biglia, Vanderhaeghe (Serhat 39), Hassan; Boussoufa (Mpenza 80), Tchite

Ref: Fandel (Ger)

football italia

[han2503]

Ancelotti: Kaka's better than 'Dinho

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Carlo Ancelotti claims hat-trick hero Kaka is the “best player in the world right now” – better than Milan target Ronaldinho.

“Kaka is the best player in the world right now. He does extraordinary things with great simplicity and efficiency,” said the Coach after the 4-1 Champions League win over Anderlecht.

“Kaka is the most decisive player on the planet. Considering the way he plays and how he affects the results, I can’t see anyone better out there, including Ronaldinho.”

The Rossoneri have been heavily linked with Brazilian star Ronaldinho, but Ancelotti hinted that he would prefer to keep the players at his disposal.

The Coach was even happier with Gilardino’s late strike – his first ever Champions League goal.

“Maybe Gilardino’s one goal was more important than Kaka’s three! We had waited such a long time for this moment. This week he broke through in Serie A and the Champions League, so he’ll be back to his old self again.”

Milan aren’t quite qualified yet, as AEK Athens earned a 1-0 victory over 10-man Lille in the other Group H game, but they are nonetheless five points clear at the top.

“We thought this result would take us through, but we still need a point and will try to take our chances in Athens. Milan played well today, even if we struggled a little at the back, but the strikers were in excellent form.

There was bad news, though, as Kakha Kaladze suffered a suspected thigh strain in the warm-up and Alessandro Nesta came off during the first half with a shoulder problem.

“I don’t think either of them will be ready for next weekend. Now we’ve got a bit of a shortage at the back. We have been more vulnerable in defence recently, so we have to work on that, but at least we’ve ended our goal drought.”

Ancelotti explained his tactical choices against the Belgians, resting Gennaro Gattuso and Andrea Pirlo.

“I thought we’d need to push forward right from the start, so I opted for a more attacking midfield with Yoann Gourcuff and Clarence Seedorf, so Cristian Brocchi was then in front of the defence. Yoann had been out for a month, so he didn’t have 90 minutes in his legs.”

Despite the 4-1 scoreline, there were some hairy moments towards the end with Anderlecht repeatedly risking a second.

“We started brilliantly, but after our third goal we came under pressure, perhaps we relaxed a little bit.”

Now that their European qualification is all but assured, will Milan focus more on their Scudetto ambitions, even if they’re 14 points adrift of leaders Inter and Palermo?

“I don’t know if we’ll be able to catch up in Serie A or not, but we certainly have to do better than in the last six games, where we dropped far too many points. Our performances in the League have got to improve.”

[arivanjj]

Ancelotti: Kaka's better than 'Dinho

DUUHHH!!! (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/dry.gif)

[han2503]

DUUHHH!!! (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/dry.gif)

Well try to tell that to some people who think that no one even comes close to R10.

I think the golden ball should deservedly go to Kaka this year, end of.

If it goes to R10 again, then we'll know what a joke they have become also

This post has been edited by han2503: Nov 2 2006, 08:23 AM

[dst]

Silvio Berlusconi was at the San Siro tonight.

In the end he said something like "Exchange Kaka for Ronaldinho? (sell Kaka' and buy R10) Never... well, I would like them to play together..."

It's on the official website.  (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/cool.gif)

Oh yeah ?? That's the best answer he can give ?? Praise him for God's sake just once !! Say something like "I like Kaka as much as I like Ronaldinho, there's no such issue on my mind" ... Just once !! (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/mad.gif) (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/mad.gif) (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/mad.gif)

[han2503]

Oh yeah ?? That's the best answer he can give ?? Praise him for God's sake just once !! Say something like "I like Kaka as much as I like Ronaldinho, there's no such issue on my mind" ... Just once !!  (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/mad.gif)   (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/mad.gif)   (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/mad.gif)

"Exchange Kaka for Ronaldinho? Never..."

I think this is his way of praising him.

He IS basically saying here that he would never give up Kaka in order to have R10, which is saying that he is more valuable to him

[dst]

I think this is his way of praising him.

He IS basically saying here that he would never give up Kaka in order to have R10, which is saying that he is more valuable to him

No he's not saying that !! I want to hear a reall praise the way he goes "praising-happy" whenever he listens the name Ronaldinho !!

[dst]

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02/11/2006 11.31
Kaka A Phenomenon – Gilardino

Milan striker Alberto Gilardino branded Kaka ‘a phenomenon’ after the Brazilian’s hat-trick in the 4-1 Champions League thrashing of Anderlecht.

‘Gila’ himself netted his second goal in two games after also scoring in the 4-3 defeat to Inter on Saturday.

"It was important to win and my goal came too, so it was doubly satisfying," he said. "After the derby it was crucial to show our character and I think we did that today."

He added: "Kaka is a phenomenon. He's a great player, champion and man. As long as he's playing like this, then Milan can't help but be in good shape."

Milan booked their place in the second round with the victory at the San Siro.

After the match coach Carlo Ancelotti suggested that Kaka was the best player in the world, although the Brazilian himself has played this down.


goal.com

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[HasanHasanly]

Saw, the goals, liked them very much... It was good to see that Gila scored again and had a perfect chance to score another one when he was fouled and we got the penalty. Kaka is magnificent, and he is our player, he is the player of Milan football school, and we do not need dinho, as we do not need second hand superstars, we never did these kind of decisions...

Nice game from all the team, except in defence, i thought that cafu was not always able to come back... Very nice game and magnificent play....

Kaka showed Anderlecht what football is, they are probably mad at the Brazilian... They got four goals from him (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/tongue.gif)

Where in the list of the bombardiers is Kaka?

This post has been edited by HasanHasanly: Nov 2 2006, 03:24 PM

[Milan Are Brilli...]

and Gila, well it's about bloody time.. (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/king.gif)

I had a feeling after the Inter game, he would start to whack them in! Come on Gilar!

[agenth]

Kaka is in 1st Place, along with Drogba, they both scored 5 goals

[LaPalma]

I had a feeling after the Inter game, he would start to whack them in! Come on Gilar!

Gila is BACK!!!! (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/devilsmiley.gif) (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/devilsmiley.gif) (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/devilsmiley.gif)

[Panama Devil]

EXCELLENT ... GAME

EXCELLENT KAKA'

BUT ONCE AGAIN .... KAKA' AND HMMMMMMMMMMMMM KAKA'

KAKA' MAKING GOALS ... KAKA' BEGINNING COUNTERATTACKS FROM THE MIDDLE OF THE FIELD ... KAKA' GIVING THE CORRECT PASSES ...

I'M EXCITED FOR THE VICTORY ... BUT I'M STILL SEEING ONLY KAKA' DOING THE MAGIC ....

BELEIVE ME ... THAT'S NOT THAT GOOD.

[KillerMax]

EXCELLENT ... GAME

EXCELLENT KAKA'

BUT ONCE AGAIN .... KAKA' AND HMMMMMMMMMMMMM KAKA'

KAKA' MAKING GOALS ... KAKA' BEGINNING COUNTERATTACKS FROM THE MIDDLE OF THE FIELD ... KAKA' GIVING THE CORRECT PASSES ...

I'M EXCITED FOR THE VICTORY ... BUT I'M STILL SEEING ONLY KAKA' DOING THE MAGIC ....

BELEIVE ME ... THAT'S NOT THAT GOOD.

He is doing it because someone's got to do it! When Sheva was here, he was doing it! Then they did it together... Then Sheva left and Kaka will have to find a new magician partner! There is nothing wrong with this IMO... And our other players are finding their form too... And did I mention Gourcuff? Just give the kid two more games and see what magic he can do... (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

[han2503]

He is doing it because someone's got to do it! When Sheva was here, he was doing it! Then they did it together... Then Sheva left and Kaka will have to find a new magician partner! There is nothing wrong with this IMO... And our other players are finding their form too... And did I mention Gourcuff? Just give the kid two more games and see what magic he can do... (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

Exactly, Gourcuff was a BIT quite.(because he still made some nice moves, his pass to kaka for the second goal was great, it split there midfield in 2) But let's not forget that he has been out for a while now because of his injury, not to mention all the blows he suffered in the game, that tackle made on him (when the Ader player nearly took his legs off) was brutal to say the least.

Give the kid a couple more games and he will pick up form again, his showing against Ascoli and AEK is proof enough of what his POTENTIAL is, especially since he is such a young player