[Il Diavolo]

The thing is, Seedorf is a Big Game Player. He often looks dreadful against the provincial teams and then looks absolutely amazing against Juve/cugini/MU/etc. I wouldn't necessarily drop him from the lineup because he was patchy against Siena.

As for Napoli, they really are playing very enjoyable football right now. They deserve to be at the top along with Udinese - who I think are also playing very enjoyable football.

You're right, Clarence is a 'big games player', but he is not completely healed from what I understand. Neither is Ronaldinho, but at least, he rested Siena.

And seriously, what's wrong with Sandro? He should have been available for Samp, then Atalanta and now, he's not even sure for Napoli. It's been two weeks since he recovered. From what I recall, he complained about his speed, but that ain't much of a problem. Bonera and Paolo are great, but we all know what Nesta is capable of /although he usually plays bad when returning from injury/. And maybe I'm alone on this, but I think Antonini should replace Janku, if not this weekend, then in the near future. His worst performance was against Heerenveen and he wasn't even that bad. Janku is becoming more and more unpredictable. He's a good player, he was our best defender in the early 2007, but Antonini is the future.

Another scary thing is that Emerson is actually performing better than Flamini and Ambro. Carlo, don't count on that. Even though Emerson is an experienced player and has been helpful lately, he's still risky for the big games. He'll be useful in the UEFA Cup, but Ambro and Flamini are class. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

[Tennie]

(Do people want me to do the daily training update thingies? Yes/no?)

Not sure if the below helps determine who might play or not, but here are highlights from today's training.

Players who started against Siena trained in the gym.

Here's what the other players did:

Nesta, Ronaldinho and Cardacio worked on acceleration on diagonals.
Shevchenko did a series of (I think it translates as) steps.
Borriello and Ambrosini worked on strengthening exercises.
Senderos worked on agility and changing direction.
Kaladze trained on the ball with Filippo Galli.

[dst]

Kaladze trained on the ball with Filippo Galli.

I really hope he trained on the moon instead. Alone. And forgotten.

[Zed.D]

@ Tennie

Yes, yes!

[Darunia]

Bonera-Maldini should be the partnership in this one. They have been quite good lately, and against a very strong Napoli team this is not the one to bring Nesta back. He needs a couple games under his belt first. Janku adds a stronger attacking threat than Antonini, and if he plays well he's a big part of our offense. Plus he sat out against Siena, so he should be ready to go. I haven't seen Antonini on the left cuz Carlo never plays him there... expect Ronaldinho to start this one if hes fit, otherwise Pato will start alongside Borriello. Either way is fine. X-mas tree works better against attacking teams like Napoli than it does against smaller teams. This could be a shootout..

This post has been edited by Darunia: Oct 31 2008, 12:45 AM

[Jack Sparrow]

I have absolutely no idea about this Antonini thing. How come Carlo's never asked this in the press conference?

Usually, as a fanboy I have some idea of Carlo's intentions. But this instance... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif) I should ask R7.

Is he trying to make Antonini the new Zambrotta. The all round fullback who can play left and right. Coz I notice, he's being played on the right against the 'smaller' teams. I don't know about it though. We tried making Gila a target man and that kinda failed.

[acid911]

Usually, as a fanboy I have some idea of Carlo's intentions. But this instance... I should ask R7.

Unfortunately, this is something two R7s combined can't answer. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif) Very un-Carlo-like, these last few months, some strange decisions and team selections. And that for the longest reigning Serie A manager (since 2001) doesn't quite seem to fit.

[Jack Sparrow]

And yet, we're pretty well in the league... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/unsure.gif)

Curiouser and curiouser...

[CrazyMilanFan]

r80 is hoping for a start against napoli and as it is home game so christmas tree is most likly

[acid911]

And yet, we're pretty well in the league...
Curiouser and curiouser...

'Well' is a relative term. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif) So there it is! Personally I won't be contend until the scudetto is firmly in the bag, and then some. Plus a UEFA Cup victory, since we've got depth and a goalkeeper (Dida) who's finding his form back. Maybe throw in a full treble with the Italian Cup too.

PS. Ronaldinho should start and join in what hopefully turns out to be a massacre. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif) For them, of course!

[Zed.D]

Serie A Preview: Milan - Napoli

What: Italian Serie A-Matchday 10
Who: AC Milan (3rd Serie A, 19 pts.) vs. Napoli (1st Serie A, 20 pts.)
When: Sunday 2 November 20:30 (CET)
Where: Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, Milan


The match of the weekend, along with Juventus-Roma, takes place at San Siro as third placed Milan host joint-first Napoli.

Milan In Fantastic Form

Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti had seemed on the brink of the sack after a dismal start to the season, when his side were defeated in both of their opening Serie A matches against Bologna and Genoa. This all followed a poor pre-season, and there were serious fears that it could be another troublesome campaign for the northerners.

However, Ancelotti has turned things around, and Milan are currently embarking on a superb run of results. The 2-1 home success over Siena on Wednesday, clinched by Pippo Inzaghi and Kaka (penalty), means that the Diavoli have now won six and drawn one of their last seven league fixtures. With three straight UEFA Cup victories in the bag also, Milan have actually drawn just one of their last 10 matches, winning the other nine.

Confidence is high around Milanello, and the club are up to third in the table, a point above their bitter city rivals Inter. Only Udinese and Sunday’s opponents Napoli stand between them and the Serie A summit.

The Rossoneri are now displaying a real depth in their squad, as they have swept past the opposition recently despite being handicapped by a whole host of injuries to the likes of Andrea Pirlo and Alessandro Nesta.

Napoli On The Rise Again

Napoli were only promoted back up to Serie A in 2007 following seven years in the wilderness, but their rapid rise has been incredible.

Last season the Partenopei finished eighth, and this time around things have gone even better as, after nine rounds, they are joint-top of the table alongside another surprise outfit Udinese.

Napoli have had an extremely tough run of fixtures as they have already played Roma, Udinese, Lazio and Genoa away from home, as well as Fiorentina and Juventus at the San Paolo. The fact they have lost just one of these games, at Genoa, defeating Fiorentina, Juventus and Lazio, is testament at just how much this Napoli team has come on.

Boasting prodigious youngsters such as Ezequeil Lavezzi, Marek Hamsik and Fabiano Santacroce, some sections of the media believe that a Champions League slot is not impossible.

Confidence is also high in the port city, as Napoli have won three on the bounce in the league, including a crushing 3-0 home victory over Reggina on Wednesday night when summer signing German Denis bagged a hat-trick.

All is up for grabs at San Siro on Sunday evening, as both teams know that a win could see them attain sole leadership of Serie A, providing Udinese slip up in their tricky clash against in-form Genoa.

FORM GUIDE

Milan
05/10 (Serie A): Cagliari 0-0 Milan
19/10 (Serie A): Milan 3-0 Sampdoria
23/10 (UEFA Cup): Heerenveen 1-3 Milan
26/10 (Serie A): Atalanta 0-1 Milan
29/10 (Serie A): Milan 2-1 Siena

Napoli
02/10 (UEFA Cup): Benfica 2-0 Napoli
05/10 (Serie A): Genoa 3-2 Napoli
18/10 (Serie A): Napoli 2-1 Juventus
26/10 (Serie A): Lazio 0-1 Napoli
29/10 (Serie A): Napoli 3-0 Reggina

TEAM NEWS

Milan

Milan still have injury problems going into this game as Pirlo, Nesta, Senderos, Kaladze, Flamini and Viudez are out. However, Ronaldinho should be fit enough to play. Maldini, Jankulovski, Ambrosini and Borriello should all return to the starting XI after being rested against Siena in midweek.

Probable starting XI: Abbiati, Zambrotta, Bonera, Maldini, Jankulovski, Ambrosini, Gattuso, Seedorf, Kaka, Ronaldinho, Borriello

Napoli

Napoli have almost a full bill of health, although Bogliacino is still sidelined. Blasi returns from suspension, while goalkeeper Iezzo should recover from injury, but apart from this coach Edy Reja is unlikely to make many changes to the team who were so impressive against Reggina. Argentine hitmen Denis and Lavezzi will lead the attack.

Probable starting XI: Iezzo, Santacroce, Cannavaro, Contini, Maggio, Blasi, Gargano, Hamsik, Vitale, Denis, Lavezzi

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Milan – Kaka: The Brazilian has been the matchwinner in Milan’s last two games. He scored a late goal in the 1-0 triumph at Atalanta last Sunday, while on Wednesday he stuck away a second half penalty to down Siena. If Napoli are to cause another sensation they will have to stop the soon-to-be-disposed European and World Footballer of the Year.

Napoli – Ezequiel Lavezzi: Never has a player been so loved in Naples since the time of the legendary Diego Armando Maradona. Lavezzi has been like a breath of fresh air, and his skilful and direct running up-front has been a nightmare for Serie A defences, particularly this season, when he has been unstoppable at times. El Pocho’s duel with the 40-year-old Maldini should be fascinating.

PREDICTION

This game has all the ingredients to be an absolute classic. There will surely be plenty of chances and goals, and I am predicting a four-goal thriller.

Milan 2-2 Napoli

[acid911]

And I suppose the part that is underlined is meant for me. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/tongue.gif) I'm not going to change my opinion of them, they form the axis of evil trios (inter, juve and napoli). But I get your point, they're a good team (with history too), so fingers crossed we beat them a couple of days later.

[Rossoneri7]

This will be a very entertaining match .. Milan will definitely bolstered the midfield once again, as Napoli are a side that park the bus in midfield.

It will be a very intimidating game, as both teams will be expected to bring back a result and a draw would not be beneficial - even though this isn't a crucial period in the season.

As for the line-up .. I think all of Seedorf, Kaka' and Ronaldinho will be fielded with Borriello up front.


@Jack, about Antonini ... I think it is obvious that the reason he plays on the right is because Carlo has seen something from him in training (something none of us here are aware off ..). But I must say, his defensive performances, whether on the right or left are solid and consistent, though his lack of creativity up front is mainly due to his lack of experience and comfort ... With time, I think he will be a reference point for Milan or whichever team he ends up with, as he is showing great courage and determination.


This match should end up to be a really mouth watering encounter .. Forza Milan (IMG:style_emoticons/default/devil.gif)

[acid911]

Gee, I LOVE your smoking optimism, R7. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/devil.gif) I haven't ever seen you displaying pessimism or negative vibes, no matter how hard the going be. I consider myself a happy-go-lucky guy, but you're something else entirely!

May you always remain such!

[Zed.D]

And I suppose the part that is underlined is meant for me. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/tongue.gif) I'm not going to change my opinion of them, they form the axis of evil trios (inter, juve and napoli). But I get your point, they're a good team (with history too), so fingers crossed we beat them a couple of days later.

Nonono. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

I just thought it was very interesting that they, despite having played so many tough games, are still at the top, even above us. that's not accidental. they may not be good enough to beat us on Sunday [/they may very well be!] but I think they deserve to be flying so high. hopefully they can manage a CL spot as they deserve it!