These are days in which the ball rolls very little and, if anything, there is talk of horrendous news. The ultras issue is well known and taints our football, in this specific case the Inter and Milan worlds. With respect to the whole matter there are two types of observers:
1) Those who turn everything into cloying issues of cheering (sigh).
2) Those able to understand that infiltration is a devastating problem for our football (and not just football).
We want seconds again.
The messes that have emerged in recent days have the merit of having uncovered a situation that was partially known (there are those who exploit the curve to mind their own business) but not in terms of dimensions (they are only the tip of an iceberg which contemplates very serious criminal realities more dangerous). Compared to this evidence, the operation of the other day is, obviously, blessed. This thing is understood by any “healthy” fan, that is, all those who are interested in the good name of their team and do not expect hundreds of tickets, but – think of you – only theirs (among other things, paying a lot for it).
Here, the “healthy” fan hopes that whoever is carrying out the Milanese investigation will be able to do the utmost cleanliness, because it is unacceptable to have to spend time talking about crimes instead of tactics, victories, defeats, football in general.
Now, the question that interests many is: do the companies involved have any kind of responsibility? And the members? In an ideal world – not that of Italian football – it is clear that we should say no to any kind of “negotiation” and, therefore, it is surprising to read some passages of the investigation.
Then it is right to demand that something be done “upstream” (read State) to eradicate a common malaise, that of clubs – all clubs – forced to come to terms with various fixers, to avoid worse problems.
In the recent past Lazio (read Lotito) and Juventus (read Agnelli) have tried to solve the problem with personal and certainly courageous actions. Well, one had to live with a personal escort, the other had to face very uncomfortable retaliations triggered by his own ultras.
Moral? The operation of the other day is blessed because – hopefully – it will really allow us to eliminate a bad habit that has become unbearable, that of football having become a “means” for committing filth.
End of the ambaradan, let’s move on to the ball.
– We wrote it last week, we reiterate it this week: Thiago Motta has very clear ideas. To avoid boring, let’s tell you something else: Vlahovic is not strong, he is very strong. There are those who attack him for any reason and, of course, he earns an exaggeration, but those who brand him as “unsuitable” risk having to regret it bitterly.
– Teased by owner De Laurentiis (“let’s not say anything…”) Antonio Conte laughs and avoids any kind of approach to the scudetto for his Napoli. It’s good, any wise member avoids raising expectations publicly, especially after six games. But then there is “the changing room”. Here, in there Antonio Conte is certainly raising his ambitions: because he has seen how much his group is worth, because he knows that no one will be able to kill the championship this year, because an Antonio Conte who doesn’t fight to win… has yet to be born.
– Excellent Inter in the Champions League: the turnover works, the goal remains clean and comforting responses arrive from Taremi (two assists and a goal, the best) and Arnautovic (game of great commitment). Inzaghi knows it: giving value to all the members of the squad is the only way to get to the end of all competitions.
– Milan still with zero points in Europe, but there is a big difference between the defeat against Liverpool and that of Leverkusen: yesterday the Rossoneri played a game of substance, courageous and would have deserved a draw. Zero points in the standings? The new Champions League formula allows for no drama.