So with the controversy
over Cutrone’s handball on Sunday still going strong, we get to face
off against those same angry birds again tomorrow. Only this time, it’s the
Coppa Italia semifinal, first leg, and this time I honestly don’t care about
the result. It’s not just because it’s a midweek game and I’ll be racing home
from work just to try to catch part of it. It’s just that for the rebuilding
process, focusing on the league and earning a European spot that way is a much
more productive goal at this point than hoping that all of the ref calls go our
way for a measly Europa League spot from the Coppa Italia. So even if Lazio are
certainly not going to be so nonchalant, I’m fine just relaxing and enjoying
the match.
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| We got what we needed, sorry if football isn't always fair |
Inzaghi was very angry about Cutrone’s goal, and he’s had
plenty of ref calls to be angry about this season. I honestly can’t blame him. I
expect that he and his team will turn that anger into a fierce performance, one
we are not likely to be on the positive side of. Plus, Immobile is back, and he
is Milan’s personal curse. So all
of those goals we expected on Sunday are likely to come tomorrow.
Milan are riding high on the wave of a successful
performance or two or three. With or without the help of the referee, Sunday’s
match was a moral victory… wait, that’s morale victory… or victory for morale…
you get the point. I hope that the players are able to focus and at least put
up a good fight tomorrow. Especially since Kalinic is fit, and we know he’ll
start even when his grandkids are more fit and able to score. So that’s two
strikes against us – the return of both Immobile and Kalinic. But who cares? We
got the three points in the league, that’s what we needed most. We have to go
to the Stadio Olimpico next month and play them again in their house, the odds
of us pulling off wins in both legs are very much stacked against us anyway.
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| If you think you were screwed over by Milan, talk to your brother |
Winning this match would be brilliant to keep up the
positive mentality that has been building and increase the momentum for the
league and for the upcoming Europa League tests we’ll face. But I don’t feel
like a loss would set us back much, either. So, as would obviously happen in
real life when a giant, angry eagle was flying straight at you with his talons
flexed because you stole one of its eggs or something, let’s just shrug our
shoulders and say “Hey.”
This post inspired by the music of Liam
Lynch’s “United States of Whatever”
Coppa Italia Semifinals Leg 1
Milan vs. Lazio
Wednesday, January
31 • 20:45 CET (2:45pm EST)
This match will be
shown on GOL TV in the U.S.
Stay tuned for an all new Milan Obsession Podcast!
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