<p>Lazio inflicted another defeat on Serie A champions Inter with coach Rafael Benitez’s position becoming weaker and weaker with every passing week. The victory against Parma in the previous round was by a big score raising hope the Nerazzurri will be back on the right track yet many failed to note the Ducali are having a poor season and are in the bottom half of the table.</p>
<p>Injuries cannot continue to be used as an excuse as the form of certain key players like Wesley Sneijder has been quite disappointing this season. The extended World Cup campaign has had a negative effect on certain players, in particular Sneijder who is a shadow of the player who helped the Nerazzurri achieve a historic treble last season. Inter’s solid defensive line has struggled this season due to injuries but also due to the struggles of Lucio and Maicon. The biggest blow came when Walter Samuel was ruled out for the reason of the season due to his horrific injury. This certainly qualifies as a massive blow for the Nerazzurri yet this offered a window of opportunity for coach Benitez to either introduce Davide Santon as a starter on the flanks and moving Cristian Chivu to a central role in the back-line. One other option would be to have captain Javier Zanetti play as a full-back too while starting Ivan Cordoba in the back as a partner of Lucio.</p>
<p>Benitez has struggled to shape this team based on his strategy and has not been able to get the best out of the squad available at his disposal. Once again, it must be said that injuries have negatively affected the Nerazzurri but other factors have played a role as well. Benitez is not as good as former coach Jose Mourinho when it comes to motivating players, manipulating a situation to get the best out of his players and preparing his teams for certain matches. Inter have become too dependent on Samuel Eto’o and appear toothless whenever he is having an off night or suspended, as was the case for the Lazio clash.</p>
<p>Benitez’s approach does not inspire confidence and one can tell the players are not playing with the same swagger as last season under Mourinho. There are complaints about injuries, there is the excuse of bad luck, there is talk of opponents scoring from their limited opportunities and so forth. Rarely do champions resort to unconvincing or weak excuses to justify a tough spell in terms of results. The loss of Walter Samuel has been a major blow but that cannot excuse the poor form of their other starters. Other teams have in recent seasons endured a plethora of injuries but were able to cope with such emergencies and the Nerazzurri must do better considering they have been regarded as one of the deeper teams in Serie A.</p>
<p>Benitez now has the FIFA Club World Cup to redeem himself but if he cannot bring back the trophy to Italy then the Spaniard will likely be on his way out as the tifosi have not warmed up to his hiring. Fate has it that rivals Juventus were linked with Benitez during the summer yet he ended up with the Nerazzurri. Ironically at this stage, the Bianconeri appear to be building towards the future and improving while the Nerazzurri continue to struggle, have looked both slower and void of ideas when attacking opponents as well as the fact they are already seven points behind city rivals Milan.</p>
<p>The match against Werder Bremen in the Champions League will serve as a test for Benitez. While qualification to the Round of 16 has been secured, beating the worst team in the group will provide a massive boost to the team’s morale. Benitez is unlikely to rest players since first place in the group is on the line and this could make a big difference in terms of Inter’s next opponent in the elimination round. Only positive results will save Benitez’s job but it has become clear that failing to win the Club World Cup will usher a change in the coaching staff at Inter.</p>
<p><a href="http:\/\/polldaddy.com/poll/4193086/">Will Rafa Benitez survive at Inter?</a><span style="font-size:9px"><a href="http:\/\/polldaddy.com/features-surveys/">online survey</a></span></p>


Rafael Benitez running out of time at Inter - World Soccer Talk

Rafael Benitez running out of time at Inter

<div style="float: right;margin-left: 5px"><a href="http:\/\/view.picapp.com/pictures.photo/entertainment/roma-supporters-wave-flags/image/10265948?term=Champions+League" target="_blank"><div><figure class="image"></figure></div></a></div>
<p>Finally some positive news for Serie A and Italian football in general, this midweek, while some sides played in the Coppa Italia, Inter Milan, AC Milan, and Roma played and won in the Champions League. It was the penultimate matchday of the group stages, and although Roma haven’t mathematically qualified yet, AC Milan have mathematically qualified in second place (behind Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid), and Inter Milan have mathematically qualified, and they have a chance to fight for first place in the group with Tottenham Hotspur. All we can hope for now is that Roma manage to qualify for the knockout round, Inter qualify in first place, and that the Italian teams in the Europa League do just as well.</p>
<p>Roma defeated Bayern Munich at the Stadio Olimpico 3-2, in a fantastic comeback. The giallorossi went two down after some defensive mistakes, allowing Gomez to net a double in the first half, but they picked it up in the second half. Borriello clinically finished from the ground to give Roma some hope, and then De Rossi netted a goal to tie up the score at 2-2. Then in the 84th minute Roma were awarded a penalty, and the legendary captain Francesco stepped up and put it barely past Kraft’s fingertips, for an epic winner.</p>
<p>But Ranieri’s side hasn’t qualified yet, next matchday they’ll travel to Romania and face CFR Cluj while Bayern Munich faces FC Basel at home. All that Roma need to do to qualify is either get a draw or a win against Cluj, and that way they’ve mathematically qualified along with Bayern to the knockout rounds of the Champions League.</p>
<div style="float: left;margin-right: 5px"><a href="http:\/\/view.picapp.com/pictures.photo/entertainment/milan-ibrahimovic-reacts/image/10266140?term=AC+Milan" target="_blank"><div><figure class="image"><img loading="lazy" class="alignleft" style="border: 0px initial initial" src="https:\/\/ds-images.bolavip.com/news/image?src=https:\/\/images.worldsoccertalk.com/webp/WST_20101125_WST_3360_milan-ibrahimovic-reacts.webp&amp;width=300&amp;height=200" border="0" alt="AC Milan&apos;s Zlatan Ibrahimovic (L) reacts with team-mate Ignazio Abate after opening the score in their Champions League Group G soccer match against AJ Auxerre at Abbe Deschamps stadium in Auxerre November 23, 2010. REUTERS/Charles Platiau (FRANCE - Tags: SPORT SOCCER)" width="300" height="200"></figure></div></a></div>
<p>AC Milan on the other hand have mathematically qualified after their 2-0 win away against Auxerre. Zlatan Ibrahimovic who provided another wonderful goal, a first time rocket which flew into the back of the French side’s net. Ronaldinho scored the second in the final minutes of the match, the Brazilian waltzed through the penalty box before he finally slipped a curling ball onto the far post and in.</p>
<p>With this win AC Milan have qualified for the next round, and the result of their next fixture against Ajax doesn’t really matter. It’s just a shame that Allegri’s side was unable to challenge Real Madrid for first place in the group, but as long as they do well in the knockout stages, I’m sure rossoneri fans won’t mind that much.</p>
<p>The match which took place today was at the San Siro, Inter Milan vs. Twente. It ended 1-0 for Rafa Benitez’s side which finally seems to have played some decent attacking football. Inter still had to play a relatively weakened side due to the&nbsp;injuries&nbsp;which have been plaguing the side for quite some time now, but they pressed Twente high up the field and created many opportunities to score. It was Esteban Cambiasso who scored the goal, Sneijder had a free kick deflected, and the ball fell perfectly for the Argentine to volley into the back of the net. This performance certainly showed signs of revival from a side which looked lifeless these past few weeks in the Serie A. We’ll just have to see if Benitez can continue to get this motivation from his players this weekend against Parma.</p>
<p>Right now Inter Milan and Tottenham are tied at the top of the group with 10 points, and it’s the English side which is ahead with a goal difference of +7, while Inter’s is just +4. Both Inter and Tottenham are travelling away next Champions League matchday, Inter will face Werder Bremen while Tottenham face Twente, and it seems like Inter have an easier match to win against the German team which only has two points and is at the bottom of the group table. So can Benitez inspire his men again enough to get a win, and hopefully steal the first place from Tottenham? I don’t think so, and in my opinion Inter will finish second, but make sure to share your thoughts by commenting below!</p>
<p><em>A great display from all three Italian sides, and hopefully this season not only will we have three teams in the knockout stages, but maybe more than just one of them will progress! What are your thoughts regarding the Champions League games? Comment below!</em></p>


ALL POSTS TAGGED "inter milan" - Page 11

Inter Milan

Rafael Benitez running out of time at Inter

AC Milan

All Italian Sides Win In Champions League