Last night’s friendly vs. Greek champions Olympiacos was
disappointing on so many levels. The 3-0 defeat seemed to extinguish any
glimmers of hope amongst fans, not just because of the scoreline, but also the
poor level of play. Even for those with low expectations, I think it was
disappointing. But at the end of the day, it was just a friendly. And at least
they won both of their friendlies prior to this against the Lega Pro sides,
even if the wins were maybe not that convincing. You also have to factor in jet
lag, the International players who just arrived, missing both De Jong (still on
vacation after the World Cup) and Montolivo (injured,) and their intense
schedule of events since crossing the Atlantic. I definitely don’t think this
should be viewed as an accurate measurement of how the team will play this
season. But still, it does raise more questions than answers….
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| The doomed starting eleven |
How much did jet lag and weariness from travel factor in?
How much did their intense schedule and traveling from NY to
Toronto factor in? (Inzaghi said they got in at 2am)
How much did they miss most of the Internationals? (De
Sciglio & Honda both got some minutes because Inzaghi said they were low in
numbers in the squad.)
Do you think that the squad simply anticipated the pitch
invaders late in the match and were too nervous, not knowing when they would
arrive?
How much of our disappointment is based on our expectations?
How many of us assumed that Pippo would somehow transform
this team into winners in the two weeks he’s had with them to train?
Do you think the players were simply visually impaired from
the flashes of all of the selfies they had to take with the fans?
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| When in doubt, blame the fans |
Were Olympiacos simply more prepared?
What effect has the change in coaches and all of the drama
surrounding it had on this squad?
Do you think the players were just confused as to where they
were, given the official AC Milan account’s use of #weareinamerica as a
hashtag?
How do you think playing so many of the young players
factored into the defeat?
How many people truly think this was an accurate measure of
how the squad will play?
Do you think Galliani will use this as inspiration to get
his “work” done in the mercato?
Do you think Inzaghi was trying to use this game as leverage
for more “gifts” in the transfer market?
Who is ready for Manchester City on Sunday?
Which is worse: Pippo’s 3-0 loss to Greek champions Olympiacos
while traveling, or Allegri’s 3-2 Juventus loss to an amateur side at home?
If you have any answers to the above questions, or more
questions of your own, please feel free to use the comment section accordingly.
This post was inspired by my still unfinished paint job and also by
awful streams
Our next match is
Guinness ICC Tournament
Manchester City vs. Milan
Sunday, July 27 • 4:00pm EDT
This match will be shown LIVE in the US on Fox Sports 1