The Prince of Inter Milan starts with Brother Xiaosa

Chapter 129 The first goal of the World Cup Qualifiers

"The new blue and black core gradually made Inter Milan forget about Ibrahimovic, and AC Milan's number one nemesis was born!"

"Four strong supports helped Inter Milan win, and Mourinho is aiming for the Champions League trophy!"

"The Rossoneri were brutally 'massacred', who can stop Inter Milan?"

……

After the Milan derby ended, major mainstream media rushed to report on it.

I can't wait to bring the Nerazzurri led by Mourinho to the altar in one fell swoop.

It is self-evident as to whether they really think so, or if they have ulterior motives for flattering and killing.

Returning to the team, the Portuguese did not bother to find some people to communicate privately.

It's enough to say something once. If you don't listen to it, there's nothing you can do about it.

At the end of the second round of Serie A, Inter Milan, which has won two games, has six points with Juventus, Sampdoria, Genoa and Lazio, and is temporarily at the top of the list with only a goal difference.

Next will be the national team match day, and the international players in the Nerazzurri team have reported to their respective national teams.

Leo, Balotelli and David Thornton, three young players under the age of 20, were actually recruited by Lippi to join the Azzurri.

“Boss, do you think we can play?
  World Cup qualifiers! Playing for the national team, I didn’t expect this day to come so soon! "

Balotelli and Leo may not understand Thornton's mood, and neither of them spoke.

After a while, Leo said:

"This time we are going to see the world. Coach Lippi may not give us a chance to play."

"No way, haven't we all been there before?"

Yes, not only Leo, but Thornton has also played for the national team before, but they were all friendly matches.

Leo shook his head.

"Can friendly matches and world qualifiers be the same?"

On the contrary, Balotelli was selected for the first time this time. The main reason was his skin color rather than personal ability.

After a short training together, the silver fox Lippi led the Italian team to Georgia.

On September 9, Group 5 of the European World Cup qualifying competition began in Tbilisi.

Lippi named as many as five Juventus players in the starting lineup.

As predicted by the media and fans before the game, Marchionne played for the national team for the first time since September 2006, appearing at the right midfielder position, and Camoranesi switched to the left.

De Rossi, who scored twice in the last meeting between the two teams, was suspended, leaving Palombo to take over.

Criscito overtook Grosso to serve as the starting left back, with Giuseppe Rossi and Iaquinta forming a forward partnership.

Leo and the others were all sitting on the bench.

Georgia remained undefeated at home in this qualifying round. Kaladze, who had not played a formal game for half a year after knee surgery, returned from injury to lead the defense. Starting forward Ananidze is only 16 years old.

Their head coach Cooper is also an old acquaintance of Serie A. He also coached Inter Milan for two and a half years from July 01 to October 7.

After the game started, Georgia, playing at home, chose to take the initiative, while Italy defended and counterattacked.

In the fifth minute, Chiellini made a huge clearance and Camoranesi fell to the ground in the opponent's penalty area. The referee signaled for the game to continue.

Two minutes later, Italy got a chance to counterattack. Rossi distributed the ball to the left side of the penalty area, but Iaquinta slipped and fell to the ground while picking up the ball, missing the perfect single opportunity.

Leo:......

In his opinion, even though this game was an away game, Italy should win the game overwhelmingly.

Putting aside everything else, the difference in strength of the players on the two teams is quite obvious.

Except for Kaladze, it may be difficult for Georgia to find anyone who has the ability to start in Serie A among the rest of the team.

It is such an opponent, but Italy's offense is constipated, and only its defense is relatively solid.

The Georgian midfielder passed the ball directly, and Dvalishvili formed a single goal, but the linesman had already raised the flag and was ruled offside.

Then Cannavaro made a mistake in the clearance, and Georgia's No. 10 Konya's right-footed shot near the penalty area line missed the right side of the goal post.

In the ninth minute, Pirlo's cross from the right hit the Georgia defender, but the referee refused to award a penalty kick.

Iaquinta retreated to the center to get the ball. After clever cooperation with Marchionne, he took the ball from the left. Camoranesi's header from the back of the penalty area went slightly wide.

Then Marchionne made a diagonal pass from the right, and Camoranesi's shot missed again.

Georgia goalkeeper Lomaia attacked and knocked down Camoranesi without touching the ball at all, and the referee did not say anything.

In other people's home court, there is nothing you can do if you suffer a little loss in penalties.

After all, the painful experience of the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan is still fresh in our minds.

Just one minute later, Iaquinta passed the ball straight to Rossi from the center, but Georgia goalkeeper Lomea scooped the ball out first.

Twenty minutes later, the Azzurri, playing away from home, seemed to finally be in the game.

Pirlo took a corner kick from the left. Although Chiellini barely touched the ball under the interference of the defensive player, his shot missed the right side of the goal post.

Leo sat on the bench and looked at the head coach from time to time.

Lippi sat there with a very calm expression.

Camorane broke through from the wing and cut in to hit the goal over the crossbar.

In the 22nd minute, Dvaishvili's long shot was confiscated by Buffon. Soon after, Georgia captain Kaladze made a fatal mistake in defense, but Iaquinta failed to seize the God-given opportunity and shot a shot into the stands.

Camoranesi took a free kick from the right. Chiellini forced his way into the crowd and headed the ball towards the goal, but the ball failed to reach the goal and was caught by the Georgia goalkeeper.

Until the end of the first half, the Italian team continued to attack but still failed to break the deadlock on the field.

The two sides entered the halftime break with a score of zero to zero.

Leo, Thornton and Balotelli were left on the court to warm up.

"Can we play in the second half?"

"Maybe."

In the second half, the two sides changed sides and fought again, and neither side made any substitutions during the halftime break.

Iaquinta intercepted the ball in the frontcourt and then split the ball. Criscito passed by from the left and broke into the penalty area!
  The Italian left-back fell to the ground after contact with Kaladze, but the referee refused to award a penalty!

Slow motion showed that Kaladze was indeed suspected of foul play.

Criscito, who was unconvinced, went forward to protest to the referee and almost received a second yellow card. Fortunately, Ma Xin only gave a verbal warning.

In the 60th minute, Lippi finally couldn't wait any longer. He replaced Marchionne with Leo and Balotelli replaced Giuseppe Rossi.

Italy's formation remains unchanged, with Leo returning to the left midfield position for a long time.

On the contrary, the most active Thornton could only continue to wait for opportunities on the bench.

Criscito intercepted the sideline ball from the opposite side on the left and knocked it to Leo. Leo passed the ball across the middle and immediately turned around and moved forward!
  After getting rid of the opponent's full-back, his teammate's pass just arrived!

Leo couldn't help but turn his head and glance at Pirlo who was passing the ball to him. How can I put it, the midfield master's pass felt different when he caught it!
  Those teammates at Inter Milan must have felt the same way when they received my pass, right? Tsk tsk.

Without stopping, Leo sent an instep cross from the left side of the penalty area!

After a header from Iaquinta, Balotelli pushed past the defender at the far post and shot from close range!
  One to zero!

Italy finally broke the deadlock in the 65th minute!

Balotelli, who represented the Italian national team for the first time, scored his first goal for the national team shortly after coming off the bench!

Balotelli didn't seem very excited, he just smiled lightly and hugged Leo.

Then he looked towards the bench intentionally or unintentionally, and after meeting Rossi's eyes, he raised his chin.

I mean, as a demo, are you worthy of competing with me for a position? Apart from being more handsome than me, in what way are you better than me?

Giuseppe Rossi:? ? ?

A few minutes later, Leo made a 45-degree cross from the left, and Iaquinta volleyed over the crossbar.

"This ball was passed to me..."

Balotelli stood with his hands on his hips and glared at Iaquinta who stole his chance to shoot.

When Zambrotta made a clearance, he raised his foot too high and kicked the opponent's player Dvanishvili in the head.

The referee did not take out the card and just gave Georgia a well-positioned free kick.

Lamaze took a free kick from the left, and Ananidze jumped in front of the goal!
  Buffon threw the ball in the wrong direction but subconsciously blocked it with his legs. The assistant referee signaled that the Georgian player was offside.

Pirlo passed the ball over the top, Iaquinta protected the ball from the edge of the penalty area and knocked it horizontally. Leo received the ball and drove into the left side of the penalty area!
  Kaladze was far away and he was staring at Balotelli on the right. Only one Kizanishvili rushed towards Leo.

A slight dunk, and then Leo's very precise and powerful volley hit the far upper corner of the goal!
  Two to zero!
  Leo's goal helped the Azzurri expand their lead!
  This goal is also Leo's first official match goal in the national team.

There was still no emotion or anger on Italian coach Lippi's face on the sidelines. To him, the team's two-goal lead seemed no different from when the situation was anxious before.

In the 75th minute, David Thornton replaced Criscito who had a yellow card.

All three young players from Inter Milan appeared on the stage!
  Pirlo distributed the ball, and Thornton cooperated with Leo on the left side in a tacit pass. In the end, Leo passed the high ball into the penalty area!

Kaladze wanted to get a header before the Italian striker was fighting for the top. Near the penalty spot, the Georgian captain jumped high and headed the ball towards the top!
  However, the ball did not clear the baseline as he wanted, but went straight into the goal!

Own goals! Three to zero!
  Kaladze used a wonderful header to help Italy seal the victory!

Lippi finally smiled. He covered his mouth and said something to his assistant Gaidin, who nodded repeatedly.

"If you get a chance to play, don't relax and give your best performance!

The World Cup is very close, use your performance to conquer Lippi's old talent!

I think you can't be satisfied just by being selected for the World Cup squad. You can definitely compete for Italy's main force or even the core of the offense. I believe you have the strength! "

Leo remembered Raiola's previous instructions to him on the court.

The agent is right, just being selected for the national team is not his goal for Leo.

In the 88th minute of the game, Zambrotta broke through with the ball from the right and made a cross.

Iaquinta's powerful attack was saved by the Georgia goalkeeper.

Leo got the ball at the front of the penalty area, and both Balotelli and Iaquinta repeatedly crossed the penalty area waiting for his pass.

The opponent's defender was distracted, and Leo seized the opportunity to slash to the ground!

Georgia goalkeeper Lomaia didn't get down fast enough and fell to the ground to make a save but failed to touch the ball!

Four to zero!
  Balotelli scored twice and scored an own goal, and Balotelli's goal was also initiated by Leo's excellent cross.

It can be said that Leo helped Italy beat Georgia 4-0 in an away game!

(End of this chapter)