After
drawing with the 10th place team on Sunday, this week we face the 19th place
team, Palermo. We have a lot in common with Palermo. Both clubs have crazy
owners. And both clubs are in the midst of being sold to new crazy owners right
now. But one team is in seventh, vying for a European spot, and the other is
one foot in Serie B for next season. One club is waiting for a questionable
Chinese businessman with a lot of loans to take them over, the other is closing
their deal with an eccentric American. So I don’t know who will win, but I do
know that one of these things is not like the other.
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| Worlds apart... new Milan and Palermo owners |
Palermo
lost 1-3 to Cagliari at home last week, their fourth loss in a row. For this
most recent loss, manager Diego Lopez lined up Fulignati; Gonzalez, Goldaniga,
Vitiello, Chochev, Henrique, Gazzi, Pezzella, Rispoli, Nestoroski, and
Trajkovski. Lopez will be missing Silva and Rjkovic to injury, as well as Gazzi
to suspension. However, he got some good news in that Diamanti appealed his two
match suspension and it was overturned, so he will be available to face Milan.
Montella
still has injury worries, even if they are getting less in number every day.
Suso returned to training this week. But on the flip side, Montolivo is also
back in training. One of these things is not like the other. Bonaventura,
Abate, and Bertolacci are out. But none of these should be excuses against the
19th place team. However, if you saw last week’s match, you’ll know that there’s
no excuse anyway.
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| Will be great to have him back |
If the
table advantage isn’t enough, being the home side for this one should give us
an advantage. But Palermo have one advantage: Milan. And we are our own worst
enemy. People off the pitch will be focused on the 3,429th closing date of this
Friday, wondering if it will happen at all and what will happen. And if not
that, the Derby on Saturday. But if Montella has anything left in his bag of
tricks, perhaps he’ll find enough mentality for the guys to play a proper match
and defeat the team with the new American owner. Because if he can’t, “one of
these things is not like the other” could be very, very bad for us.
This post inspired by the music of
the Foo Fighters’ “The Pretender”
Milan vs. Palermo
Sunday, April 9 •
15:00 CST (9am EDT)
This match will NOT
be shown LIVE in the U.S. (can be streamed on BeIN Sports 6)