like him or not, the man is impossible to ignore. which is, as even the least perceptive members of the press are capable of observing, precisely the point.in recent weeks, internazionale have displayed all the hallmarks of a mourinho side building up towards a big match- indifferent domestic form (3 draws in a row), a noticeable lack of discipline (2 deserved red cards against sampdoria), and a willingness to hide behind the media frenzy which swirls around their coach. the buzzwords are focus, motivation, and optimism, whilst the players have been careful to compliment the talents of their opponents.
all very nice, but there is, of course, the elephant in the room. no one cares what the players are saying, particularly on the italian side of things. for a man who boycotted the media after sunday's 0-0 draw with samp, mourinho has been bellowing at the top of his lungs for a while now, and he is building to a crescendo. for a man who consistently professes his distaste for the italian way of doing things, he fits very, very snugly into the italian footballing paradigm. to borrow an analogy from pro wrestling, mourinho is the heel that everyone loves to boo. the italian footballing scene would be lost, directionless, without him to rail against, and vice versa. and make no mistake, everyone knows it. it's just that no one says it. except, of course, mourinho himself. long may he reign.
as for the match...
even a stopped clock tells the right time twice a day. despite the current trend for bashing serie a, it's impossible to avoid the sense that these are 2 teams built upon very similar foundations. goalscoring centre-backs, maurading full-backs, an abundance of ball-playing midfielders, and powerful dynamic centre-forwards are the order of the day in this one. the key contest will undoubtedly be juliano belletti, who looks set to play as an auxiliary left-back, against his compatriot maicon. the brazil international is key for club and country, and although he has less facets to his game than some, his explosive runs are capable of exposing chelsea in the absence of ashley cole. elsewhere on the field, i'm really looking forward to watching how lucio deals with didier drogba, in a preview of the world cup group stages. these defensive contests will likely provide the tipping point over 2 legs, as the midfield will undoubtedly be swamped. it's the tie of the round, but don't except goals.
cska moscow v sevilla.
spain's best team in the group stages have suffered a severe dip in form since the turn of the year, but, like bordeaux, could go far in this competition, if they are handed a favourable draw. and it will be a draw that they'll be looking for tonight. much like barcelona, sevilla will undoubtedly be happy with an away goal in what will be an intimidating (not to mention fucking freezing) environment. I didn't expect cska to qualify from the group stages, and they certainly aren't the side that won the UEFA cup in 2004, but sevilla still have to keep this one close, as their home form is no longer the comfort of a few months ago.
elsewhere, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the 2 important games in serie a tonight, which are kicking off at 5.30pm, an intelligent piece of scheduling, and one which I am infinitely grateful for...
ac milan travel to fiorentina, for a game in hand which is of crucial importance to both sides. a win would take milan back above roma into second place, whilst cesare prandelli will be desperate to stay in touch with the chasing pack in a race for european spots which is proving to be excitingly unpredictable- there are just 3 points between 4th and 9th place.
however, I'll be watching udinese v cagliari. an away win for the sardinians would put them into 4th, a prospect which was unthinkable before the arrival of max allegri. for a provincial club, whose attendances would shame most championship teams, it would be a truly remarkable achievement. the overall standard in serie a may have dropped, but if that means teams like cagliari can have seasons like this one, I'm not too bothered. if they win, I'll expand on this further very soon.
enjoy the games.
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