Italian Football 
/ Ben Lyttleton / 21 March 2011 / 1 Comments 
Walking the walk after being dismissed against Bari but can his goals help Milan to the title over the next few weeks?
"Ibrahimovic has a reputation in England for bottling big games and
disappearing against Premier League opposition, but his supporters have
claimed it's more to do with a seasonal dip in form around February-March,
which happens to coincide with the Champions League knock-out rounds."
He's the Marmite of European football in that you either love him or hate him. Zlatan Ibrahimovic is a bit of an enigma and his performances over the next few weeks could decide where the Serie A title ends up.
How do you solve a problem like Zlatan Ibrahimovic? That's the problem for Milan coach Max Allegri, who was without his totemic striker for the defeat at Palermo, a loss which narrowed the gap at the top of Serie A to two points. Milan are now winless in three and will miss Ibrahimovic, who was sent off against Bari last week, for two more matches: against Inter, his former club, in a fortnight, and Fiorentina.
These are tense times at Milan, with the derby against Inter coming on the back of a European exit at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur and, just as galling, Inter's dramatic success over Bayern Munich. Astonishingly, considering the club's disarray under Rafa Benitez, Inter are still on to repeat the treble success of last season. The revitalised Inter are ([2.32]) to win the Coppa Italia, and ([9.4]) for the Champions League.
Allegri has tried to talk down the importance of the Inter game, the first game back after the international break, but Milan have been top for 19 weeks and will slip back to second if Inter win. Inter have now come in to [2.4] to retain the Scudetto while Milan are [2.34].
Of more pressing concern to the Milanisti is what kind of form Ibrahimovic will be in when he returns from his suspension. He was singled out for blame after the 0-0 draw against Spurs, with La Stampa writing: "Ibra's allergy is to the climate in the cups, now there is proof. That match would have had a different outcome if there had been the slightest trace of the Swede who has been so decisive in the league."
Ibrahimovic has a reputation in England for bottling big games and disappearing against Premier League opposition, but his supporters have claimed it's more to do with a seasonal dip in form around February-March, which happens to coincide with the Champions League knock-out rounds. Is this true? It happened in 2007-08, when his season total for Inter was 22 goals, but his February-March tally was two in nine (including two goalless performances against Liverpool.)
In 2008-09, he scored 29 goals, with six in nine in those months (though none against Manchester United); and last season, it was a healthy seven in ten (including two against Arsenal). This year, it's down to one in nine. That's two poor and two decent periods out of four. So to suggest that a climatic dip is a regular occurrence is simply revising history.
Alex Pato is already an injury doubt for the Inter game, which reduces Allegri's options further. But though the mood of tension at Milan is palpable and has been ever since Leonardo took over as coach and the prospect of him overturning his former club became increasingly realistic there are reasons for optimism.
One, Milan has a slightly easier run-in than Inter, who have to play at Roma and Napoli in May; Milan go to Roma and Udinese, but also play mid-table sides Bologna and Calgliari, and struggling Brescia. Then there is Zlatan's historical form in May: the Swede has not won the last four league titles he's competed in for nothing: at Inter in 2009, he scored five goals in the last four games of the season; in 2008, two on the last day (after missing the previous seven weeks); and in 2007, four in his last six games.
In a recent interview with a Dutch magazine, Ibrahimovic was asked how good he thought he was: "A great player? No, that's not me," he said. "I'm a good
goalscorer. A good striker. But I have had games in which I was totally invisible and yet still scored. That's what I do, but great players will never do that. They carry the team, they allow others to play better and make the team better. Someone like Zidane, Bergkamp or Jari Litmanen."
Two of those three players have now retired and Litmanen, now 40, has been training with Helsinki side HJK. With time running out on Milan's title challenge and Inter hard on their heels, they need Ibrahimovic to steer them over the finishing-line. He will have six games left in which to do it. And then maybe he can call himself a great player.
Udinese are bidding for a Champions League place but can struggling Catania disrupt their form? Meanwhile, Milan head to Palermo in search of a vital three points. Dave Farrar selects the best bets....
Juventus are running the risk of letting the unthinkable happen and finishing in the bottom half of the table. This weekend they travel to Cesena and there are good reasons to think any sort of a rebuilding exercise won't be...
Juve are out of form but Milan face a tough task if they are to overcome their old rivals, says Dave Farrar. Meanwhile, can the capped crusader overcome Lazio? And make sure you watch Udinese....
No comments:
Post a Comment