Inter Milan under fat ass waiter Benitez

[Dodomeki]

Benitez did not expect "so many problems" at Inter

10 November 2010

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Inter Milan coach Rafael Benitez, seen here on November 2,said Tuesday he had not expected "so many problems" to tackle in his first few weeks after succeeding Jose Mourinho, the man who led the club to a treble last season.

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ROME (AFP) - Inter Milan coach Rafael Benitez said Tuesday he had not expected "so many problems" to tackle in his first few weeks after succeeding Jose Mourinho, the man who led the club to a treble last season.

Speaking ahead of Wednesday's encounter with Lecce, former Liverpool boss Benitez said: "No, I did not expect as many problems on the part of a team which had just come off a season where it won everything.

"The players are working well, but there are also difficulties." Inter are coming off a Champions League loss at Tottenham and a disappointing home draw with modest Brescia.

Those results came in the absence of a raft of injured players such as Brazilian keeper Julio Cesar, defensive compatriot Maicon, Argentine defender Walter Samuel - who will be out for six months - as well as midfielders Thiago Motta, Esteban Cambiasso and Wesley Sneijder.

Inter are now three points adrift of Serie A leaders Lazio and one point behind city rivals AC Milan as they bid to retain their domestic crown. "We must work to get into the best position possible in January and we will see what we can do in January in the transfer window," said Benitez, who is not on friendly terms with Mourinho dating back to their time in the Premier League when the Portuguese coach was in charge of Chelsea.

"We will have to do something after Walter's injury - he is an important player." Benitez refused to be drawn on the additional significance of Sunday's Milan derby. "The most important match is always the next one. We must defeat Lecce, then we will think about the derby."

 

[Dodomeki]

 

[Dodomeki]

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[Dodomeki]

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[jw5]

The problems are caused by him.
Jose didn't have any problems when he won both the league title and the champions league.

 

[Maximilian Chua-Heng]

Losing and whining is a habit.

Rafael must have carried over these tendencies with him to Inter when he left Liverpool.

 

[po2wq]

Losing and whining is a habit.

Rafael must have carried over these tendencies with him to Inter when he left Liverpool.

cover backside la ...

juz like dat ah seng lidat ... brame peasants 4 complacency 2 cover backside 1st la ... if anyting happen later, iz all peasants fault ...

 

[Dodomeki]

Benitez counting on Milito to produce some goals


Benitez counting on Milito to produce some goals

Inter Milan coach Rafael Benitez has a huge problem ahead of Sunday’s city derby against AC Milan, but he believes Argentina forward Diego Milito can be the solution. Champions Inter dropped to fourth in midweek after a disappointing 1-1 draw at lowly Lecce but they could still conceivably go top if they triumph in the San Siro as there is little to separate the top six — just five points.

But ahead of this mouth-watering top-of-the-table clash, Inter come into it with a worrying problem — their troubles in front of goal. Inter have mustered just 13 goals in their 11 league games and despite Cameroon forward Samuel Eto’o’s stunning early season form — he has 17 strikes in 17 matches in all competitions — the champions are struggling to find the net.

Their defence has been rock solid with only six goals conceded but their failure to convert chances is costing them points — they have drawn five times already. But Benitez believes the return to form and fitness of Milito — he scored his third goal of the season against Lecce — is what the club needs to rediscover last season’s title form.

“We’ll try to do better in the derby (than against Lecce), we’ll give it our all and we can win, it depends on us,” said the Spaniard. “And if we win, the table will be different, it will be a great game. “Everyone will have great motivation and will give everything to win, you’ll see an Inter with the right mentality and intensity.

“(The Lecce match) showed what a difference players like (Dejan) Stankovic or Milito can make when they play, we’re definitely better with them. “When we have a fully fit squad, we’ll be better although that doesn’t mean that our young players haven’t been doing well, they’re definitely improving. “But for sure we hope that this will be the start of a long series of Milito goals.”

Benitez’s Milan counterpart Massimiliano Allegri has a different problem to the Spaniard, despite his side sitting pretty at the top. They keep leaking goals. “In the last few games we’ve often conceded a goal a game but we hope that on Sunday we can manage to keep a clean sheet,” he said. Although Milan are top and come into the game in better form, veteran Dutch midfielder Clarence Seedorf has warned his team-mates not to get over-confident against last season’s treble winners.

“Our recent victories have helped our morale, it helps to have a positive spirit,” he said. “But we have to be aware of the fact that we’re playing against the Italian and European champions. “We need to keep our feet on the ground because the derby is a special game and we can’t underestimate Inter, regardless of their many injuries because they’re rich in great players.

“We have good team spirit, we want to help each other and that’s important and one of the reasons we’re top. “To win the title you need consistency, there are six teams separated by no more than five points. “There’s no shortage of attention and spectacle in the league and we’re going to try to go all the way to the end.”

Milan will need to do far better than last season, though, where they lost 4-0 in the away game and were then beaten 2-0 at home, despite Inter finishing the game with nine players. In an exciting weekend of matches, the top six all play each other as second-placed Lazio host third placed Napoli on Sunday. Fifth-placed Juventus drew 1-1 with sixth-placed Roma on Saturday.

Fixtures:

Sunday
Lazio v Napoli, Bari v Parma, Bologna v Brescia, Cagliari v Genoa, Palermo v Catania, Sampdoria v Chievo, Udinese v Lecce, Inter Milan v AC Milan

 

[Dodomeki]

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[Dodomeki]

Hero Ibra sinks Inter in Milan derby


Hero Ibra sinks Inter in Milan derby

15 November 2010

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AC Milan´s Swedish forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic celebrates at the end of his team´s Italian Serie A football match against Inter Milan in San Siro stadium in Milan. AC Milan defeated Inter Milan 1-0.

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MILAN, Italy (AFP) - Zlatan Ibrahimovic came back to haunt his former employers and silence the boo-boys as 10-man AC Milan went back to the top of the table with a 1-0 win at Inter Milan on Sunday. Ibrahimovic scored the only goal of the game from the penalty spot to enrage the Inter fans who once adored him as Milan earned a crucial three points, despite Ignazio Abate's second half dismissal, to underline their title credentials.

Earlier in the day Lazio had briefly gone top as they beat Napoli 2-0 in Rome. The defeat means Inter dropped to fifth in Serie A, six points behind their arch city rivals but Ibrahimovic insisted there's a long way to go yet. "There's still a lot of games left, it's a bit of a gap but we'll play one game at a time," said the Swede. "The team is in good shape, we're focussed.

"We worked really hard and there was great sacrifice in the second half with a man down. We played with heart." Milan set their stall out from the off with some vibrant counter-attacking football. On three minutes Abate got to the byline down the right and crossed for Clarence Seedorf, who should have done far better than head wastefully high.

But just moments later they had won a penalty as Seedorf released Ibrahimovic down the right and as he entered the area he dragged back the ball, only for Marco Materazzi to take his legs out from under him. Ibrahimovic stepped up amid a cacophony of boos to smash home the spot-kick. Milan really should have had another as Ibrahimovic again beat the offside trap but his cross to the waiting Mathieu Flamini was imprecise and cut out by a back-tracking Lucio.

Materazzi then took the ball away from Seedorf as Ibrahimovic tried to tee him up from close in. Massimo Ambrosini hit a diagonal ball over the top to the busy Sweden forward who tried a Marco van Basten-esque volley from an angle that fizzed just over. Robinho had the ball in the net on 22 minutes but was denied by a linesman's flag. Inter didn't start exerting pressure until the end of the half when Wesley Sneijder shot a free-kick into the side netting.

Early in the second period Sneijder had another free-kick from close in and although he struck it well, Christian Abbiati beat it away with his fists. And momentum swung Inter's way on the hour mark when Abate picked up a second booking after a tiff with Goran Pandev, with Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri immediately replacing forward Robinho with full-back Luca Antonini.

Centre-back Materazzi then had to come off after a nasty clash with Ibrahimovic and Inter coach Rafael Benitez made the bold move of replacing him with winger Jonathan Biabiany. Yet it was Seedorf who was inches away from doubling Milan's lead with a shot from 20 yards. Push as Inter did they created little of real substance as a dogged Milan held out for a famous win.

In Rome, Mauro Zarate was the hero as he scored the first and made the second for Sergio Floccari to end a run of two straight defeats. Goalscorer Floccari said it was important to bounce back from their losses. "It's been a tough three days and with the midweek loss that made it a bad week for us," he told SkySport. "Today was a good performance in terms of intensity and creativity in attack, it's always good to score but it's better that we played well."

Zarate gave the hosts the lead on the quarter hour mark when he latched onto a ball launched forward by captain Stefano Mauri and from the inside left channel the Argentine took the ball down on his chest and fired left-footed across Morgan De Sanctis. Lazio doubled their advantage on 61 minutes as Zarate pounced on a ricochet and teed up Floccari, alone 15 yards out to side-foot home almost casually with De Sanctis strangely static.

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[Dodomeki]

Benitez under pressure as Moratti blasts Inter


Benitez under pressure as Moratti blasts Inter

16 November 2010

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Inter Milan boss Rafael Benitez, pictured on November 10, is already under pressure just five months into his tenure after club president Massimo Moratti slammed the team for the manner of their derby defeat.

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ROME (AFP) - Inter Milan boss Rafael Benitez is already under pressure just five months into his tenure after club president Massimo Moratti slammed the team for the manner of their derby defeat. Inter were second best in their 1-0 home defeat to AC Milan on Sunday, in which former charge Zlatan Ibrahimovic notched the winner to rub salt into their wounds.

That defeat left Inter six points off the Serie A summit, occupied by their arch city rivals. But it was their failure to snatch a result despite playing with a numerical advantage for the last half hour that has really enraged Moratti. "It wasn't a great game, not just because we didn't win but because it wasn't a great derby," moaned Moratti. "Neither team managed to express themselves to their maximum.

We even had the opportunity to be playing with a numerical advantage but I didn't see anything worthwhile. "Even so, it's not a terrible situation, although obviously it's not a great one because the derby is the derby and in my opinion you approach it with a different mentality." Moratti's last comment will be particularly galling for Benitez, given character was one of the major strengths of this same Inter team under predecessor Jose Mourinho.

But character has been something strangely lacking at Inter this season and their last three league results have screamed that out loud and clear. They followed up 1-1 draws with newly promoted Lecce and Brescia by failing to find a goal against 10-man Milan. Under Mourinho, Inter had a reputation for pulling results out of the bag when they needed them most, not least their Champions League clash away to Dynamo Kiev last season when they found two goals in the last five minutes to turn a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 victory.

Had they not scored those two goals, they would almost certainly have been out, but instead they went on to lift the title as they completed an unprecedented treble in Italian football. But under Benitez, Inter are lacking the fighting spirit, self-confidence and effectiveness they had under Mourinho. The statistical differences are alarming. After 12 Serie A games this season, Inter are sixth with just five wins, 20 points and a measily 13 goals.

They are nine points behind the same stage last season, when they were top, and have scored less than half the 29 Mourinho's team had managed. And after last season's treble of Italian league, cup and Champions League, not to mention five scudetto crowns in a row, Moratti has become accustomed to success and so far that hasn't been forthcoming under Benitez. Despite mostly maintaining the 4-2-3-1 system employed also by Mourinho, the lack of goals has been alarming.

Although Samuel Eto'o has been in stunning goal-scoring form, of his other forward players, only Diego Milito has notched in the league while Goran Pandev, Coutinho and Jonathan Biabiany are yet to score at all. For the moment, despite his criticisms, Moratti insists his coach is the right man for the job, although he couldn't help but reminisce about the good old times under Mourinho.

"Certainly he's the right man. The coach was hired because he's one of those people with top drawer experience, calm and the ability to do things well," said Moratti. "Of course it wasn't the easiest situation for him to take over a team that had a lot and gave a lot, and making them start over again, but, then again, that's what he has to do."
So far, Benitez hasn't managed to do that and if he can't, then his reign may not last long.

 

[Wayne Piew]

Let's all laugh at Fat Spanish Waiter-yet again.
Inter lost 2-1 to chievo - although isn't quite over yet,
Benitez's days in Italy may be numbered.
Hope he ends up back to the EPL with Man Shitty!!

 

[Alamaking]

LOL, Big Fat Spanish jinxs any team he coaches, LOL

 

[Dodomeki]

Chievo Verona beats Inter Milan 2-1 in Serie A


POSTED: November 22, 2010

Chievo Verona beats Inter Milan 2-1 in Serie A

By Jeremy Inson
The Associated Press

MILAN (AP) — Inter Milan failed to ease the pressure on beleaguered coach Rafael Benitez after slumping to a 2-1 loss at Chievo Verona in the Serie A on Sunday.

Chievo striker Sergio Pellissier scored in the first half and teammate Davide Moscardelli added the second near the end of the match, before Inter forward Samuel Eto'o pulled a goal back in injury time.

Inter also lost 1-0 in the Milan derby last week, prompting club president Massimo Moratti to criticize the team's approach to the match and warn Benitez that he expects a return to form. Inter is sixth in the standings with 20 points, nine behind leader AC Milan.

"I'm a professional coach and I have faced this type of situation before," Benitez said. "The only solution to it is to keep working hard. "Clearly after a defeat like this, no one is happy. The only good thing is that the players worked hard. But you can't really say much when you lose a game like this."

There could be further problems for Inter after Eto'o was caught on camera head-butting Chievo defender Bostjan Cesar in the chest in a scene reminiscent of Zinedine Zidane's infamous clash with Marco Materazzi in the 2006 World Cup final.

Cesar threw a weak punch that hit Eto'o in the face in the 38th minute. The Cameroon international initially started to jog away before turning around and butting Cesar in the chest. No action was taken against either player.

"I didn't see what happened, but I know he was hit before," Benitez said. "Obviously no one likes this type of situation, but it was clear he was hit and this is provocation. We have four officials on the pitch and if none of them consider it worth pursuing, we should leave it at that."

In Verona, Chievo attacked from the start, forcing Inter goalkeeper Luca Castelazzi to push away Cyril Thereau's shot early on. Chievo goalkeeper Stefano Sorrentino then stopped efforts from Wesley Sneijder and Davide Santon before Pellissier opened the scoring. Nicolas Frey crossed from the right and Pellissier rose above Santon to head past Castelazzi in the 29th minute.

Pellissier nearly doubled his tally in the 32nd, but his shot deflected off Inter defender Lucio for a corner. "We knew that if we won the ball and got it forward quickly we could cause Inter problems," Chievo coach Stefano Piolo said. "Inter's players pushed forward in attack and Pellissier troubled the defense all game."

Not long after the break, Sorrentino denied Dejan Stankovic and Sneijder in close succession. Chievo striker Fernandes missed a great chance to add a second by missing an open goal in the 65th. Moscardelli's goal wrapped up the game in the 82nd minute. The big striker reached the ball ahead of Lucio to sweep it home. Eto'o's 18th goal of the season for Inter came too late to inspire a comeback.

 

[Dodomeki]

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Chievo vs Inter Milan 2 - 1 (21.11.2010) All Goals

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[Dodomeki]

Eto'o banned for three matches


Eto'o banned for three matches

Published Nov 23 2010

Inter Milan striker Samuel Eto'o was banned for three matches Tuesday for head-butting Chievo Verona defender Bostjan Cesar, handing another big blow to the struggling European champions. The referee did not sanction Eto'o during Sunday's game but league officials used TV replays to decide the ban. Eto'o was also fined 30,000 euros for the act reminiscent of Zinedine Zidane's incident with Marco Materazzi in the 2006 World Cup final.

The incident occurred in the 38th minute when Cesar threw a weak punch that hit Eto'o in the face. The Cameroon international jogged away before turning around and head-butting Cesar in the chest. Cesar was not punished for his involvement, while Inter said it would appeal the decision. With 18 goals in all competitions this season, Eto'o has been one of the few bright spots for Inter, which has had to cope with injuries to several key players and is currently nine points behind city rival and Serie A leader AC Milan.

Fellow striker Diego Milito has struggled with form and injuries this season and defenders Maicon, Walter Samuel and Cristian Chivu, plus midfielders Coutinho and Thiago Motta, are currently out injured. "Eto'o has enough experience and he himself knows he made a mistake," Inter captain Javier Zanetti said. "We didn't need this, especially now with so few men available. He made a big mistake and he's going to be punished for it."

League judge Gianpaolo Tosel described the head butt as fitting into the "extremes of violent conduct." Eto'o will miss Inter's next games against Parma and Lazio and won't play again in Serie A until next year since Inter will travel to the United Arab Emirates for the Club World Cup next month. The third match that Eto'o will miss is unclear because several of Inter's matches have been postponed to undetermined dates.

It's the second time this season that a key player in Serie A has been banned with the use of TV replays. Juventus winger Milos Krasic was banned for two matches last month for diving to earn a penalty. Two years ago, Fiorentina forward Alberto Gilardino received a two-game ban for scoring a goal with his hand. Also Tuesday, Lecce forward Ernesto Chevanton was hit with a five-match ban for kicking an opponent violently and then taking off his jersey and waving it at the referee in protest during a 3-2 loss to Sampdoria. - AP

 

[Dodomeki]

Benitez in danger of being sacked


Benitez in danger of being sacked

Published Nov 23 2010

Inter Milan manager Rafael Benitez could be in danger of losing his job if the struggling European champion doesn't beat Dutch side FC Twente on Wednesday. Hit by a series of injuries to key players, Inter has fallen nine points behind city rival and AC Milan in Serie A and trails Tottenham on head-to-head goal difference in its Champions League group. Inter suffered a humiliating 2-1 loss to Chievo Verona on Sunday, extending its winless streak in the Italian league to four matches.

"The manager and the squad need to understand that the Champions League match is very important, and that a great match is required," Inter president Massimo Moratti said. "Whether they're tired or not they need to play with a lot of anger because if not we can't go on like this." Tottenham and Inter have seven points each atop Group A, FC Twente has five and Werder Bremen trails with two.

Tottenham hosts struggling Bremen in the other group match Wednesday but the focus will be on the defending champion. "They absolutely have to win," said former Inter coach Jose Mourinho, who bolted to Real Madrid after leading the Milan club to a treble last season. "If they beat Twente and advance in the Champions League they have the basis to bounce back."

Italian media have already created a long list of possible candidates to replace Benitez. Former Chile coach Marcelo Bielsa heads the list, followed by current England coach Fabio Capello, Leonardo, manager of AC Milan last season, and Zenit St. Petersburg's Luciano Spalletti, formerly with AS Roma.
However, Moratti hasn't fired a coach midseason since letting go of Hector Cuper in Oct. 2003 and has voiced support for Benitez.

"Rafa has broad shoulders and is a serious person. He's trying to find solutions and in a month he could have 10 more players to choose from and things might be different," Moratti said. Inter striker Samuel Eto'o was handed a three-match ban in the Italian league for head-butting a Chievo Verona opponent at the weekend, but the Cameroon international is free to play in Europe.

With fellow striker Diego Milito still working his way back from injury, Eto'o will likely spearhead an attack also featuring Goran Pandev and Jonathan Biabiany, with Wesley Sneijder in the playmaker position. Sneijder was diagnosed with anemia after passing out at halftime of a Serie A match earlier this month, an incident attributed to exhaustion, but Inter can't afford to rest the Netherlands international, with fellow midfielders Coutinho and Thiago Motta out injured.

Also injured are goalkeeper Julio Cesar and defenders Maicon, Walter Samuel and Cristian Chivu. Twente held Inter to a 2-2 draw in September in its first ever Champions League match and the defending Dutch champion lost for just the second time this season on Saturday, going down 2-1 at home to AZ Alkmaar.

Coach Michel Preud'homme has to rebuild his defense as left back Dwight Tiendalli and Sweden defender Rasmus Bengtsson are both out injured. Tottenham has been one of the surprises in Europe thus far, led by Gareth Bale's four goals, plus three from Roman Pavlyuchenko. Like Inter, Bremen is riddled with injuries and traveled to London with just 12 first-team players, plus six from the reserve side and one junior.

Werder is missing strikers Claudio Pizarro and Marko Arnautovic plus Naldo, Mikael Silvestre, Tim Borowski, Sebastian Boenisch due to injury, while captain Torsten Frings is suspended. "I never had so many missing players," said coach Thomas Schaaf, who has guided Bremen since 1999. The club has denied reports that Schaaf offered to quit after his team's 4-0 loss at Schalke on Saturday. - AP

 

[Dodomeki]

Edgy Inter scrape into Champions League knockout round

AFP

by Emmanuel Barranguet Emmanuel Barranguet – Wed Nov 24, 5:10 pm ET

Inter Milan's Argentine midfielder Esteban Matias Cambiasso (R) celebrates with teammate French forward Ludovic Biabiany Jonathan after scoring against Twente during their group A Champions League football match at San Siro stadium in Milan. Inter won 1-0.
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MILAN, Italy (AFP) – Inter Milan stumbled into the Champions League knockout rounds with a nervy 1-0 victory over FC Twente at the San Siro here on Wednesday.

Argentina midfielder Esteban Cambiasso was the unlikely hero, scoring the winner on 55 minutes to keep Inter level on points with Tottenham at the top of Group A -- but behind on head-to-head record.

Coming into the game off a run of three defeats and two draws, coach Rafael Benitez's job was rumoured to be at risk if the reigning champions didn't win. Cambiasso said afterwards that he hoped the win could be a springboard for the club.

"It's important because we've had some bad results recently, some we deserved, others we didn't, but now we've qualified we can concentrate on the league and the Club World Cup," said the match-winner.

"In the changing room we never had any doubts we'd bounce back. We knew we were in a difficult moment but we hope this result can give us tranquility and once we're back to full strength, things can go much better."

Twente have also been struggling of late, losing their last two league matches, and with both teams desperate for a win to kick-start their seasons, the game was an open and attacking affair.

Benitez made a surprise tactical change by playing top scorer Samuel Eto'o wide on the left, with Goran Pandev operating down the middle. The first chance came after only three minutes as Wesley Sneijder found himself free and alone inside the six-yard box to meet Jonathan Biabiany's pin-point cross but he headed wide.

Soon after Dejan Stankovic let fly from distance with the ball swerving in the air and deceiving goalkeeper Nikolay Mihaylov, who was relieved to see it dip just over.

It wasn't all Inter, though, as Nacer Chadli picked out Bryan Ruiz seven yards from goal leaping above Javier Zanetti, but he got his header all wrong. Sneijder then shuddered the bar with a 20-yard free-kick on 17 minutes with Mihaylov well beaten.

Pandev had a clear sight of goal when he was slipped in by Cambiasso but Mihaylov came out quickly to block his rushed effort before Eto'o curled an in-swinger from the left that Mihaylov clawed out from under his bar. On the half hour the visitors had two sights of goal in quick succession.

Theo Janssen crashed a shot goalwards from 18 yards with power but Luca Castellazzi did well to hold on. Moments later Chedli escaped down the left and chipped the on-rushing Castellazzi, but his effort went wide with Luuk de Jong screaming for a pass at the back post.

A mistake by Lucio gave de Jong another chance but his first touch was too firm and Castellazzi came out to smother. The breakthrough came 10 minutes after the break as Sneijder's free-kick took a double deflection and fell kindly to the unmarked Cambiasso to swivel and fire home inside the post.

Halfway through the second period it should have been two as neat interplay on the edge of the Twente box saw Eto'o slide in Sneijder, but his dinked shot sneaked just past the upright. Stankovic should have closed out the game but skied embarrassingly high with the goal gaping.

Inter were enjoying most of the pressure but Twente gave them a warning 15 minutes from time as Denny Landzaat curled a 25-yard effort onto the bar with Castellazzi a spectator. And they hit the bar again as Castellazzi tipped Janssen's in-swinging corner onto the woodowrk as Inter clung on depserately.

 

[Legolas]

Inter back on track after Stankovic hat-trick


Inter back on track after Stankovic hat-trick

28 November 2010

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Inter Milan´s Serbian midfielder Dejan Stankovic celebrates after scoring during the Serie A football match between Inter Milan and Parma at San Siro stadium in Milan. Inter beat Parma 5-2.

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ROME (AFP) - A hat-trick by Inter Milan's veteran Serbian midfielder Dejan Stankovic saw the champions to a welcome 5-2 victory over Parma on Sunday and ended a run of four Serie matches without a win.

Inter had given coach Rafael Benitez some breathing space in squeezing through to the last 16 of the Champions League in midweek when, had they been defeated by Dutch side Twente, many believed the Spanish handler would have been facing the sack.

However, Stankovic's treble and goals from Argentinian Esteban Cambiasso -- who had scored the only goal against Twente -- and Thiago Motta saw them to an easy three points against Parma, for whom veteran Argentinian Hernan Crespo bagged a double. Inter are still seven points adrift of bitter city rivals and leaders AC Milan, who drew 1-1 with Sampdoria on Saturday.

Lazio can pull to within a point of AC Milan if they beat Catania at home later on Sunday. Former Inter star Crespo gave Parma a fourth minute lead but Inter levelled through Stankovic's first and were quickly 3-1 up as the 32-year-old Serb, who has been at Inter since 2004, was set up by Frenchman Jonathan Biabiany as he had been for his first goal.

Cambiasso scored the third before his compatriot Crespo benefited from a dreadful error by veteran Italian central defender Marco Materazzi, who is in for the long-term injury victim Walter Samuel, to reduce the deficit. Motta and Stankovic rammed home Inter's superiority with further goals in the second-half to leave Parma just four points above the drop zone.

 

[Dodomeki]

Benitez breathes a sigh of relief



Benitez breathes a sigh of relief

29 November 2010

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Rafael Benitez was relieved to see his Inter Milan side secure a much-needed win in a 'crazy' game against Parma at the San Siro on Sunday.

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Rafael Benitez was relieved to see his Inter Milan side secure a much-needed win in a 'crazy' game against Parma at the San Siro on Sunday. The defending champions lost 2-1 to Chievo last week, slipping nine points off the pace as pressure mounted on Benitez in his first season in charge.

The 5-2 victory against Parma, in which Inter came from behind with three goals in five minutes before the visitors struck the woodwork three times, will go some way to easing the pressure on the beleaguered Spaniard. "I think it was a bit of a crazy game," Benitez said. "We proved that we could play it very well." "I want to thank the fans in the Curva for always supporting me and the team in this difficult moment for us."

Benitez, who had the unenviable task of replacing treble winner Jose Mourinho as manager, has endured a torrid first campaign in Serie A. A high number of injuries have restricted the 50-year-old's options, and poor results have led to speculation that Inter President Massimo Moratti may be set to relieve the former Liverpool and Valencia boss of his duties just six months into the job.

Benitez denies that he is set for the chop, claiming the club appreciate the difficult position he has found himself in. "My relationship with the president is normal. I am a professional, I have been working with my staff for 25 years and have never had so many injuries," he said. "There are many reasons behind all these setbacks. Anyone who thinks they are solely down to my training methods is ignorant.'

Parma coach Pasquale Marino felt the scoreline did little justice to one of his team's best performances away from home this season. "Conceding two goals like that really knocked the wind out of our sails," Marino said. "We had the chances to go 2-0 up and created so many scoring opportunities throughout the match. We were unlucky." "Apart from the two goals today, we had so many other chances. It was one of our best performances away from home."