It was inevitable, and understandable. Serie A is pummelled 3-0 by the Premier League, and immediately Italian football is described as being on its knees. “Again Calcio is in crisis,” cried La Repubblica. “Italy - an Empire that once ruled the continent. English football utterly dominant,” boasted The Telegraph. “The league has fallen so much that a number of locals claim Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the best player in the world. He probably just about deserves a place in the top 20,” sneered The Daily Mail.
Powerful stuff but, for the second season running, it has been a disastrous year in Europe for Serie A. Last term, Milan and Inter were both eliminated in the last 16 by Arsenal and Liverpool respectively, while only Roma made it to the quarter-finals, where they were comfortably seen off by eventual champions Manchester United. This time around, Juventus, Inter and Roma were all dumped by English opposition, meaning there is not a single Italian team in the draw for the last eight.
So is Serie A really in crisis? In order to answer this question, we need to analyse the reasons why Italy were on the receiving end of a 3-0 defeat.
English Superior In Defence
For many years, Italian clubs, just like the national team, built their strength on indestructible defences. Just think back to the Inter of Facchetti, Burgnich and Picchi, the Juventus of Scirea, Gentile and Cabrini, and the Milan of Baresi, Maldini, Costacurta and Tassotti – these were legendary backlines that were almost impossible to break down.
Perhaps partly due to the fact that Italy are not producing the abundance of stoppers they once were, the defences of Inter, Juventus, Roma, and Milan for that matter, are far from water-tight. Indeed, with the exception of Arsenal, who are an organisational wreck at times, the English Big Four have far superior defences. Man Utd and Liverpool did not concede a goal in four games against the Italian and Spanish champions, which speaks volumes.
Squad Depth
Arsenal could afford to lose their two star players, Cesc Fabregas and Emmanuel Adebayor, and still unleash a first team brimming with quality and technical ability. Chelsea were missing the world class Ricardo Carvalho, but were able to replace him with Brazilian international Alex. Man Utd have so many attacking options that Sir Alex Ferguson had the confidence to start Wayne Rooney on the bench at San Siro, and not use Carlos Tevez in either leg.
The Italian clubs, however, were struggling to get a team together as soon as a few players cried off injured. Roma were forced to field three players who were no more than 50 per cent fit, as well as move a left back, John Arne Riise, into the centre of defence. Juventus had to scrap their usual 4-4-2 formation and go 4-3-3 as they didn’t have enough midfielders. Even Inter, who have a huge squad by Italian standards, were considering using Esteban Cambiasso at centre-back at Old Trafford because they had no faith in Nelson Rivas.
Injuries
Nevertheless, we could spin this argument around and say that Roma and Juventus were ravaged by injuries during these ties. The Giallorossi were missing six first team players last night, fielded a 50 per cent fit Totti and Pizarro, lost Juan and Taddei to injury during the match, and moved Riise into the centre of defence after half-an-hour.
Juventus had their entire first-choice midfield out against Chelsea in Turin after losing Nedved early on, and could not even count on first team replacements Cristiano Zanetti and Paolo De Ceglie. As mentioned above, this forced them to play a 4-3-3. Inter can have no complaints in this department. As it worked out, they were only handicapped in the centre of defence.
Bad Luck
Last year, Italy lost to England because they were inferior on the pitch. This year, bad luck played a huge role in the 0-3 reverse. As I argued in my debate yesterday, if you analyse both games from Juventus-Chelsea, then it was the Bianconeri who probably deserved to go through.
Roma were simply perfect last night, despite their own horrific injury situation. Ahead at 1-0, they were denied a blatant penalty, while Julio Baptista missed two easy chances, including a sitter from six yards with 10 minutes to go that would have put them through. Only the lottery of a penalty shootout denied them.
Inter were deservedly eliminated, as they were second best at San Siro. However, they had their moments last night, and dominated spells of the first half. Ibrahimovic missed a host of chances, as did Dejan Stankovic, and the Nerazzurri hit the woodwork twice. If Lady Luck had been shining on Italian teams, they could have won two of these ties very easily.
Referees
This brings us nicely to the referees. There can be no denying that once again the key decisions in these last 16 ties went the way of the English clubs. Juventus were dominating against Chelsea when Chiellini was red carded on 70 minutes, despite clearly winning the ball in a challenge on Didier Drogba.
Roma were leading 1-0 when Marco Motta was pulled down by Gael Clichy, inside the area, right on the stroke of half-time. Ninety-nine referees out of 100 would have pointed to the spot, such was the scenario, but not Manuel Enrique. While on a Spanish subject, Real Madrid were humiliated 4-0 at Anfield, but Fernando Torres’ opener proceeded a blatant foul on Pepe, and Steven Gerrard’s penalty that made it two was awarded for a non-existent handball by Gabriel Heinze. The referee from this game? The same Frank De Bleeckere who controversially sent off Inter’s Marco Materazzi at this stage of the competition last term.
Calciopoli
Italian football, and all its needless politics, can only blame itself for this. Calciopoli badly damaged Serie A’s image, Juventus were set back five years, Milan also moved the wrong way, while financially the league and clubs suffered. Europe’s top players thought twice before moving to a league supposedly ridden by corruption, while the media machine in England milked the controversy to champion the Premier League and discredit Serie A at every opportunity. It is a long road to regain credibility.
Financial Power Of English Teams
Italian clubs just do not have the monetary muscle of the English clubs, who can offer higher transfer fees and wages for players. There is already so much money in the Premier League from television and marketing before we even talk about the rich foreign owners who are plasticizing the English game. The worldwide economic crisis may have some affect, but I strongly endorse Michel Platini’s plans to prevent clubs from “cheating” by spending money they do not make as businesses. The '6+5' proposition would also help to even up the playing field for the rest of Europe, who clearly cannot compete financially with England.
English Psychological Edge
Having gone through such a bad run of form – just one win in the last 12 knockout games against English opposition – it is clear that mentally Italy are suffering. The tie was there to be won for Roma against Arsenal, but they lacked that bit of belief to finish off the job. Even when they went ahead in the penalty shootout, Mirko Vucinic could not hold his nerve and sustain the lead. After a while, a psychological barrier starts to form, much like Inter’s constant European failures, and this is something that needs to broken.
Final Word
Italian football most certainly is not in crisis, and the league has come on leaps and bounds from last season. The Premier League Top 4 is stronger on paper than its Italian equivalents, but it most certainly did not deserve to win 3-0. Unlike last year, when England were streets ahead, injuries and bad luck were the key factors in the final scoreline this campaign, and as Francesco Totti said last night: “It just wasn’t meant to be.”
Juventus have the spine of a potentially dominant team and, if they can only make two or three top class signings, they are perhaps Italy’s best hope over the coming years. Inter are still a powerful machine, but need to add a bit of creative unpredictability to their squad. Milan have some rebuilding to do, but they still possess genuine world class players in Kaka and Pato, and their European pedigree is never in doubt. Perhaps a problem in Serie A is that its quality is spread too thinly. You could pick out two or three players from every top half team who would be good enough for Inter, Milan or Juventus. In the Premier League, you would be lucky to find five players in the whole championship capable of making the Man Utd, Liverpool, Arsenal, or Chelsea substitutes bench.
There is likely to be a lot of disappointment around the peninsula following this week’s results, but there are some positives to take. Marcello Lippi should be pleased with the performances of a host of promising youngsters. Marco Motta was one of the players of the last 16 at right back, Inter played with two 18-year-old Italians in Davide Santon and Mario Balotelli, while Claudio Marchisio and, in particular, Sebastian Giovinco, impressed for Juventus. These players, despite their tender years, all proved themselves to be good enough for this level of football. The English teams, overloaded with foreigners, cannot point to any young English players (barring Theo Walcott) who are coming through and shining at this level.
Congratulations to the Premier League, but Serie A is not in crisis.
Italian Football Is Not In Crisis
It was inevitable, and understandable. Serie A is pummelled 3-0 by the Premier League, and immediately Italian football is described as being on its knees. “Again Calcio is in crisis,” cried La Repubblica. “Italy - an Empire that once ruled the continent. English football utterly dominant,” boasted The Telegraph. “The league has fallen so much that a number of locals claim Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the best player in the world. He probably just about deserves a place in the top 20,” sneered The Daily Mail.
Powerful stuff but, for the second season running, it has been a disastrous year in Europe for Serie A. Last term, Milan and Inter were both eliminated in the last 16 by Arsenal and Liverpool respectively, while only Roma made it to the quarter-finals, where they were comfortably seen off by eventual champions Manchester United. This time around, Juventus, Inter and Roma were all dumped by English opposition, meaning there is not a single Italian team in the draw for the last eight.
So is Serie A really in crisis? In order to answer this question, we need to analyse the reasons why Italy were on the receiving end of a 3-0 defeat.
English Superior In Defence
For many years, Italian clubs, just like the national team, built their strength on indestructible defences. Just think back to the Inter of Facchetti, Burgnich and Picchi, the Juventus of Scirea, Gentile and Cabrini, and the Milan of Baresi, Maldini, Costacurta and Tassotti – these were legendary backlines that were almost impossible to break down.
Perhaps partly due to the fact that Italy are not producing the abundance of stoppers they once were, the defences of Inter, Juventus, Roma, and Milan for that matter, are far from water-tight. Indeed, with the exception of Arsenal, who are an organisational wreck at times, the English Big Four have far superior defences. Man Utd and Liverpool did not concede a goal in four games against the Italian and Spanish champions, which speaks volumes.
Squad Depth
Arsenal could afford to lose their two star players, Cesc Fabregas and Emmanuel Adebayor, and still unleash a first team brimming with quality and technical ability. Chelsea were missing the world class Ricardo Carvalho, but were able to replace him with Brazilian international Alex. Man Utd have so many attacking options that Sir Alex Ferguson had the confidence to start Wayne Rooney on the bench at San Siro, and not use Carlos Tevez in either leg.
The Italian clubs, however, were struggling to get a team together as soon as a few players cried off injured. Roma were forced to field three players who were no more than 50 per cent fit, as well as move a left back, John Arne Riise, into the centre of defence. Juventus had to scrap their usual 4-4-2 formation and go 4-3-3 as they didn’t have enough midfielders. Even Inter, who have a huge squad by Italian standards, were considering using Esteban Cambiasso at centre-back at Old Trafford because they had no faith in Nelson Rivas.
Injuries
Nevertheless, we could spin this argument around and say that Roma and Juventus were ravaged by injuries during these ties. The Giallorossi were missing six first team players last night, fielded a 50 per cent fit Totti and Pizarro, lost Juan and Taddei to injury during the match, and moved Riise into the centre of defence after half-an-hour.
Juventus had their entire first-choice midfield out against Chelsea in Turin after losing Nedved early on, and could not even count on first team replacements Cristiano Zanetti and Paolo De Ceglie. As mentioned above, this forced them to play a 4-3-3. Inter can have no complaints in this department. As it worked out, they were only handicapped in the centre of defence.
Bad Luck
Last year, Italy lost to England because they were inferior on the pitch. This year, bad luck played a huge role in the 0-3 reverse. As I argued in my debate yesterday, if you analyse both games from Juventus-Chelsea, then it was the Bianconeri who probably deserved to go through.
Roma were simply perfect last night, despite their own horrific injury situation. Ahead at 1-0, they were denied a blatant penalty, while Julio Baptista missed two easy chances, including a sitter from six yards with 10 minutes to go that would have put them through. Only the lottery of a penalty shootout denied them.
Inter were deservedly eliminated, as they were second best at San Siro. However, they had their moments last night, and dominated spells of the first half. Ibrahimovic missed a host of chances, as did Dejan Stankovic, and the Nerazzurri hit the woodwork twice. If Lady Luck had been shining on Italian teams, they could have won two of these ties very easily.
Referees
This brings us nicely to the referees. There can be no denying that once again the key decisions in these last 16 ties went the way of the English clubs. Juventus were dominating against Chelsea when Chiellini was red carded on 70 minutes, despite clearly winning the ball in a challenge on Didier Drogba.
Roma were leading 1-0 when Marco Motta was pulled down by Gael Clichy, inside the area, right on the stroke of half-time. Ninety-nine referees out of 100 would have pointed to the spot, such was the scenario, but not Manuel Enrique. While on a Spanish subject, Real Madrid were humiliated 4-0 at Anfield, but Fernando Torres’ opener proceeded a blatant foul on Pepe, and Steven Gerrard’s penalty that made it two was awarded for a non-existent handball by Gabriel Heinze. The referee from this game? The same Frank De Bleeckere who controversially sent off Inter’s Marco Materazzi at this stage of the competition last term.
Calciopoli
Italian football, and all its needless politics, can only blame itself for this. Calciopoli badly damaged Serie A’s image, Juventus were set back five years, Milan also moved the wrong way, while financially the league and clubs suffered. Europe’s top players thought twice before moving to a league supposedly ridden by corruption, while the media machine in England milked the controversy to champion the Premier League and discredit Serie A at every opportunity. It is a long road to regain credibility.
Financial Power Of English Teams
Italian clubs just do not have the monetary muscle of the English clubs, who can offer higher transfer fees and wages for players. There is already so much money in the Premier League from television and marketing before we even talk about the rich foreign owners who are plasticizing the English game. The worldwide economic crisis may have some affect, but I strongly endorse Michel Platini’s plans to prevent clubs from “cheating” by spending money they do not make as businesses. The '6+5' proposition would also help to even up the playing field for the rest of Europe, who clearly cannot compete financially with England.
English Psychological Edge
Having gone through such a bad run of form – just one win in the last 12 knockout games against English opposition – it is clear that mentally Italy are suffering. The tie was there to be won for Roma against Arsenal, but they lacked that bit of belief to finish off the job. Even when they went ahead in the penalty shootout, Mirko Vucinic could not hold his nerve and sustain the lead. After a while, a psychological barrier starts to form, much like Inter’s constant European failures, and this is something that needs to broken.
Final Word
Italian football most certainly is not in crisis, and the league has come on leaps and bounds from last season. The Premier League Top 4 is stronger on paper than its Italian equivalents, but it most certainly did not deserve to win 3-0. Unlike last year, when England were streets ahead, injuries and bad luck were the key factors in the final scoreline this campaign, and as Francesco Totti said last night: “It just wasn’t meant to be.”
Juventus have the spine of a potentially dominant team and, if they can only make two or three top class signings, they are perhaps Italy’s best hope over the coming years. Inter are still a powerful machine, but need to add a bit of creative unpredictability to their squad. Milan have some rebuilding to do, but they still possess genuine world class players in Kaka and Pato, and their European pedigree is never in doubt. Perhaps a problem in Serie A is that its quality is spread too thinly. You could pick out two or three players from every top half team who would be good enough for Inter, Milan or Juventus. In the Premier League, you would be lucky to find five players in the whole championship capable of making the Man Utd, Liverpool, Arsenal, or Chelsea substitutes bench.
There is likely to be a lot of disappointment around the peninsula following this week’s results, but there are some positives to take. Marcello Lippi should be pleased with the performances of a host of promising youngsters. Marco Motta was one of the players of the last 16 at right back, Inter played with two 18-year-old Italians in Davide Santon and Mario Balotelli, while Claudio Marchisio and, in particular, Sebastian Giovinco, impressed for Juventus. These players, despite their tender years, all proved themselves to be good enough for this level of football. The English teams, overloaded with foreigners, cannot point to any young English players (barring Theo Walcott) who are coming through and shining at this level.
Congratulations to the Premier League, but Serie A is not in crisis.
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