Olé for Oliveira
At the end of a controversial summer, Milan have chosen Ricardo Oliveira as the substitute for Andriy Shevchenko. But, as Eurocalcio’s Lorenzo Zacchetti asks, is he the right man for the job?
Milan fans didn’t really appreciate the club’s summer transfer campaign and showed their anger with chants and banners during the Trofeo TIM at San Siro against Inter and Juventus. The tournament, based on three 45-minute matches, was just two hours after the end of the summer transfer window, which proved disappointing for the Diavolo’s lovers. Replacing Andriy Shevchenko after his painful transfer to Chelsea was ‘only’ Ricardo Oliveira. This Brazilian striker from Real Betis is not yet popular amongst the Italian supporters, despite his debut goal against Lazio.
The new arrival has also chosen the No 7 shirt, which belonged to Sheva, despite the team’s suggestion he should avoid another comparison with the Ukrainian legend. “For me there is no problem,†said the courageous Brazilian. “If one of the biggest football teams has chosen me it must mean I have the ability.†But he will also have to convince the most animated fans who have been spoiled by Silvio Berlusconi for the last 20 years. Everyone was waiting for a big signing from Milan this summer, mainly because after the eight-point penalty the team will have to chase Inter, reinforced by Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Patrick Vieira, Hernan Crespo, Fabio Grosso, Douglas Maicon and Olivier Dacourt.
Milan tried hard to respond to the city rivals by signing Ronaldo, a transfer which would have been a moral slap to Massimo Moratti, who is still hurting from the betrayal of ‘Il Fenomeno’ in 2002. When Adriano Galliani and Ariedo Braida arrived in Madrid everyone was waiting for the transfer to happen. After all, the two negotiators are used to a ‘mission impossible’. For example, in 1988 they signed Frank Rijkaard from Sporting Lisbon and Braida had to hide the contract in his trousers to stop the Portuguese fans from ripping it up.
However, this time the dynamic duo didn’t break Ramon Calderon’s resistance. The new President of Real Madrid was still mad at Galliani, who a few weeks ago had called him “a thief†for the insistent courting of Kaka. For this reason he ordered sporting director Predrag Mijatovic not to reduce the initial price of the player, which was set at £20m. Definitely too much for a man in his thirties, who has suffered far too many injuries. It is understandable that Milan abandoned the negotiations, but it’s surprising that they have decided to spend £12m plus Johann Vogel on Oliveira, who doesn’t seem ready to play ahead of Filippo Inzaghi and Alberto Gilardino.
Another surprise was the rush to sign him. Once the negotiations with Real were interrupted, Braida and Galliani went for dinner with Roberto Assis, brother of Ronaldinho and Oliveira’s agent, laying the foundations of the contract for the ex-Valencia striker. Afterwards, the two officials went to Seville by train, where they found an agreement with Betis for the player. After a few days, the Spanish club tried to increase the price – hinting at a better offer from Zenit St Petersburg – but the contract was sorted right at the end of the transfer market window on August 31 at 7pm.
Upon his arrival in Milan for the traditional physical test, Oliveira said: “I’m happy to play for the club, because there are many Brazilians. But now I want to be friends with all of the others. I will have to learn Italian quickly, because the only thing I can say at the moment is ‘tutto bene’ – everything is fine.†The Rossoneri faithful, instead, want to see if Oliveira speaks the same language as the champions on the pitch.
Born in Sao Paulo on June 5, 1980, Oliveira started his career at Portuguesa and then moved to Santos in 2002, forming ‘the marvellous trio’ with Robinho and Diego. In 2003 he arrived in Europe with Valencia. His first season wasn’t bad – 21 appearances with eight goals – and ended with victory in La Liga and the UEFA Cup, even if he wasn’t always playing in the first XI.
During the summer he transferred to Real Betis and in his first season in Andalusia he scored 22 goals in 37 matches to become ‘Pichichi’ – top scorer of La Liga – and also won the Copa del Rey. His second year in Sevilla was terrible though, after an accidental collision with Ricardo Carvalho during a Champions League match against Chelsea resulted in knee ligament damage.
The injury ended his dream of playing in the World Cup, although he has won the Copa America and the Confederations Cup with Brazil. After the injury the player’s career was in danger so he went on loan to Sao Paulo, reaching the Libertadores Cup Finals. But by the time his loan ended, Oliveira didn’t seem too concerned about returning to Spain and joined the team’s summer camp nine days late. Betis decided to punish him with a fine of €1m – never before has a player been fined so much.
“Finally I’m playing for Milan,†he stated. “Now that everything is signed I can forget all the troubles of my transfer, I’m really happy. I only want to think about football and show everyone why I’m here. I’m ready to give everything, to work for the team and to score.â€
During his career Oliveira has always been used to playing as a lone striker. For Santos he was the focal point of a triangle formed by Diego and Robinho. For Betis he was the only striker in the team. He will have to change his attitude for Milan by forming a partnership with Inzaghi or Gila. The Rossoneri never play with less than two strikers, probably due to Berlusconi’s notorious diktat to Carlo Ancelotti.
On the Rossoneri side scepticism is high. Many fans are accusing Berlusconi of losing his interest to invest in Milan and are asking him to decide between football and politics. On the other hand, the more optimistic among the San Siro supporters are seeing the Oliveira case as a good start in the relationship with Roberto Assis. The final objective is naturally Ronaldinho – the dream of every Milan fan and of everyone who loves football.
The quarrel that the World Player of the Year and Rijkaard had during the European Super Cup has reinforced the chances of his future transfer to Milan. Rijkaard, even if he is denying any kind of problem with the Brazilian, said: “Today he is fundamental for Barça, but I can’t predict what will happen in a year. Milan? Well, if someone asks me for a comment about them I cannot surely say anything bad.†Milan are dreaming of Ronaldinho, maybe even in January – unless Oliveira surprises everybody.
Football Italia
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