Conte? I wouldn't blame Conte. It's a personal choice. All Conte has ever done was...to give a little push.

V For Vendetta. More like P For Vendetta, in this case. Personal vendetta. Always dragging Milan name into all his interviews, I wonder when will this stop, it's been an year really.

Joker?

YOU might have never expected this from him but I always knew this to be his true nature (post 2008). He's the most self serving insulated pr!ck I've seen. Kind of like iBra but with less ability and determination.

I EXPECTED a guy who forced me to endure match after match of his flippant uncaring attitude and his nonchalant approach to our defense. I have seen and lost count of the sheer number of attackers that would blow past him repeatedly without even the scarcest pretense of an effort on his part.

The problem is that when Seedorf played poorly the whole of the ever so gracious San Siro would roundly boo him. Whenever Pirlo put on one of his USUAL nonchalant displays it was just seen as his arrogant unaffected genius at work...plus he was a white italian like them so....you know they went easy on him

The double standards still ringout so clearly today with the midget fairy $h!t not even wishing our beloved Nesta well on his journey. It takes nothing out of his new found juventusness for him to send well wishes for him. But class is ONE thing I will never accuse this cross dressing scum factory of.

YES!

My hatred for Pirlo is at such an elevated apex I fear my hate is now unsustainable and will only decrease


The guy played the most languid, nonchalant, pedestrian football in his last days at Milan only to awaken his 2002-07 form for ladri and Italy . I can't remember the last time I saw him running so much and tackling so well. If this guy was on fire I'd be reluctant to piss on him

fwiw Dru, I can't stand the fucker any more either. I think he's burned his bridges with us quite badly now, and was one of the few Italian players I wanted to perform poorly.

My views are still PG about Pirlo, but yeah I am and have been in your camp for some time now. In fact, here I was wanting him to stay last year and us shaking hands with Seedorf instead. And here we are a year later. Every time he opens his beak there is malice for Milan, and after playing like a fairy for us, he's turned into a fighter.

Not that I will forget all the good he did for us while Pirlo was here, but I don't care how he does the moment he turned to Juventus. I've been saying for a while, anyone but Juventus. Going there, you're just strengthening our direct most domestic competitor. Pirlo, Borriello, so on and so forth.

I'd hate for us to wait another 5 years for a Scudetto, now that we so horribly let one past this year.

I agree with you here.

I still feel that what the management did with Pirlo was one of the biggest brain farts they've commited over the past decade. I mean what sane idiot would let a player like Pirlo go for free to a team like Juve FFS!! And the fact that they won the Scudetto over us thanks hugely in part to Pirlo just proves this. I mean if they really didn't want him than they should have just sold him to Chelsea when Carlo wanted him and we would have gotten actual money for him!

But with that being said, what he's being saying to the press has left a bitter feeling and his next outing at the San Siro will be an ugly one imo. He's just p!ssed on whatever loyalties any Milan fans might still have had for him

what has he been saying? I have not read about it.

Han, you know I love Andy as much as you and I'm mostly with you. But...we didn't let Pirlo join Juventus, he was the one who chose Juventus. We didn't offer as much as Pirlo wanted, Allegri said we can do without him. So it isn't just our idiocy, it was also his spite.

This vengeance I can understand, but it's taken him too far. Not only his interviews, but also the way he behaved in the semifinal, where he elbowed his former teammates without even blinking.

And the last thing I wanna say: do you han really believe we should have kept Pirlo when Allegri obviously didn't have plans for him? I must say, in the current formation and system Milan plays, we could have needed Andy, but - I really cannot imagine Pirlo playing. That said, it would have been painful for me to watch Pirlo turn into a 10 minutes sub.

Anything other than let a player like him go for free. Money wasn't really the case, as he barely earns half of what he did with us at Juve now. I would have signed him on still. Allegri is a 2 minute man, most of these players have been with us for more than a decade. The issue was contract length but mostly Allegri. The management letting Allegri turn this team into a mid table quality team is another issue that we could spend weeks debating about. Galliani bending to Allegri's will by letting players like Dinho and Pirlo leave so easily is just a whole other issue. Or if the management had no intention of re-signing him they should have just sold him to Chelsea when we had the chance. Yes we couldn't have known that Allegri wouldn't want him, but you don't let the contract of a player of Pirlo's caliber run to the final months either, so that was a mistake in and of itself

If the management and Pirlo reached an agreement, then yes! Since when does a coach at Milan get to dictate so much? Not even Carlo had as much power and say. And because Allegri decides that he wants to shun club legends than it's ok?

Like I said, Allegri is a 2 minute man, another failure this season and he's out on his @ss. A player is worth more than him. Would you be willing to sell Ibra for example to keep Allegri? F@ck no!! Ibra is the sole reason we managed to stay competitive this season, certainly not Allegri and his backwards thinking

@ dst, just a bunch of BS about Milan and why he thinks Juve is so great bla bla bla

Semi-final? You mean the Serie A game at the San Siro, where he supposedly elbowed van Bommel twice. I can't remember him reserving the same treatment to anyone else of his former teammates, so he was probably just discharging his frustration against the person who took his place.

Semifinal of the Coppa and the Serie A match. He did not "just" elbow Bommel (which is enough already, no matter if he took his position or not), he dived, gesticulated nervously and I'm pretty sure he elbowed Seedorf as well.


Since we got rid of the Mr. Nice Guys like Carlo. If Allegri said - look, you can keep Pirlo, but I have a different plan, what's the point in keeping him?

I don't remember anything from the Coppa Italia semi-final, but there was a big fuss about Pirlo elbowing van Bommel twice in the Serie A match that ended 1-1.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLMes3EdLGs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAZtEfTYiyc

Aye. Very true. He has had a bug against Milan players (almost) every time we played Juventus.

No, he didn't. It was only van Bommel. He didn't elbow Seedorf, nor did he seem to have a problem with any of his old teammates.

By bug I did not mean violence against Milan players. Just that Pirlo wanted to prove a point to his former teammates. I watched that whole match live and no one in the Juventus team had a bigger desire to defeat us than this guy. What, oh what, happened to the good old respect to a club that made him what he was.

And no, before anyone says that Milan did not make him, it did. Just like it made Kaka, is trying to making Pato and will continue turning future players into superstars. Even if Pirlo was in Roma or a smaller club he'd probably never have had the exposure that was afforded to him because of being in a high caliber club. This much is fact.

So? What's wrong about a player proving his former club wrong about not wanting him anymore. Seriously, you guys are blowing this whole Pirlo business out of proportions.

And what would be the proper proportion? Maybe every small incident looks harmless by itself, but all together, his attitude, the elbowing, the interviews and statements...it sure did not help him appear classy.

Righto. The classy thing would be for him to appreciate and cherish his time here, all those years. It's not like he was here for one or two seasons, mistreated and dumped by the management who hung a "For Sale" sign around his neck. For many fans he was a modern legend who had a hand in a lot of our (big and small) victories.

And now he not only leaves for free, just because the terms offered were not up to his mark, he leaves for Juventus. Not just that, Pirlo let his personal grudges show out for all to see. If I stayed almost a decade at a club, I'd have nothing but respect for the good times. Not that much to ask of, in my opinion. For the big players, at least.

I understand that his interviews might piss someone off, but all this hatred, really? And you can clearly read through the lines that his sole problem was with Allegri and the way our management treated his case. He'll never have harsh feels towards what the club represents, the fans or his old teammates.

Most of the stuff he does/did is completely human. I had no problem with Leo's seeking vindication after the way he was treated. What I did have the problem with is the perpetual d!ck sucking he received from some Milan fans (mainly at the R&B forum....was actually perma banned for speaking ill of him there )

To summarize my own personal issues:

1) He is not a club legend by virtue of his mediocrity for such extended periods and the fact that he is simply no more than a mercenary as you can see him clearly trying to do it all for Juve. The Spain game in particular is the most efort I've seen him put out for such a long time...not to mention the assist.

2) He is overrated. Yes he has a beautiful mind for picking a pass but the fact is that his completion ratio is dwarfed by Xavi who has also won more. Granted Pirlo does attempt the more audacious passes but occasional brilliance in MY humble opinion is not worth Xavi's consistency which in turn leads to more created opportunities. albeit with less beauty and genius.

Another component to his "overratedness" is the fact that of Zidane, Seedorf, Riquelme, Xavi and Pirlo, Pirlo has decidedly the WORST physique, pace and strength of them all. This weakness is excacerbated by the fact that he plays the most recessed position of them all, i.e. requiring more defensive stability which he has largely been decidedly sub standard.

3)He is NOT a free kick master....but gets the credit for it anyway. This is related to point #2 but deserves mention as a point all on his own. Seedorf, Ronaldinho and Beckham have all scored at a more successful rate than him despite being labelled as a "dead ball specialist". AGAIN THIS ISN'T BECAUSE HE LACKED THE TALENT BUT SIMPLY THE WILL WHICH MAKES HIM EVEN MORE DESPICABLE. Now he's back with Juve he's trying his best and back to being dangerous with them

4) He is an arrogant, unaffected douche . He mightn't be in-your-face arrogant like iBra and is too lax a persona to have any kind of rage at ANYTHING...but if you read his interviews (ever since he was here) you'd KNOW he simply expects to be viewed as the best and whatever excuse for a contribution he feels like offering should be enough for everyone and there should be no complaints.

Far greater players have been forced or asked to play positions that weren't the best for them and they did it without (much) complaint. Heck even Seedorf has hated playing the in the midfield but did so for YEARS. His ONLY extended run at CAM was in '07 CL (which also present him as a case for him). He was pushed back to midfield when Ronaldinho was here and by the time he was the clear choice for the role he was so past it he couldn't have done it well. DID he leave pouting and spouting off at the mouth? No he stayed and fought and STILL gets less respect, particularly by the Pirlo fans. Of course then there's Kaka (CF), Sheva (LWF), Rivaldo (CAM) and Huntelaar(RWF).

Who the f**k is this $h!tsnake to say play me in my position or else I go?
Whatever you think of him though, it is clear that he was never truly comitted to our cause. Yes his talent was there and his value was there (under the right circumstances). But his WILL was non existent and his HEART only beat for himself.

Hatred? What hatred for god sake? Now you're the one who's overreacting. I'm just saying he did awfully lot to make me not like him that much or regret his departure. I still love the guy, but somehow, it's not the same anymore. Just that.

Hatred, dislike, animosity, call it whatever you want. Just read the various posts against the guy. I seem to be the only one who isn't bothered by his comments.

Well hatred, dislike and animosity are quite different things. He did awfully lot to irritate people, and somehow the hatred you have toward Allegri maybe blocks it.

Nah, man, that really ain't got nothing to do with it. I just think we let Pirlo go as if he had nothing more to give as a football player, so it obviously irked him to the point of making a few annoying comments, which, I repeat, were mostly directed towards and Allegri and the management. That, I don't really mind.

Can't find a point to disagree with, drucurl. true words. especially #2 and #3.

Wow did any of you guys read the goal.com article about Pirlo saying that his penalty unsettled England???

Now just hear me out....I get that he was the best player of the game...probably the best player in Italy for the whole tournament...but is he seriously this egotistical?? The guy's f**king worse than iBra for sure!!! Even f**king Buffon the REAL hero of the shootout was humble about it and recognized that it could have gone either way.

Of course everything has to be tempered by the fact that the interviewer probably asked him a leading question like "Do you think your penalty unsettled England" etc. Then there is the matter of goal.com hilariously sensationalizing even the most mundane stories.

However my bias as a Pirlo hater, coupled by his utterly classless behaviour as LADRI SCUM makes me think there is a lot of truth to this

here's how football-italia quoted him.

“It was easier for me to chip it at that stage. Maybe my effort put some pressure on England and in fact Ashley Young missed the next one after me."


nothing wrong with saying that.

Did we need more confirmation that Pirlo is not humble, dru? they say he can be arrogant, because he's a "maestro".

His chip changed he course of the PKs for sure and it took some balls and some genius to do that, but it would've been better if he hadn't boasted about it. but hey, at least he didn't diss us yet again

+1. Or +100 for that matter. One just needs to check the guys background (coming from a rich family that ones steel mills) to get an idea how full this guy is of himself. When you consider that champions who are a million times better (okay, I exaggerated just a bit here) like Maldini, Ronaldo, Baggio, Rui Costa and many before them.

Even CRON doesn't talk that much of himself these days, and here we have a guy who can't stop the moment he starts playing well. The best thing about this thread is that it is in the "Past Players" section. At least, when he was here he was kept in check, don't know how Pirlo's ego suddenly woke up.

It's not that I dislike the guy, but he isn't winning many new friends with remarks like these. There are countless celebrities, athletes, players who are many a times more humble than him, I'd much rather be a fan of them. Nevertheless, good show by him in the quarters, and all I can wish if more luck to the guy. Humble or not.

He has always been egotistical. Just in a quiet way. Everyone over here knew that I guessed. I don't have a problem with any of what he did...EXCEPT those interviews. He could at least have waited a year or so like Paolo did.

Arrogance isn't the issue, if you're delivering (*hint* Balo)...the issue is being petty. Zidane is arrogant, Seedorf is twice as arrogant as Pirlo,...but Andy P with his comments (the ones against the club) was being cheap!

Shame. Because he like Nesta has a huge chance of going down as one of Italy's finest.

He might even have made a rep for himself like Baggio, if he'd kept his mouth shut about the club.

Once again, I agree with you, my pirate friend. Oh well, that's that, then. Let's see what he does against Germany, I expect it to be an absolute cracker of a match up. If there's one team that can hold Germany (after the current Spain, that is) it is Italy. And vice versa. Germany have the firepower to defeat Italy.

I don't think Italy can hold Germany to be honest. For that you need much much more defensive solidity.

About the penalty: I don't think Pirlo's Panenka was decisive. I think Mario Balotelli was decisive when he told the others Hart's right side is his weaker side.

I would say Buffon was the most decisive. Pirlo's was important because of Monty's miss before. His audacious chip meant the rest of the team found confidence again.

I still can't decide what's more idiotic, Inter gifting Pirlo to us or us gifting Pirlo to Juventus.

I think we need to drop this Pirlo debate, he wasn't the player we've been seeing for Juve and Italy in his last seasons for us anymore. it's irritating how every time he has a great game people are all like "stupid Milan, how could they lose Pirlo" as if he has this good for us when we let go of him.

As a Milan fan I really have no regrets over Pirlo's departure. it had to end, otherwise we wouldn't be talking about how great he is right now. moving to Juve was the best thing that happened to him since winning his last CL with us. try to realize that.

Play him with Gattuso and Seedorf and he will be again as bad as he was with us.

I have many regrets... and I can't and won't get over it.

I think Pirlo lost motivation with us because we had lost our way to be competitive. I think Pirlo and his criticism of Milan is justified. I think overall, HE IS RIGHT. But I, like many others dislike how he handled the situation. Staying with us year after year, staying silent or rather "disinterested" instead of being proactive. Letting his contract run out, signing with our biggest rival, getting what he wants, winning and then shoving it in our face constantly by ALL of sudden being so outspoken and vocal about every issue. Well, that's one way to do things. But in my reality, it's not a respectable way.

Well said

I actually saw him defending again last night and exerting himself. It was....beautiful Until Juve and the Euros this season I didn't even think he was capable of such emotion.

I despise him mostly because he simply does not care about us. Say what you want about Seedorf but he loves this club. So does Rino. And Paolo....he is the definition of mercenary.

+1

Most notably, I find that at Milan he was part of the XI, while at Juventus he was their kingpin? Apart from Buffon, Juventus don't have any champions on board, hence his sudden outburst, where he felt he was the ****? I dunno could be.

Yeah, could very well be the case. And don't count out Conte's influence. Every Juve player that talks about him somehow ends up sounding like a douche.

Definately ours was the most idiotic.

Allegri not being able to utilise both him and Bommel was even more idiotic.

Odd considering that Prandelli has found an almost perfect solution to play two passers, and two defensive shuttlers in a mid-field diamond.

Disagree. The DECISION to let him go was right. Glad people are finally seeing that he doesn't give a sh!t about Milan.

However everything that happened after this decision undid all the good from this first step. Not adequately replacing him was bad and letting him sign for our direct eternal rival was worse. It served to give him the one thing he didn't have since 2008: MOTIVATION.

Seeing him now reminds me of how he was when he just got here from Inter, where, again he had to prove that he was worthy.

I don't believe this motivation thing. To me it was clearly a problem of functionality, he just could not continue playing the exact same position after all these years, opponents had figured him out and he had ran out of ideas on how to improve his game.

Well this might be debatable but for ME it was really clear. The jogging all game, the lack of concentration on the free kicks, the abject failure to even attempt anything related to defense/tackling other than an interception here and there....really the player I saw and his body language told it all

So apparently one great game is all it takes to turn Pirlo into in insufferable chatterbox

So Germany is now afraid of Italy because Pirlo scored his penalty in a shootout?

Coming to think of it, if Pirlo gets chatty every time he has a great game, it would explain why he was so quiet here

“We came here to win and Germany are afraid of us, as they know we can cause them problems. There is the same hunger as in 2006 and Germany play the same way, with more fans behind them, but we are on a par with Spain in terms of our midfield."

So,you read only the titles and conclude stuff?Bias is ok unless you're not blinded by it.