For a game being played against Zurich, I'm not impressed and far from convinced. The defence just takes naps whenever they feel like it, we scored 3 goals and could have scored more but it could have just as easily been a 3-3 draw if their goal wasn't disallowed and all the other chances they had. The long throw they played where everone just let it bounce into the box and Dida just watching the ball waiting for something to happen instead of doing something, he might as well had a cup of coffee and a smoke while that happened

I liked how the attacking players combined. Sheva's overall game was really good, he assisted 2 of the goals and was linking up well with the others, like I said before, he has that first goal hanging over his head and before he scores it he will struggle, it's just a matter of hitting his stride.

Pato was really great, even without the goal I thought he had a really great performance. Boriello was also really great, didn't even know he had a goal like that in him. Imo, he has to play on Sunday. But then Pato also has to play, but I would really like to see Sheva because I have a feeling that Lazio will be the team he breaks his duck against, he used to love playing against Lazio as much as he did against Inter. And based on today I would say he's really picking up some form in terms of overall play, his finishing is just effected by his nerves which I'm sure will go away once he scores.

btw, I thought Antonini was really great, but his right foot is probably the weakest I've ever seen. He can't really play on the right because he either has to check back to his left foot in order to put in a cross, which allows the opposition to get men in the box and him being closed down, or he has to cross with his right foot, which always seems to go into the stands rather then in the box.

Rinse and repeat, if necessary. This season it isn't. We just have to shape up, or half the team will ship out.

Forza Milan
...just got off work

This wasn't a real test. There was no competition, when you pair Zurich with teams in Serie A, but you could see that the understanding between the team was getting better. Seedorf was really good, he just adds to the fact that he is a very important factor of this team.

I wont get carried away, I think the test will be on the 28th when Milan meets inter, that should be the starting point.

Agreed on Seedorf, but agains what really bothers me about him is the fact that he holds the ball way too much, sometimes you can see 3 openings for him to pass the ball when we're mounting a quick attack but he just steps on the ball, does a couple of step overs and passes back. That's what really bothers me. Carlo should tell him to cut that out of his game. I think it's great if he does it when we want to slow the play up, but when we're going on a quick attack it just ruins everything.

As for the game, you're right, this team we played today can't even be compared with relegation material Serie A teams, yet we still alowed them to score and have multiple goal scoring chances that were only avoided due to some good luck.

The defending and Dida's reactions were shocking at times, this can't happen against Lazio or it will be 3 out of 3 losses come next Sunday

This is no overwhelming victory by any means, and it's nice to see that perspective here. In contrast, the folks over at R&B are drinking the Kool-Aid big time, besides using the word "Ducky" to describe Pato in every other post.

Carlo tells his players exactly what he wants out of them. He is a tactician han, I believe this finger pointing at the coach and scapegoating has grown rather old now. He is the mastermind of the way Milan play. And when Milan gains more understanding with the coming days, there will be but a peep from anyone about Carlo.

The goal Milan conceded was a wonder goal. It was very well struck, watch the replay, the ball did a nose dive right before it smacked the post.

Lazio ?! Yes, Milan needs to start the show for us all, after all the derby is almost 10 days from now


p.s. Against Genoa, when Seedorf came on, Milan started playing as a team. Seedorf has strength and vision to dictate the play, he is a pure #10. He doesn't necessarily have the speed of Kaka' or the genius of Pirlo, but he is very experienced and can hold the midfield together while linking up the defense with the attack well. He is a key player and as such he is a very instrumental player for Milan. Or else, he wouldn't be playing for a team of the stature of Milan.

I would really have thought Sheva would have buried the shot prior to Janku's goal. Borriello's goal was good, i especially loved the way he casually acted, glanced at the ball his feet then placed the shot. Pato's goal was wonderful, full credit to him

Don't worry, Dida won't be on the pitch come Lazio. Abbiati will start for sure! I don't know about you guys, but I can now feel a little confident that we'll be able to salvage some points out of that game. 1 or 3 remains to be seen, though I'll cherish the later.

Here are my ratings:

Dida(5.5): Looked shaky, nervous and had another one of those Dida moments which very closely cost us a goal.

Antonini(6): He had good movement and ran up and down the pitch with good continuity, considering he hasn't played much at all. BUT, his right foot is as effective as Rivaldo's. Should only be used as a RB in emergencies.

Bonera(5.5): He was decent, but had too many lapses. He need to work on his concentration and also positioning. Sometimes he is no where to be found.

Kaladze(6.5): Had a good game and did good leading the defense. No big mistakes in this game.

Jankulovski(7.5): What an awesome player Janku is. Just awesome. Awesome. Awesome. Awesome.

Flamini(8): Always full of running. Always fighting till either him or the opposing player goes down. Keeps on winning the ball. He is like the Energizer commercial. Keeps going and going and going...

Ambrosini(7): He had a good game. Ambrosini is a great DEFENSIVE midfielder and the moment Ancelotti realizes that and stops playing him as a left midfielder, Milan will be more effective as evidenced today.

Seedorf(7.5): He had a great game today. Controlled the ball well and had a couple of excellent moments. Should try shooting more often as acid mentioned.

Kaka(5.5): He didn't have a good game by any means except for that spectacular through pass to Shevchenko. He is gaining form though. Match by match he will get better.

Shevchenko(7.5): In the first half, it looked like the old Sheva was back. His movements, his turn and shot coming off the woodwork. Looked lively and dangerous. His finishing leaves something to be desired though and he started fading in the second half. Overall, some encouraging signs from him.

Pato(8): I was shouting cuss words at Ancelotti when he scored that goal. FOR EVER DOUBTING him. You NEVER doubt Pato. NEVER.

Boriello(7.5): He is fast becoming one of my favorite players because, 1) he is a left footed CF and 2) He can hold the ball and 3) He has amazing control. What a FANTASTIC goal he scored today. World class.

Emerson(5): No running, lazy movement. Slow, out of sorts and full of fouling. This man is not even a shadow of his former self.

Ronaldinho(6): Some flashes here and there, but he moves like he weighs 500 pounds. He lacks speed and stamina. Runs out of breath too quickly. Has A LOT to prove.

Ancelotti(6.5): He finally played with 2 forwards, but his defense is a joke. He admitted to this 2 years ago and he still hasn't done anything about it. You either demand a new player or make a solid unit out of what you already have. This just can't go on. Congrats to him winning against Zurich in Uefa Cup.

Yeah, unstoppable, for the loss of better word. I'm sure Zurich fans would be creating video compilations of that goal as I write this. Powerful shot that just headed for the target the moment it left the foot. The Dida of old might have had a chance (he's stopped shots more wonderful than this), but for the current one it's too much to ask, frankly.

Bring on the derby.

(the Fishdoll is being missed dearly)



Interesting ratings Max. (you forgot to rate Marco). for the first time since his return, I really pitied Sheva. he deserved a goal tonight. perhaps he's saving it for Lazio...

I think Pato looked nervous at some moments. that goal was much needed...

I would give Kaka a 6.

MotM... Flamini for me. I still can't believe Arsenal lost him so easily.

Already, huh?

what?

What is this, the season of updating signatures? I'll update mine in a moment.

You'll find out sooner rather than later. She's away at the moment.

Fixed. I gave him a 7.5. Forza Boriello!

I don't really feel anything for Shevchenko. And I don't know why.

Flamini was definitely man of the match. He is such a hard working, yet tactically aware player with great passing ability. He is perfect.

does anybody have highlights or the goals ?

I'd honestly say it was a bit of a toss up between Flamini and Janku. He too toiled hard, and scored that vital opening goal for us, lucky or otherwise. Man of the matches are always tough, but who knows what would have happened had Zurich drew first blood. We'd have been talking entirely different things right now.

Having said that, yes, Flamini was perfect. Gotta give him that.

Good things come to those who wait. That's my motto! I'm waiting for the ACMilanClub highlights to pop up.


Who? Sheva?

good match overall but as R7 said lets wait till inter game. That'll show us where our team currently is.

2nd goal

3rd goal

http://soccereview.blogspot.com/2008/09/hi...s-fc-zrich.html

good result guys but dont get too happy. This is against zurich. I didn't even smile when watching the match and i'm not even happy right now that we won. This weekend against lazio IF we win i might start smiling but its still not good enough.

Oh don't worry Blue .. They aren't smiling, they are looking for something to pass by the time till Lazio. Probably Dida, or Kaka' or even Bonera ... They wont be smiling, that is for sure

I love Flaminis reaction when Pato scored .

i was just thinking the same thing

Didn't see the game, I hear Milan played well. Not going to let this change what really need to be done by any means, Carlo out.

didnt watch the match last night!!! how was milan's performance??? heard that they played well.. still downloading the match highlights.. any comments from others on how the team performed??

Hard workers are more appreciative when the work is paid off.

If you look at the replays of Boriellos' goal Flamini helped him peel the defender off for him to have a clear shot.

He's a smart player,goes in hard on tackles and draws foals to interrupt other teams momentum when needed,i've never noticed that about him till today.

Finally, a win. at least my 1000th post is positive one. I've seen all Milan goals, good to see strikers on the scoresheet.
But Shevchenko should've scored at least one. He's movement is improving. Positive signs. Hopefully we can beat bring this confidence into the next game. Very important that we pick up 3 points.

Next game, We must put 2 strikers. I think we'll win because, Lazio will not play on the counter. They will attack and that will space at the back for our strikers. Pato and Kaka to score

Finally, a win. at least my 1000th post is positive one. I've seen all Milan goals, good to see strikers on the scoresheet.
But Shevchenko should've scored at least one. He's movement is improving. Positive signs. Hopefully we can beat bring this confidence into the next game. Very important that we pick up 3 points.

We heard you the first time, and the second!

let's bring this into serie a!

That's what I just logged in to say, but you beat me to it

Flamini is fast climbing up the list of my favorites. what a gem! and the better part, he's only 24-25. that's Milan's smartest move in the transfer market, of course besides bringing Pato, in the last few seasons.

Carlo's reactions are up on the official website. He says to keep things real. Good man!

Does this mean you logged out? Blasphemy!

Sheve scored 7 goals from 9 matches last season for Chelsea before he suffered an injury.

Beating Zurich at San Siro is nothing to brag about. It was a good game from Milan nonetheless.
The first half was only Pato and Janku. Those are the guys that put the most effort, were imaginative, passionate, determined and they drove the team forward. Also Seedorf and Sheva played well, too bad the latter did not score that one shot that hit the bar.
Janku's opener (man that was lucky! ) hit Zurich hard I believe and they also tried to go forward a bit more in the second half which means we had more space to attack. Kaka finally woke up (I'm not blaming him, he was out for quite long) but he has to learn to be more effective in tight spaces.
Pato's goal was a rare gem!
Borriello's shot was also pretty nice, I hope he can keep it up he was very good against Genoa too.
However, Zurich's level was low... we won't get a win in Serie A if we play like that... in the first half when they defended well, we only created a few chances and against a decent side I doubt we would have managed to get so close to their area so often.
As usual what we saw was limited imagination, no passion, we did not put enough pressure on them in their half to steal the ball and create numerical advantage and we were slow going forward...
Pirlo's absence was meant to be a blessing in disguise. The guy had to get some rest and playing him and Seedorf together is no longer an option (of course as soon as he gets back Carletto will field them together) cause they both hold the ball too much. Add to this the fact that Seedorf plays much better in midfield than behind the forward(s).
Conceding two goals from Zurich (one falsely disallowed in my view) should surely not make us happy. I can't believe that the whole team was sleeping when Djuric took that shot!!! That is unacceptable it only happens to amateur sides! Kaladze could not have avoided his usual big mistake which this time we did not pay for (how does this stupid snug get fielded every game is beyond me... it's a joke!!!) when he let Tihinen take a header all ****ing alone at the penalty spot from a Zurich corner kick and his and Bonera's misplaced passes to the midfield should have been avoided too.
I can't believe Pato has not started in the previous two games, Ancelotti is a stubborn idiot!

All in all, it was a step to the right direction and hopefully our confidence has been lifted but we have plenty more steps to take!

Fat Ronnie must work on his fitness!


Exactly! I love this guy, he gives 110% every game!

Good post.


Agreed.

acmilanclub.com highlights

just in case it wasn't posted

Of course, it wasn't. What else were you expecting when Ari's not around? Thanks, though I caught the full match, from the start to the end. Ciao!

Cheers Ari.

Some of the other players really need to have a look at the work rate of Flamini. I thought he played the Pirlo role very well. Obviously he does not have the vision and full passing range of Andrea but his positioning, awareness and work rate are first class. Best transfer. FACT.

Agree. In some ways, he's better than Pirlo. Considering Andrea was more of a central midfielder. Those ways being his Gattuso like terrier nature: he keeps on winning balls and passing them to our attack department. I just knew watching the match that as long as Flamini is there, he won't let the ball through. And more often than not he didn't.

At 24 years of age, super player. I won't go so far as to saying our best transfer (currently he's in the top two), but you can never tell what sort of an impact Ronaldinho will have through the season. But one thing is sure, depending on if Flamini stays for a while at Milan, he'll be our best buy in the long term. Grande Galliani.

Don't forget that we did not pay for Flamini. This must be the best deal that Galliani has done since buying Kaka for 7 or 8 million euro.

Very true. Also the 'Nesta' deal turned out pretty decent as well. These were top deals, and the best of Galliani.

when pato got subbed out i was pissed up..however, at least he got subbed out for a world class player also..something that we've been missing for years now...I hope we win against Lazio with a 4-4-2 formation or 4-3-1-2 formation

I dont understand why people are annoyed of players being subbed out. Do you all realise that we have matches to play afterwards. On sunday we play Lazio, did you think that these players were maybe being saved for that or future matches

Rotation people, its the only way we can (possibly) win two (or three if you want the Coppa) trophies this season