The End of an Era?

It's my first blog in over a month, and in typical me style, it's not going to be a thrilling, happy one to say the least. Actually, it's going to be one that takes a rather morose note, because the end of an era might have truly come - as of a couple of days ago. For Italian football, at least. Never have I witnessed such a disastrous campaign in the Champions League and the UEFA Cup combined, to the extent that Italy's only representative in any European competition is now Udinese, And even they, I believe, will soon witness the end of their (honourable) run in Europe, as they will face Zenit St. Petersburg, who are the defending champions, in the last 16 of the UEFA Cup, despite winning 2-0 yesterday.

When the draws for the Champions League were made in December, Inter boss Jose Mourinho stated that his team deserved the best as a punishment for finishing 2nd in the weakest group of all in the initial stage of the Champions League. And he got what he asked for, for his side drew Manchester United in the last 16. A few years back, I wouldn't have complained one bit because United were never really European challengers, just like Inter, but these last few years it has been a different story - in the last two years, they've reached a semi-final and won the competition. And, just for the record, this is possibly the best United side of all time that Inter had to face. Far from easy, I would say, and in fact, I feared for the worst from the outset. My fears were correct - Inter went on to lose 2-0 overall, although they were unlucky to say the least after playing well at Old Trafford and hitting the woodwork twice.

Juventus also showed that they lacked a certain European pedigree when they lost out to Chelsea. There's no doubt in my mind that injuries almost certainly played a big part in Juve's defeat to the Blues, and that they too were unlucky to not score at Stamford Bridge; but they eventually lost out to a Chelsea side that has looked reinvented under Guus Hiddink. I believe that had Big Phil Scolari still been there, Chelsea might have been sent crashing out of the competition, but alas - it was not to be. The returning Michael Essien's goal was the sucker punch for the Old Lady, as with that goal, they really needed to go out and chase the game down in order to progress. Over and above that, Chiellini's red card was harshly given after he got the ball before the player, something which disadvantaged Juve further. Personally, I thought that Belletti's handling of the ball in the box was more worthy of a booking - be it yellow or red - rather than Chiellini's tackle.

It was then left for Roma to pick up the bits and restore some of Italy's pride, and even though they too didn't manage, they were the closest to progressing from the Italian trio. Managing to score early against Arsenal due to Juan's goal, i Lupi could and should have had more goals to their name, but didn't manage. Extra time - which would have been fatal for the Capital side had it conceded a goal, as then Arsenal would have had the away goal and Roma would have had to score two to win - couldn't separate the two sides, and so it came down to the penalty shootout. Surprisingly, the people who normally score their penalties were the ones who initially missed - Eduardo and Vucinic. The latter in particular needs to be taught something about penalties from youth level, I believe, for his strike was the poorest penalty I have ever seen in my life. Ultimately, Roma lost the tie after Max Tonetto skied the last shot well over the bar, en route to Venus. However, yet again, credit must be given to Roma, who managed to outrun and outshine the Gunners despite having an injury-ravaged squad.

Which brings me to my initial question - is this the end of an era for Italy? I believe that disappointment obviously reigns supreme at the moment, but the Italian era is not yet over. It is a fact that the Premier League trounced Serie A 3-0, but it is also a fact that in each of these games, all Premier League sides were run mightily close by their Italian counterparts. In Inter's case, losing 2-0 to the World, European and Premiership champions isn't shameful in the least, especially after creating a multitude of chances that were begging to be converted. The English media might be saying that United dominated the nerazzurri, but witnessing the game from an Italian perspective certain derives different answers. Juventus and Roma, on the other hand, also firmly give it their all and were ultimately just unlucky at the end of the day - be it with injuries, decisions given against them or not converting their chances. It is clear that these sides just need one or two more quality signings to compete with the best. So yes, it might have been 3-0 to the Premier League, but it could have just as easily been 3-0 to Serie A.

Also, something that might be worth noting is that the Italian culture is slowly changing and evolving, as more and more teams - barring Milan, generally - are employing youthful players on the pitch. Juventus in particular have been advocators of this approach, as can be seen through exciting talents such as De Ceglie, Giovinco and Chiellini; and sides such as Inter - with Santon and Balotelli in particular - and Roma - with established talents from their own youth system, like De Rossi and Aquilani - are following suit. This wasn't the case until a few years ago. On the other hand, the Premier League is now so money-orientated that teams are simply buying the best players or talents from anywhere around the globe in order to try and attain instant success. One doesn't have to look further than Manchester City for such an example. Hence, at the end of the day, such an era might be coming, or has come, to a close; but a new, bright one is almost certainly on the horizon if that's the case.

God Bless You all!
Matti