The Prince of Inter Milan starts with Brother Xiaosa

Chapter 258: Win the Championship if the game is tied

Inter Milan won again on the road, sending their home team out in front of more than 60,000 Bayern fans.

This may be a bit cruel for Bayern, but this is competitive sports.

At least they were eliminated at their own doorstep, and it was more convenient to "go home".

They were still working hard for the Triple Crown last season, but in the end they only failed in the Champions League final.

This season, Bayern is currently lagging behind Dortmund by more than ten points in the league, and is still behind Bayer Leverkusen in second place.

The Champions League also lost to Inter Milan and was eliminated again.

Faced with such a situation, Bayern Munich's top brass certainly cannot continue to sit idly by.

After the success of last season, coach Louis van Gaal from the Netherlands failed to continue his efforts this year and went further. Instead, he plummeted.

If nothing else, he was very close to the end of get out of class.

On March 3, the draw ceremony for the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals and semi-finals was held at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.

Since there are no seeded teams in the draw and there is no avoidance principle, teams from the same country can also be drawn together at this time.

The draw ceremony was presided over by UEFA Secretary General Infantino, and the ambassador of the final venue, England star Lineker, who once played for Barcelona and Tottenham, served as the draw guest.

The quarter-finals matchup was quickly decided by Lineker.

Chelsea, the defending Premier League champion, will compete with Manchester United, the current Premier League "leader", in the "English Derby" in the Champions League.

This is not a good pick for either team.

This is not the first time that Manchester United and Chelsea have met in the Champions League. In 2008, in the cold wind and rain in Moscow, Manchester United defeated Chelsea on penalty kicks to win the Champions League.

However, Manchester United's dismal record at Chelsea's home stadium at Stamford Bridge in recent years makes the Red Devils fans not confident enough that they can easily defeat their opponents and advance to the semi-finals.

Especially in recent years, Manchester United's record of four draws and six losses at Stamford Bridge has made Sir Alex Ferguson unable to laugh.

The defending champion Inter Milan received the recognized "gift package" Schalke 04.

This Bundesliga team is considered by many to be relatively weak among the quarterfinals, so basically everyone is optimistic that the Nerazzurri can successfully advance to the semifinals.

Barcelona, ​​the favorite to win the championship, drew Shakhtar Donetsk from Ukraine, while Barcelona’s arch-rival Real Madrid faced Premier League powerhouse Tottenham Hotspur.

In addition, according to the matchup format, if Inter Milan really eliminates Schalke 04, then their opponent in the next round will be the winner between Real Madrid and Tottenham.

"If you ask me to say now, of course I hope Tottenham can advance.

Real Madrid? Oh, yes, I said before that I wanted to play against Real Madrid, but isn't the situation different now?

After all, I played for Tottenham for one season, and I felt that the previous group stage matches were not enough.

If I have the chance to go back to White Hart Lane, I think it would be great.

Of course, I received a call from Bell as soon as the draw results came out. He said he was looking forward to meeting me in the semi-finals.

What did I say? I told him to stop being crazy and wait until they get past Real Madrid. Hahaha. "

Regardless of the outcome of the Champions League draw, it will only happen next month.

On March 3, Inter Milan ushered in their last official game in March.

In the 30th round of Serie A, the Nerazzurri faced Pepper Lecce at home.

Returning to the league, Pazzini continued to start.

In this game, Leo assisted Pazzini and Eto'o to score, and Inter Milan easily won 2-0 at home.

Although it was only a small victory of 2-0, this three-pointer helped the defending champion once again consolidate its leading position at the top of the standings.

It also allows Inter Milan's head coach Leonardo to feel at ease and let all the international players in the team report to their respective national teams.

After arriving at the Azzurri, all the teammates of the national team looked at Leo and their eyes glowed red.

The reason is also very simple. Up to now, the only Italian players who still play in the Champions League are these few in the Inter Milan team.

Then in Serie A, the defending champions were far ahead, and their opponent in the next round of the league was AC Milan, which was ranked second.

As long as Leo makes no mistakes, he can defeat his rival in the same city and win the six-point derby.

Then Inter Milan will win the Serie A championship again seven rounds ahead of schedule.

Even if he comes to the national team, Leo is a well-deserved core midfielder.

And Leo is only in his early twenties now, and he has already achieved such success, who wouldn't be jealous.

That is to say, Leo is not arrogant and arrogant like some kid who became famous at a young age, and becomes arrogant after achieving some achievements.

He has always had a good attitude towards his seniors, which makes the "big brothers" feel very comfortable.

Also, the Italian national team is still counting on Leo to pass the ball and provide assists for them.

He was just joking, but when it came to the field, no matter which team he was from, even if he came from his rival AC Milan, he would not be stupid enough to isolate and exclude Leo.

"Leo, I heard that the underwater treadmill is very useful. Give me one too!"

"I also……"

Leo prepared gifts for all the teammates of the national team. He distributed bags of packed "Leo brand clothing gift bags" to everyone according to their names.

Everyone's height and weight are different, so naturally the clothing models should be distinguished.

"It's easy to talk to. If you are interested, you can send me the address and I will ask the manufacturer to deliver the machine directly to your door."

The veterans of the Azzurri nodded repeatedly. How could Leo be so successful?
  Things are done right!
  The recipients are short-handed, not to mention that they accept gifts and ask people to do things at the same time.

The red eyes turned into smiles, and Leo not only did not suffer a loss, but also made a lot of money!

He gets a share of the money earned from every underwater treadmill sold. In addition, when the Italian international football players wear Leo fashion brands on the street, they give him free advertising.

On March 3, in a focus match of Group C of the European Championship qualifiers, the Italian team challenged the Slovenian team away at the Petrol Athletic Stadium.

It is worth mentioning that the Azzurri have never defeated Slovenia on the road before.

In the first four rounds of the European preliminaries, Italy maintained unbeatable results and ranked first in the group with 12 points.

Slovenia lost to Northern Ireland in the first game of the group stage at home, but then drew with Serbia away from home, and then won consecutive games against the Faroe Islands and Estonia.

They sit five points behind the Azzurri in second place.

However, the gap between the home team and other competitors behind them is not large, and the qualifying situation is still unclear.

Roma's De Rossi was dropped from the national team after receiving a red card in a club match.

Inter Milan's center back Ranocchia is absent due to injury.

Italian head coach Prandelli made some adjustments to the starting lineup.

Cassano and Pazzini formed a front line, with Leo as the attacking midfielder, Aquilani, Thiago Motta and Marchisio behind him.

Left back Chiellini, right back Maggio, Bonucci and Balzaretti partnered as central defenders.

The goalkeeper is still Buffon.

In general, Prandelli continued the 4312 formation that had won consecutive victories before.

Balotelli and David Thornton were both on the bench today.

On the Slovenian side, Chievo centre-back Posjan Cesar, who suffered a broken nose, played wearing a protective mask.

And Udinese goalkeeper Handanovic is an opponent that Italian offensive players must pay attention to.

The Italian team playing away from home took the lead.

Soon after the opening, Thiago Motta shot a powerful low shot from outside the penalty area, but the ball was saved sideways by Handanovic.

Motta was born in Brazil and has been selected for Brazilian youth teams at all levels.

Later, he was spotted by Barcelona, ​​and his first stop in Europe was the Catalan giants.

Unfortunately, he did not develop as many people expected.

Become the main player for Barcelona, ​​be selected for the Brazilian national team, and reach the pinnacle of life?
  No, Thiago Motta played a few Gold Cup games with the team in 2003, and has never been favored by the Selecao since then.

His development at the club was not smooth. Although he won many championships, the "Brazilian" was first sold to Atletico Madrid, and later even became a free agent when his contract expired before going to the Apennines.

Finally, he regained his vitality in Serie A. With his good performance in Genoa, Motta was brought to the Nerazzurri.

In the hands of Mourinho, Thiago Motta followed the team to win the Triple Crown, and later the Sixth Crown.

But despite this, the talented Brazilian national team still had no intention of recruiting him. Instead, Prandelli handed him an olive branch after taking office.

Motta went through some inner struggle as to whether he should leave his motherland and play for Italy instead.

Fortunately, he made a wise decision in the end, and he had his own reasons to stay here.

Since the Brazilian team doesn't like me, then I will go and play where I can.

This decision is not at all about money. In the short term, being selected for the Italian national team will not bring much financial benefit to Motta.

But last summer, when watching his club teammate Leo win the Hercules Cup, God knows how envious Motta was at that time.

Leo is very supportive of this decision of his club teammates.

It is definitely a good thing for him to continue to partner with club teammates who have a tacit understanding in the national team.

However, Leo also noticed that due to his status, Motta's selection has always been subject to some doubts and controversy.

Therefore, Thiago Motta also hopes to perform in the game and prove himself to everyone.

It is a pity that the shot after the opening failed to break the goal guarded by Handanovic.

Motta was a little annoyed, and Leo stepped forward and patted his teammate on the shoulder.

"The game has just begun, don't worry."

A minute later, the Italian team made a comeback. Leo passed two defensive players and passed into the penalty area!
  The Slovenian defender headed the ball to clear the ball, and Motta stopped the ball near the arc of the penalty area and volleyed!

This kick was once again blocked by Handanovic flying to the right!

Everyone can see that Motta wants to perform actively, and Leo can't dissuade him.

After feeding him several legends and Motta's shots did not pose much of a threat, he himself came to his senses. After returning to his position, Motta calmed down and played more freely.

Slovenia's quick counterattack was blocked. Motta stole the ball in the center circle and immediately handed the ball to Leo.

Leo passed the ball behind him and tried to find Pazzini who was advancing forward, but was destroyed by the defender's first kick.

The home team's midfielder Kilm took a right corner kick. His curved ball went directly to the far corner of the goal. Buffon concentrated on picking the ball off.

Leo scored the ball in the frontcourt, Maggio made a breakthrough pass from the right, and Pazzini grabbed the spot with his right foot from the penalty spot!
  His kick passed Handanovic's defense and hit the goal post!

The game lasted for nearly half an hour. The Italian team shot many times but was always within a hair's breadth of scoring.

Slovenia, playing at home, is always looking for opportunities to counterattack.

In the 31st minute, Colon, who plays for Hull City, fired an angry shot with his right foot from outside the penalty area!

The ball flew straight to the left side of the goal. Buffon dived sideways and held the ball out with one palm!
  Two minutes later, the Azzurri also played good offensive cooperation.

Leo made a pass, Cassano picked a pass from the left, Pazzini broke into the penalty area and attacked the goal with his right foot from a small angle, but the ball was blocked by Slovenia center back Jokic.

Leo controlled the two penalty kicks outside the penalty area. Chiellini assisted to the frontcourt and Leo crossed the ball diagonally to the left.

Chiellini broke through and made a low pass near the baseline. Pazzini shot the ball in the air without stopping, but Handanovic miraculously blocked the ball!
  Cassano made another shot in front of the goal, but Handanovic blocked the ball again!
  Absolutely!

Before the game, Prandelli reminded today's Italian starting players that Handanovic is very difficult to deal with.

Who knew the Slovenian goalkeeper was in such great form at home!
  Tens of thousands of Slovenian fans in the stands excitedly stood up and cheered for the "goalkeeper" Handanovic who kept the goal intact.

Leo shook his head and smiled bitterly. This was what he was most afraid of. It didn't matter if he was an excellent goalkeeper, but he was afraid of a bad goalkeeper.

All kinds of amazing moves make you lose your temper. No matter how hard you hit with your head or soles, you just can't score.

At the end of the first half, the Italian team's shots were about to reach double digits, but it was difficult to score a goal.

Novakovic received a direct pass from Koren and almost created a single opportunity!
  But Italian right back Maggio made a timely comeback and made a flying tackle to intercept the ball.

The first half entered stoppage time. Leo made a precise long pass from the backcourt. Cassano headed the ball from the left side of the penalty area. Pazzini's right-footed shot in front of the goal was saved by Handanovic again!
  At halftime, the Italian team had a goalless draw with Slovenia on the road and tied at 0-0.

“We played very well in the first half and created a lot of scoring opportunities.

It's a pity that the opponent's goalkeeper is in too good a shape today, so there's nothing we can do about it.

In the second half, we took a moment to slow down and not rush to attack. Our advantage in the group was quite obvious. "

With the head coach's reassurance, the Blue Jackets slowed down their offensive pace at the beginning of the second half.

Neither side made any substitutions during the halftime break, and the original team changed sides to play again.

The relatively dominant Italian team said it needed to slow down, but it still firmly had the upper hand.

Cassano's right foot attack near the edge of the penalty area drew a powerful curve ball!

The Slovenian goalkeeper Handanovic, who was guarding the goal, dived and missed the ball!
  Aquilani broke away from the defense and followed up with a right-footed shot in front of the goal. Handanovic, who was sitting on the ground, miraculously blocked it again with his legs!

None of these are included?

Prandelli had already raised his hands to celebrate the goal, and then saw Handanovic once again magically resolve the crisis.

When faced with such an opponent's goalkeeper, anyone else would have no choice but to shake their head and sigh.

Leo dribbled the ball diagonally to break through the double-team defense against him and then released the ball. Marchisio opened the gap outside the penalty area and took a powerful long-range shot with his left foot!
  Handanovic, who was focused, lifted the ball out without any effort.

In the 51st minute, Slovenia took the lead in making substitutions.

Gent forward Ljubijankic came on as a substitute for the mediocre Dedic.

This is a matchup substitution on the front line. Could it be that the home team is not willing to settle for a draw and wants to win this game?
  Novakovic and Bielsa cooperated and then passed through. Ljubijankic, who had just come on as a substitute, broke into the right side of the penalty area and volleyed vigorously from a small angle. Buffon blocked the ball and the ball hit the crossbar and popped out!
  It really almost got scored by the home team!

Italy's defense broke into a cold sweat.

In the 66th minute, Thiago Motta received Cassano's pass and passed directly to the left side of the penalty area.

Leo caught the ball, turned around, and got rid of the defensive player who came forward to press him.

Motta volleyed hard with his left foot in front of the penalty area and hit the ball!

Handanovic, whose sight was blocked, was caught off guard, and the ball went into the blind spot on the right side of the goal!

One to zero!

The Azzurri broke the deadlock on the field!

And Motta got his first goal in the Italian national team as he wished!

After scoring the goal, Motta ignored the fact that this was an away game and ran all the way to the sidelines to celebrate with a crazy wave of arms!
  It was hard for Handanovic, who worked hard for an hour and kept Italy's shots at bay again and again.

But what's the use? The opponent only needs one goal to make all his previous efforts in vain.

After taking the lead, Italy quickly made substitutions. Giuseppe Rossi replaced Cassano, while Slovenia replaced Bielsa with Ilicic to strengthen the attack.

Prandelli made another substitution soon after, with Nocerino coming off the bench to replace Pazzini to strengthen the defense in the midfield.

The Italian coach felt that it would be difficult for them to score against Handanovic anyway, so they might as well try to hold on to the 1-0 score until the end of the game.

Novakovic broke through to the bottom line on the right and volleyed vigorously with his right foot. The ball was blocked by the Italian defender with his leg and then slid past!

Slovenia's corner kick went to the goal, and Buffon jumped high and easily picked the ball off.

Italy's chance for a quick counterattack!

Leo dribbled the ball long way past half-court and then pushed the ball to Motta who was following him. He galloped past the two defenders without the ball!

Thiago Motta's through ball was delivered in time and was not offside!

Leo received the ball from the edge of the penalty area and faced Handanovic directly!
  In today's game, Handanovic has proven with actual performance that he is one of the top goalkeepers in the world.

Leo didn't dare to be careless at all. While observing Handanovic's movements, he used his peripheral vision to keep an eye on other defensive players returning to defend.

There was no time to hesitate, Leo used the instep of his right foot to hit the goal with a powerful and heavy volley!

The Slovenian goalkeeper also reacted quickly and jumped in to save!

bumped into! Handanovic was delighted when he felt his fingertips touch the ball!

Leo's powerful shot was touched by the opponent's goalkeeper and slightly changed direction, but it still went into the net from the upper right corner of the goal!

Two to zero!
  Fortunately, the quality of Leo's shot was high enough, and Handanovic, who had been tight for almost the entire game, also declined, and the goal was scored!

Trailing by two goals, there were only five or six minutes left in the game including stoppage time.

The home team was unable to counterattack, and the game ended with Italy defeating Slovenia 2-0 away from home.

With 15 points from five games won, the Azzurri are far ahead in Group C and their promotion prospects are extremely bright.

“I have to admit that we were very impressed by the goalkeeper in today’s game.

Handanovic's high pass and low block in front of the goal caused us quite a lot of trouble.

Our players played very tenaciously on the court and never gave up, and finally won the victory smoothly.

I don’t need to say more about Leo’s excellence. I want to praise Motta’s performance here.

He scored the first goal for the team, and it was his goal that changed the situation on the field.

I believe he can continue to contribute to Italy! "

Four days later, the Italian team travels to Kiev, Ukraine, where they will play a national team friendly match with Ukraine at the Dynamo Lobanovsky Stadium.

About to say goodbye to Balotelli, Leo, Thornton and Balotelli found a restaurant with good ratings in Kiev.

"Mario, how are you doing in Manchester City?"

"Hey, don't mention it. I really regret it and don't want to stay another day."

When he first went to Manchester City, although Balotelli didn't play much, his performance was pretty good.

Just when Mancini wanted to straighten Bashen as the main forward, Bashen was injured.

After that, he suffered from repeated injuries and ups and downs.

This season has also entered the second half. Balotelli has only played a total of fifteen times, four of which were as a substitute.

So far, he has only scored nine goals for Manchester City, which is much less than last season at Inter Milan.

This kind of performance naturally cannot satisfy anyone, whether it is Manchester City's management or fans, not even Balotelli himself can accept it.

"But your salary is high there."

David Thornton said sourly that he had the lowest income among the three people.

Leo picked up the fork and hit Thornton on the head.

"If you could listen to me and work harder, if nothing else, you would definitely have more playing time than you do now.

If you want a salary increase, you must first show corresponding performance. "

"No matter how hard you try, you can't compete with Maicon and the others, so what's the use."

David Thornton didn't dare to refute loudly, so he muttered in a low voice.

Looking at these two "problem boys", Leo sighed helplessly.

"Mario, if you want to come back, I'll think of a solution after the season ends. There should be a chance.

But you must not reveal this matter, otherwise it will be really difficult to handle. "

"Ah? Really? I know!"

Compared with the European Cup qualifiers a few days ago, Prandelli made comprehensive rotation adjustments to the starting lineup.

The young strike partnership of Giuseppe Rossi and Balotelli scored a goal each in the first and second half to help the Azzurri easily win 2-0 away from home.

After the national team game, the Italian internationals also returned to their respective clubs.

After the first 30 rounds of Serie A, Inter Milan tops the standings, 24 points ahead of second-placed AC Milan.

There are currently only eight rounds left in the league. In the next game, Inter Milan can lock in this year's league championship in advance as long as it draws with its archrival!
  (End of this chapter)