C'mmon, let's not mention those loosers again. They don't deserve it...

I wouldn't worry about 2nd/3rd place that much. Fiorentina will have to beat us 2-0, 3-1, 4-2 and so forth. even if they beat us 1-0 we will finish in top 3 as we have a better goal difference.

Paolo Maldini farewell not so fond from AC Milan hard core

Italian club AC Milan's captain Paolo Maldini

Gabriele Marcotti, European Football Correspondent

Paolo Maldini’s last match at the San Siro yesterday was marred by a portion of Ultras, the hardcore element of AC Milan’s supporters, who accused him of a “lack of respect”.

Maldini will retire at the end of the season, a few months shy of his 41st birthday, after a 22-year career in which he made 901 appearances for the club, while winning seven Serie A titles, five European Cups, one Italian Cup, five Uefa Super Cups and three Club World Cups.

At international level, he was capped 126 times for Italy, helping them to third place at the 1988 European Championship and the 1990 World Cup, as well as runners-up finishes at the 1994 World Cup and Euro 2000.

Yesterday’s match against Roma, which Milan lost 3-2, was supposed to have been a send-off for the man who has captained the club since the retirement of Franco Baresi in 1997. Yet, after the match, with most of the ground applauding Maldini, a banner was unfurled in the Curva Sud, home to most of Milan’s Ultras, which read: “Thank you, Skipper. On the pitch you were an infinite champion, but you failed to show respect towards those who made you rich.”

Shortly thereafter, as Maldini completed his lap of honour to thank the supporters, the Ultras unfurled another banner, honouring Baresi, while chanting: “There’s only one captain.”

Sources among the Ultras revealed that while they were happy to honour Maldini as a player, they felt he had “disrespected” the supporters by toeing the club line on too many issues.

Maldini has occasionally criticised the Ultras when they failed to back some of his teammates and has defended the transfer policy of Silvio Berlusconi, the Milan owner, who was also abused yesterday.

Maldini, who was due to address the crowd, appeared upset. He limited himself to these words: “I’m proud not to be one of them.”

Some players have been accused of currying favour with the hardcore supporters. In the same match, the Ultras displayed a banner devoted to Andriy Shevchenko, who is on loan from Chelsea and is set to return to Stamford Bridge after a season in which he failed to score in 18 appearances, 16 of them as a substitute. That banner simply read, “Sheva must stay”.

Carlo Ancelotti, the Milan coach, who received a mixed verdict from the Ultras – “Thank you and good luck, but we won’t forgot that you also made many mistakes” – attempted to play down their outburst. “They’re irrelevant,” he said. “A few poisonous drops in an ocean of love for Maldini.”

OMG!!

I can feel his payne.

It's spelled "pain."

not if ure Max

Nice.

sarcasm or

Nope. I got the joke.

why does it feel like a lot of things ended today

I wonder how the other players are feeling what will they do when they score next season will they look at the curva......will Kaka' still want to stay after he saw what happened today and what the "fans" did

not if ure Max

It's awful.....interisti would never do the same thing....

No, instead they firebomb players' restaurants and attack them in the parking lot.

Apparently it started when Maldini hushed the Curva Sud when they whistled the team after Bremen dumped us out of the UEFA Cup. so they decided to spoil Maldini's already spoiled farewell game party even more.

I can understand their frustration at the team's performances over the past 2 seasons, but dammit, Maldini is the last person on earth you take out your frustration on. you don't treat a legend like this just because he refused to criticize the players, the coach or the management.

Those filthy, ungrateful idiots!

As if on cue, the figli de puttana hack journalists are blaming Dida for the loss, even though two of the goals were more Pirlo's fault than his. Bastards.

One week they're kissing his åss, the next they're scapegoating him and nailing his (blank) to the wall. They can suck it along with the Curva as far as I'm concerned.

Apparently, one of the banners in the stands today read, "Sheva è un grande uomo e un grande calciatore, il suo futuro deve essere di un solo colore."

This pissed me off as much as the anti-Maldini banners. Right, let's kiss up to someone who ingloriously left this club so he could go speak English while simultaneously giving the finger to someone who served this club for a quarter of a century.

And it's not the first time this season that the ultras have held up these lovey-dovey pro-Sheva banners.

It started before that - after the Istanbul game he apparently called the tifoso 'mercenaries' and then after we got dumped by Werder the tifosi booed and again he apparently said 'they should shut up and go home'

I can't believe the love they showed sheva though! I would like to think it was sarcasm but I'm not so sure!?!?

Apparently it started when Maldini hushed the Curva Sud when they whistled the team after Bremen dumped us out of the UEFA Cup. so they decided to spoil Maldini's already spoiled farewell game party even more.

I can understand their frustration at the team's performances over the past 2 seasons, but dammit, Maldini is the last person on earth you take out your frustration on. you don't treat a legend like this just because he refused to criticize the players, the coach or the management.

Those filthy, ungrateful idiots!

It started before that - after the Istanbul game he apparently called the tifoso 'mercenaries' and then after we got dumped by Werder the tifosi booed and again he apparently said 'they should shut up and go home'

I can't believe the love they showed sheva though! I would like to think it was sarcasm but I'm not so sure!?!?

That goes to show show how stupid they are. they hail Sheva after he left us like and returned a loser (and kissed Chelsea's badge in the meantime), and treat Maldini, who I don't even need to praise, on his farewell game like that.

I guess it's because Maldini refused to suck their balls (don't know if it means the same thing in English so sorry if it didn't make sense or was offensive!), unlike Sheva who crawled his way back in their hearts (Tennie posted a picture of their meeting somewhere).

Oh yeah, it was Tennie that mentioned Sheva going to meetings.

Personally I'm not opposed to how they welcomed back Sheva. If they wanted to give him another chance then fine, whatever. But to turn their backs on Maldini for always standing behind the club through thick and thin is just unfathomable.

I personally think that all the curva should be abolished. You can say it was just a small group and all that, but these guys have meetings and plan what banners and coreography to put out in mathes in advance, so it was all their doing not just a small group

That goes to show how stupid they are. they hail Sheva after he left us like that and returned a loser (and kissed Chelsea's badge in the meantime), and treat Maldini, who I don't even need to praise, on his farewell game like that.

I guess it's because Maldini refused to suck their balls (don't know if it means the same thing in English so sorry if it didn't make sense or was offensive!), unlike Sheva who crawled his way back into their hearts (Tennie posted a picture of their meeting somewhere).

Why Did Milan Ultras Insult Paolo Maldini?

The Rossoneri legend’s last game at San Siro was unexpectedly marred by a protest from a section of the Curva Sud. What was behind it?

Milan captain Paolo Maldini led his side for the last time at San Siro yesterday in a Serie A match against Roma, but celebrations took a turn for the worse after the final whistle.

The 40-year-old was performing a lap of honour to say goodbye to his supporters, who have applauded him for 24 years; but as he ran past the Curva Sud he spotted a banner whose meaning was rather obscure to the majority of Calcio fans, but clearly hit home with Maldini.

“For your glorious 25-year career, heartfelt thanks from those you branded mercenaries and mangy,” read the banner, as a group of fans shouted the name of former club captain Franco Baresi, chanting “there is only one captain.”

Apparently the fans were referring to an episode that happened in the wake of the 2005 Champions League final, when Milan threw away a 3-0 lead against Liverpool before losing in a penalty shoot-out.

A group of ultras awaited the team’s return at Milan airport and Maldini allegedly reacted angrily at their protests, muttering the ‘incriminated’ words.

But there could be something else behind yesterday’s actions, as it has emerged that the Curva Sud Ultras had arranged an elaborate choreography to pay homage to the legendary skipper, but the club opted to be in charge of the celebrations and turned down their requests.

Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani has often condemned the Ultras’ interference in the club’s affairs and it was no different this time around, with the club itself handing out scarves and gadgets to honour Maldini before the match.

But Ultras leader Giancarlo Capelli, nicknamed the ‘Baron’, dismissed accusations on Italian TV show Controcampo last night.

“It was not a protest,” he insisted. “We just wanted to make it clear what we thought about some of his comments and behaviour over the past years. We were not protesting against him at all.”

Rino over Ambro for captain.. you have to be joking! I always thought the only thing Rino had over Ambro was he passion in the game, but even that isn't the case anymore.

I don't know what to say...

Why do you think Rino is captain material?

I have nothing against Ambro, but he is clearly not captain material.

I would take Rino or Pirlo over him anyday

I agree. did you see how he got himself sent off yesterday? a captain shouldn't act like that and Ambro, as far as I can remember, has always been like this (I'm quite sure he has seen red way more than Rino has). yellow and red cards aside, he sometimes does very strange things when he loses his cool (for instance he once shot the ball with all he'd got towards a player who he'd fouled on, which was very weird...)

Maldini aside, no one else on the team would make a perfect captain at the moment. Kaka has got everything needed except seniority. Rino and Ambro lack coolness (Rino's more passionate and charismatic though). Pirlo is too soft and a little uncharismatic...

Ambro has the passion and the drive that some of our other players lack, he will lead by example. Yes, he got sent off yesterday, but alot of great captains do, they're showing they care. If my players didn't react or argue if they felt decisions were going against them, they'd find themselves on the bench for a long time. Rino may have matured in recent years, but he seems to have lost that hunger he once had. He's also inferior in every aspect of the footballing side of things to Ambro, in my opinion, too. He added 7 goals this season considering he probably only started about 70% of the games, that's a great return from a DM..

But your logic there doesn't make sense to me. how many times did Paolo get sent off in 24 years? do you even remember the last time he saw red card.. well I don't. does that mean he didn't care? of course not!

It doesn't change anything, they chose the worst possible circumstances for a protest of any kind. It was meant to be a day of honour, farewells and memories, not a chance for these ungrateful sods to show how hurt their feelings are about something that happened four years ago.

Ambro has the passion and the drive that some of our other players lack, he will lead by example. Yes, he got sent off yesterday, but alot of great captains do, they're showing they care. If my players didn't react or argue if they felt decisions were going against them, they'd find themselves on the bench for a long time. Rino may have matured in recent years, but he seems to have lost that hunger he once had. He's also inferior in every aspect of the footballing side of things to Ambro, in my opinion, too. He added 7 goals this season considering he probably only started about 70% of the games, that's a great return from a DM..

Seniority is a "rule" used in Italy for decades and I think it has sense. That's also a way to promote mostly italian-based captains.

I'm not so sure Rino learned/evolved. And sorry, but stating that "Ambrosini does not even have the quality anymore to be a starter" and prefering a almost-one-year injured player who's quality afterwards has yet to be tested isn't clear to me.

Ambro has a bad touch, can't make a pass further then a metre to save his life

And yes he contributed those 7 goals, but personally I would rather have a better player on the pitch rather then a player that might score a goal from a corner.

And I don't see Rino as being technically inferior to Ambro in any way, in fact I see it the other way around.