3 Things You Shouldn’t Forget From This Season: Part 1, Milan Clubs Edition

There are many things that will be remembered about the 2010-2011 Serie A season, both fondly and infamously. Of course, people will remember Milan’s Scudetto and Bari’s relegation, Inter and Roma’s thrashings in the Champions’ League and Napoli’s dramatic late goals. Here’s a series that focuses on some of the other things that should be remembered about a fantastic season, full of both the bizarre and the unbelievable.

Part 1 focuses on the Milan twins, Inter and AC. The scudetto runs, CL disappointments, and new coaches will be remembered, but the following three aspects should not be forgotten either.

1. Robinho’s misses. Milan’s attack has been superb all season: Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Pato have notched 14 goals apiece and Robinho himself has scored 12 thus far. Yet the latter has missed some absolute sitters that has left many a fan scratching their head. His awful, awful “ability” to beat the goalie one on one was ironically reversed just this past weekend, when he finally did score on a breakaway to give Milan the lead against Brescia. Yet he’s missed many other easy chances when left alone with the goalie, best exemplified by the following:

2. Andrea Ranocchia, the future superstar that may never be. A year ago, Ranocchia was the hottest thing in young Italian centerbacks. He had a superb season at Bari along with Leonardo Bonucci, where the two formed a fantastic partnership. Things quickly collapsed soon after: injury prevented him from playing out the season and likely cost him a World Cup appearance as well. His move away from Bari was supposed to be the beginning of his road to stardom, but instead begot a road which has likely destroyed his confidence. Since playing under Giampiero Ventura, Ranocchia has played for two coaches who advocate attacking football, almost at the expense of defense. His statistics at his clubs:

Bari: 17 games played, 16 goals conceded, 2 goals scored, 2 yellows given

Genoa: 16 games played, 15 goals conceded, 2 goals scored, 1 yellow given.

Inter: 14 games played, 25 goals conceded, 1 goal scored, 2 yellows given.

Which is about the opposite of what should have happened. Given Ranocchia’s talent, a move to a bigger club should have resulted in fewer goals conceded. Yet in 3 less games for Inter, the club’s defense has conceded 9 more goals than he did at Bari. Is it Andrea, a fish out of water at a pond too big for him, or the coaches- Leonardo and Gasperini- who advocate attacking prowess at the expense of defensive solidarity?

Either way, his moves to Genoa and Inter were supposed to be steps up from Bari. He was supposed to work alongside better defenses that would improve his confidence and game and allow him to truly shine. Due to the coaches and mentalities of the teams, however, it seems as if Andrea has taken a step back instead of a step forward. If Ranocchia fails to become the superstar he seemed destined to be last year, it could simply be that everyone overrated him. Or it could be that these two teams destroyed his confidence. Either way, this could be the season that the frog was permanently prevented from becoming a prince.

3. Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s facepalm-worthy moment. On March 13th, Milan played Bari to a surprising draw, which raised doubts at the time over the side’s ability to win the Scudetto given Inter’s re-emergence under Leonardo. 73 minutes into the match, Ibra did nothing to help Milan gain a point from the match as he was sent off for this:

Bari were leading at the time, but since it is Bari (and they were without Ranocchia/Bonucci*) they went on to concede anyway to the ten man side. Ibra was banned for three games which was later reduced to two, from which Milan lost one against Palermo and won one, the Derby against Inter. He returned for the side against Fiorentina and promptly did the following:

The result? Another red card and an expulsion- on the return game from his last expulsion. His excuse was even lamer, as he claimed to have been talking to himself. Only in Serie A.

*See point #2.

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Category: Serie A