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clash of the titans - man united vs milan ac (Champions League)
i have to confess that i have had a few reservations about milan's capability to stop man united winning run before this morning game. how disloyal can a fan be? i guess, it is just a way for me to brace myself against the disappointment but i should have known milan.
when i heard that stam injured himself during the warm up, i thought it was a jinx because milan had just lost their best striker shevchenko when he sufferred from fractured cheekbone during the match with cagliari last saturday. actually, i am not worried about not having sheva in the team because milan is not about sheva alone. but i had watched those few games that milan had over the last two weeks and the games were bloody boring.
this morning game was anything but boring. i am proud of milan even though the man united faithfuls insisted that their team was just unlucky. i am so proud to watch milan beating man united at their own game. so, the english had looked down their nose on milan's aging defenders eh! sir alex thought his young and fast players like ronaldo and rooney would easily beat nesta and maldini with their lightning speed running but he forgot about the last man standing, our beloved goalkeeper DIDA. he was really great last night except for that lunged on fortune, he didnt lose his composure even when his goal was attacked from every corner.
yes wahyu, nesta was yellow carded for that high tackle and it was to me a stupid thing to do but at the time was very effective. finally wayne rooney had met his match in the form of alessandro nesta, our il ministro della difesa or minister of defense. the way nesta guarded him, he might as well put a shackle on rooney's leg. that kid was obviously frustrated and his naivety was so painful to watch. actually, nesta did make a few mistakes that could have been costly to the team but apart from that he was doing his usual stylish defending.
for a few minutes after the kick off, milan looked a bit disoriented with man united fast tempo but still the team was undeterred by the non-stop attack. i guess ancelotti's tactical line up using four defenders with cafu as right back and kaladzhe on the left leaving nesta and maldini at the centre was a right choice. cafu totally reigned on the right flank but he was a bit late coming to the rescue at the back. at times you could see nesta trying to hold rooney and at the same time trying to stop nilsterooy. i didnt know how he did it.
when two giants met, the battleground was always in midfield. after awhile milan's midfield beat united hands down. i couldnt find fault in both teams actually. man united's midfield managed to shield their defense but so did milan. man united players have a fairly good ball control skill and were tactically disciplined and so did milan. the difference between both team was milan's ability to dictate the game discreetly that man united was left to to do the italian style counter attacking. isnt it amazing. milan's unhurried rhythm was a contrast to man united's thundering run. it's like they were making fun of man united which i was pretty sure didnt sit well with sir alex. in the end, milan settled down and played their usual patient and posession game.
ancelotti's line up look like a pyramid with the 4-3-2-1 formation. i didnt know what his game plan was but i thought with that kind of formation he must had wanted a draw with man united. i mean admit it, hernan crespo wasnt the same crespo who became the highest scorer in serie a while he was playing with parma 5 or 6 seasons ago. he no longer has the pace and the instinct of a striker. he squandered a few good chances which was unforgivable (cam nak tercabut anak tekak aku jerit, i was so angry at him) and arriving late for a few promising crosses. no wonder seedorf tried that long range shot, better than passing it to crespo. i have yet to forgive him even though he scored the winning goal for milan. IMHO, crespo's only goal was more about roy caroll's incompetence than crespo's skill. I AM NOT IMPRESSED...u got that crespo. i bet JD Tomasson could do 10 times better than u and he is not even my favourite striker.
frankly speaking, i pity both fortune and scholes for their misses. i am just glad that lady luck wasnt on their side this morning. even giggs couldnt' get pass nesta and maldini that often. err...nilsterooy who? hehehe...i thought it was a mistake for ferguson to substitute ronaldo for ruud. i mean why did u substitute a runner and creator for a poacher when you are playing against such tight defense? goodlah, easier for nesta and maldini. itulah, ferguson tu gila sangat kat v. nilsterooy tu.
i think pirlo was exciting last night. he is milan's very own compass even though his passing sometimes made me wanted to wring his neck. kaka had a quiet game but still effective. if only he didnt miss those two chances. oh man! i was surprised ancelotti played rui costa because he hadnt been in milan's starting XI for so long. he wasn't so sharp anymore but still surprisingly quite effective. gattuso was wonderful and unstoppable. there was only one word to describe kaka kaladzhe - SOLID.
i wonder why ancelotti didn't play vikash dhorasoo because that is one player that can turn the game around. i just love to watch him play. he is quite fast and he can defend too.
an away goal is like the most important thing in this two-legged quarter final. milan got theirs and let's just hope that milan's back four will not concede any goal when they host man united in the second leg at San Siro. as i said to diy this morning "the game is not over yet". FORZA MILAN! FORZA NESTA!
last modified Feb 25, 2005 at 19:03
buttercup: hey sis..what's up! yeah! nesta is cool. and the pakistani guys are also cool for doing that. hehehe...rajin2 belajar tu. ;-)
wahyu: that's unfortunate, no live game on indonesian tv, i mean. yeah, inter's record had been broken by no other than their biggest rival, our beloved Milan. hehehe...
Yes... i was disappointed to know that the match was not live on Indonesian TV. Hiks, I just wathced the review on TV.
Anyway, Forza Milan and once again we beat Inter. Hehehe...
hihi... way to go Nesta!
btw, as i walk back from my class yesterday, 2 of my pakistani neighbours put this sign on their apt door:
milan 1 - man u 0
man u sucks!!
hahahhaa... those pakistani guys sure hate man u :p
unsunghero: memang suka sebenarnya man united kalah tapi tak berani nak cakap banyak sebab ada satu game lagi. hehehe...
...tepuk tangan bukan sebab milan menang tapi kerana man.u kalah 
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