Just another day in calcio- schedule changes, loving coaches, and new ideas.
1.Inter are so impressed with Leonardo that general manager Ernesto Paolillo believes he will be at the club for a long time to come:
Leonardo will be the Coach of the future. He came to us for a long-term project and we want to introduce more young players. Aside from being a great tactician, Leonardo knows how to use psychology in football to help players overcome difficult moments and maintain team spirit.
Potentially risky. Leo has yet to really prove himself at any level, and I’m not sure many out there would agree that he is a “great tactician”. Some may go as far as to say that tactics seem to be almost irrelevant to the man. He is young and there is room for him to grow, but being a long term Inter manager may be too much too quickly. At any rate, should Inter end the season trophyless, it’ll be interesting to see what Paolillo has to say then.
2. Cesare Prandelli has a new idea that’s receiving a lot of attention: putting a youth Azzurri side into Serie B. The idea would be to have young Italians play together in the lower league in an effort to give them playing time and allow them to gel. Interesting but probably unfeasible.
3. The first two rounds of Serie A football in April have had their kickoff times adjusted. The new times are as follows:
Matchday 31
Saturday April 2
Brescia-Bologna (17.00)
Milan-Inter (19.45)
Sunday April 3
Napoli-Lazio (11.30)
Roma-Juventus (19.45)
Matchday 32
Saturday April 9
Inter-Chievo (17.00)
Udinese-Roma (19.45)
Sunday April 10
Juventus-Genoa (11.30)
Fiorentina-Milan (19.45)
The 31st gameday is massive in terms of the title race. Milan-Inter could well decide the scudetto, and Napoli-Lazio will have enormous consequences in the race for Champions’ League places. Roma’s match away to Udinese on the 9th could well be a fourth place decider, too.
4. Sampdoria captain Angelo Palombo is recovering well from a fractured rib, and will begin light training tomorrow.
5, For anyone who can read Italian, TuttoMercato has a great article on why Inter fans aren’t missing Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Hint: it’s because of Samuel Eto, who’s so good that “a comparison [to Ibra] does not even exist”.
Tags: Azzurri, Azzurrini, Eto, Ibra, Inter, Leonardo, Palombo, Paolillo, Prandelli, Rumors & News, Sampdoria, Schedule changes, Serie A, Serie B
Man City have been eased to a best price 8/1 for the Europa League after their 2-0 defeat to Dynamo Kiev last night…
Sir Alex Ferguson has confirmed Nani will miss Manchester United's next three games.
Nani was substituted during the 3-1 defeat at Liverpool on Sunday after he suffered a deep gash in a challenge from Jamie Carragher.
Ferguson confirmed that the Portuguese winger will be sidelined for Saturday's FA Cup quarter-final clash with Arsenal, Tuesday's Champions League tie with Marseille and the Premier League game against Bolton next weekend.
"We have managed to stitch the injury, which is good news," Ferguson said. "We need to guard against infection and swelling.
"It is difficult to say exactly when he will be ready to return but we won't get him back for the Bolton match next Saturday.
"We do have a two-week break after next Saturday. He will be ready for the return of that, that's for sure."
Reports had suggested Antonio Valencia could be back in the squad to face Arsenal after a lengthy spell on the sidelines, but Ferguson said the player wasn't ready to return.
"Antonio is difficult to assess because he has been out for such a long time," Ferguson said. "He has been training very well and is taking part in a few practice matches between the players.
"It is deciding when we can put him into the cut and thrust of a game. There is a question mark over the timing but at some point, we are going to have to try it.
"It won't be tomorrow. Hopefully it will be quite soon."
Man City have been eased to a best price 8/1 for the Europa League after their 2-0 defeat to Dynamo Kiev last night…
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