The Prince of Inter Milan starts with Brother Xiaosa

Chapter 268 Winning the Championship Easily (Thanks to my book friend for the reward that made me laugh when I was a kid!)

"You should have a good rest in this game. In three days there will be the Italian Cup final, followed by the Champions League..."

Leo shook his head, he had his own ideas.

Fighting continuously is indeed very stressful, because it is not only physically tiring, but also mentally tiring.

But Leo has never been afraid of challenges, and it doesn't mean he has to play the whole game.

"How about just playing half-time and substituting me after forty-five minutes?"

Anyone else would definitely not be able to make such a request to the head coach, but Leo is different.

Leonardo sighed and could only nod helplessly.

"First of all, let's make sure that no matter how the game goes, you have to make sure you won't get injured and don't use up too much energy."

Naturally, Leo accepted them all.

On May 5, the last round of Serie A this season started at the Meazza Stadium.

Inter Milan hosts Catania.

The Coppa Italia final will be held in Rome three days later, so today's game is also Inter Milan's last home game of the season.

Taking into account various reasons, Leonardo made some adjustments to the starting lineup.

Milito, Cesar, Maicon and other main players have taken turns.

Simeone, the head coach who just took over Catania at the beginning of this year, played for Inter Milan from 1996 to 1999. Today he leads the team back to Meazza to face his old club.

Well, it was Simeone who would coach Atletico Madrid in the future.

Spoli, Peche and Belushi are out due to injuries.

Goalkeeper Andujar, who had played full duty in the previous 37 rounds, was given a rest, and No. goalkeeper Campagnolo started.

Because it is already the last round of the league, the relegation situation is already very clear.

Catania is currently above the relegation zone and has no worries about relegation. In the end, this game is indeed unimportant to both sides.

In the 11th minute, Leo scored the ball. Chivu made a low pass from the left. Pazzini knocked his heel in the middle. Potenza's clearance ball was intercepted by Leo and passed into the penalty area!

Pazzini pushed his right foot into the lower right corner of the goal in the small penalty area!
  One to zero!

Inter Milan scored first!

Soon after, visiting team defensive player Alvarez fouled Chivo while defending, and Chivo hit a billboard on the sidelines.

This scared Inter Milan quite a bit, as Chivu's head had been seriously injured.

However, Chivu rejected the change of head coach and chose to stick to the game.

In the 25th minute, Leo made a direct pass from the frontcourt. Coutinho broke into the penalty area and passed from the right side. Pazzini scored from a close distance with his right foot and half-volleyed the goal!
  Two to zero!
  The Nerazzurri, playing at home, quickly expanded their lead!
  As the first half came to an end, Leo was a little unhappy.

He asked to play in the hope that he could score goals himself.

As a result, the team now leads easily 2-0, but he didn't score a single goal.

It's not true, and it can't be said that it has nothing to do with it. Both attacks were planned and launched by him, and he also received an assist.

It's just that Leo didn't score any of the final goals.

Seeing that the half-time game agreed with the head coach was about to end, Leo was unwilling to play for forty-five minutes in vain.

You still have to score one before going off, right?

Leo thought so in his mind, and took three minutes of stoppage time in the first half.

David Thornton dribbled the ball from the right and then hit the inverted triangle in front of the penalty area. Leo received the ball and turned around to wipe out Marchese's defense.

In the arc of the penalty area, Leo drew an arrow with his right foot and volleyed hard into the dead center of the goal!

Three to zero!
  Leo scored his 43rd Serie A goal this season!
  There is no fancy shot, but it fully demonstrates Leo's shooting footwork and shooting power.

Not to mention Catania's substitute goalkeeper Campagnolo, it would be difficult for a top goalkeeper to block such a fast, tricky and angled shot.

Leo's goal left a deep impression on Catania coach Simeone on the sidelines.

The first half ended with a score of three to zero, and the Inter Milan fans in the stands had already begun to celebrate the victory in advance.

At the beginning of the second half, Leo was substituted.

The Nerazzurri basically did not play any threatening offense after Leo came off the field.

Instead, in the 73rd minute, Catania seized an opportunity.

In the second half, Lodi, who came on as a substitute, passed the ball into the penalty area from the left. Ledesma reversed offside and advanced forward to form a single!

After Ledesma stopped the ball with his chest, he volleyed with his right foot from the small penalty area line and scored!
  Three to one!

This score was maintained until the end of the game.

Inter Milan ended the Serie A season with a victory.

"It's nice to end a long league season with such a win at home.

In today's game, I would rate my performance at most six points. I just passed the test and my condition was not particularly good.

My teammates all performed as well as you, Pazzini scored twice, and Coutinho's passing and breakthrough in the frontcourt were also amazing.

Of course, being able to score 43 goals is by no means solely due to me. I have to thank my coaches and teammates for their help and support.

This honor is due to them.

It is indeed a pity. If it were not restricted by multi-line combat, I think this record might have a few more goals.

But I am very satisfied with the current results.

Of course it would be best if no one can break my record later. If it must be broken by someone, then it’s best for that person to be me hahaha.

There are two more important games ahead that require us to work harder. I am confident that Inter Milan can achieve the same outstanding results as last season! "

There was absolutely no enough rest time, and only two days later, Inter Milan's entire team went to Rome.

The 2010-11 Coppa Italia final will begin at the neutral stadium, the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, with Inter Milan and AC Milan competing to determine the championship!

Leonardo's mood was a little complicated. He didn't expect to face AC Milan in the final.

Putting those emotions behind, as the head coach of Inter Milan at this moment, all he has to do is lead the team to defeat the opponent!

“As many people expected, the Coppa Italia final turned into a Milan derby.

This also added some drama to the game and attracted more attention.

What I want to say now is, don’t be affected by the comments from the outside world, and just use our own strength normally.

It's enough to win them and continue to win the Italian Cup! "

Putting aside the Champions League final three days later, the Nerazzurri must focus all their attention on the game in front of them.

Except for Maicon, who was absent due to suspension and just stayed in the Champions League final, the other positions are basically the players who have started the most times before this season.

After repeated discussions, the coaching staff decided to let Pazzini and Eto'o, who performed well in the league, form a forward partnership.

Leo serves as the attacking midfielder, with Zanetti, Cambiasso and Thiago Motta behind him.

Left back Kolarov, right back David Thornton, Bonucci and Lucio teamed up with center back and goalkeeper Cesar.

AC Milan has a 4-4-2 starting formation.

It is still the Samba striker composed of two Brazilians, Robinho and Pato.

The four midfielders are Boateng, Seedorf, Van Bommel and Gattuso.

Left back Gianluca Zambrotta, right back Abate, Yepes and Thiago Silva partnered as central defender and goalkeeper Abbiati.

Cassano was on standby, while Pirlo failed to start in what was probably the last game of his Rossoneri career.

This is also the seventh time in the past seven years that Inter Milan has reached the Coppa Italia final. In the previous six seasons, the Nerazzurri won four titles and finished second twice.

Therefore, for Inter Milan supporters, the Coppa Italia seems to be theirs.

It's just that the opponent in previous years has always been Roma. This year it has been replaced by a rival in the same city. It is difficult to predict what the result will be.

The Stadio Olimpico in Rome is packed tonight.

Fans showed great enthusiasm for this last game in the five major leagues this season, including the national cup competitions except the Champions League.

On the day when tickets went on sale on the 20th, more than 70,000 tickets were sold out quickly.

In addition to the fans of the Milan duo, there are also many local neutral fans in Rome who came to the scene today.

A brief opening ceremony was held before the game, and the game officially began under the watchful eyes of tens of thousands of spectators.

After the opening, AC Milan took the lead!

Lucio lost the ball outside the penalty area, Boateng went straight to the right side of the penalty area, Pato shot low with his right foot near the right corner of the small penalty area, and the ball hit the right post and popped out!

A minute later, Robinho passed the ball after a breakthrough in the frontcourt. Pato's forward penetration created a single opportunity!

However, the linesman immediately raised the flag to indicate offside, and Pato still shot and hit the post after the referee blew the whistle.

It stands to reason that he should have received a yellow card, but the referee Morganti did not take out the card.

Inter Milan's first threatening attack in this game was organized by Leo.

Leo dribbled the ball through the center circle and then sent a long shot to the right side of the penalty area. Pazzini unloaded the ball with his toes and was confiscated by Abbiati before he could form a shot.

It was too delayed, and Leo was not very satisfied with the performance of his teammates.

His long passes are already in place, and a stronger forward could have volleyed directly without waiting for the ball to hit the ground.

Robinho and Pato played a one-two in the frontcourt. Pato went straight to the left side of the penalty area, and Boateng almost had a chance to stand alone!
  Inter Milan goalkeeper Cesar struck decisively to get the ball first!
  Immediately after Abate sent a wonderful pass from the right, Van Bommel came up from the sideline of the penalty area and hit the goal hard!

As a result, the ball went straight over the crossbar with too much force.

A minute later, at almost the same position, Cambiasso received Leo's pass and shot a long shot directly into the stands.

In the 19th minute of the game, AC Milan center back Yepes suffered a muscle strain and went to the sideline for treatment by the team doctor.

Soon Yepes seemed to be injured and unable to hold on, and took the initiative to sign and asked to leave.

There was only one central defender on the bench, Bonella. He hurried to the sidelines for a brief warm-up and then came on as a substitute.

I don’t know if Allegri will feel a little regretful at this time. He only brought such a substitute defender today.

In the 26th minute, Thiago Motta stole the ball in the frontcourt and scored. Leo immediately made a wonderful pass from behind, and Eto'o broke in from the left to form a single!

Facing the attacking Milan goalkeeper, Cameroon Cheetah succeeded in pushing a right-footed shot into the lower right corner of the goal in the penalty area!
  Abbiati fell to the ground and tried to save but to no avail.    One to zero!

Inter Milan took the lead in breaking the deadlock on the field!

Eto'o also scored his 35th goal in all competitions!

Eto'o is also in very hot form this season.

Although it was overshadowed by Leo's gorgeous statistics, Eto'o's performance was outstanding enough.

The Cameroonians ran wildly and knelt down to celebrate the goal. The AC Milan players who were watching not far away were a little jealous.

Originally, AC Milan's offense was more ferocious at this point in the game, but as a result, the opponent scored in such an understatement.

Therefore, the faces of the red and black soldiers on the field were not very good-looking.

Of course, there are many experienced veterans in their team, and they quickly adjusted their mentality and launched the offensive again.

Seedorf passed the ball from the right, and Pato in the middle of the penalty area missed the goal with his header due to interference from the Inter Milan defender.

Robinho cut in from the left and broke through two defenders before blasting a shot but Bonucci blocked it with his body!

In the melee in the penalty area, Pato shot a shot. The ball was blocked by the Inter Milan defender and changed direction. However, Cesar still relied on his super reaction to fly and hold the ball out with one palm!
  Then AC Milan took a corner kick, and Lucio headed the ball to clear the ball before fellow Brazilian Thiago Silva!
  Inter Milan then had a quick counterattack opportunity.

Leo's direct pass penetrated the Rossoneri's defense in the counterattack. When Eto'o was about to form a single, he made slight contact with Bonera and fell to the ground.

Referee Morganti did not interrupt the game.

Thiago Silva, who returned to defense, drove the ball to the frontcourt with a big kick!

Gattuso stopped the ball with his chest and handed it to Boateng. At this time, an unexpected person suddenly came out from the side!
  Leo retreated to his own half to assist in the defense. With quick eyes and quick feet, he made a flying tackle and accurately stole the ball from his opponent's feet!
  The tackle was completed cleanly without touching anyone, which also requires skill.

After stealing the ball, Leo quickly stood up and launched a counterattack.

Gattuso, who was nearest, was the first to pounce. Leo changed direction and accelerated past Milan No. 8 without hesitation.

Immediately afterwards, Van Bommel came back to defend.

It's interesting to say that Leo and the Dutch have met not once or twice.

Van Bommel was at Bayern when they played Bayern in the Champions League final, and he happened to be in the Netherlands during the World Cup final.

Today is the Italian Cup final, and he and Leo are facing off.

The two of them were already very familiar with each other. Without saying anything, Leo pushed hard with his right foot and the ball rolled past the opponent.

Then Leo accelerated again, dodged Van Bommel's block and ran out!

Simple and crude but easy to use, the ball is divided!

After breaking through two people in a row, Leo had already reached the edge of the penalty area. Thiago Silva followed Eto'o while staring at Pazzini on the other side.

Bonera confidently rushed out of the penalty area and ran towards Leo.

Compared with this Italian veteran who has been competing in Serie A more than ten years ago, Leo is indeed a junior.

But there is no etiquette of respecting the old and caring for the young on the field. Leo had an idea and lightly raised his left foot.

The ball bounced off Bonera's leg after being picked up, and Leo turned around and walked into the penalty area with a flick of the ball!
  Bonera was stunned for a moment, and then he realized that he had been treated, and in a way that was almost humiliating.

"This kid! How dare he!"

With his blood boiling, the Milan central defender instantly lost his mind and used a scissor kick from behind to knock Leo down in the penalty area!

Leo actually didn't think that much, he just had a whim and wanted to see if he could succeed in this way.

Because hitting the ball at an opponent's player is risky, it is difficult for you to judge the direction and distance of the ball's bounce.

Maybe the opponent can react in time and even seize the ball directly.

Leo succeeded this time, but he also succeeded in irritating Bonera.

Naturally, the referee could no longer turn a blind eye to this bad foul. Morganti simply took out a red card and pointed to the penalty spot.

Red card and penalty kick!
  The first half is not over yet, and AC Milan is facing the dilemma of ten players.

Allegri didn't have any good ideas. He asked Van Bommel to retreat to the central defender position and play as a central defender until the first half.

Leo stood on the penalty spot and personally took the penalty he created.

It was a neutral court today and the interference was quite limited.

Leo looked at Abbiati, who was dancing in front of the goal, unmoved. He took a deep breath, flew up and hit the ball hard with his kick!

Leo took the penalty kick with great confidence, volleying a powerful shot straight into the upper right corner of the goal!

Two to zero!
  Another victory for Inter Milan!
  In the stoppage time of the first half, Cambiaso accidentally made a mistake when returning the ball from the backcourt. Pato broke into the penalty area after stealing the ball and rushed to shoot before the defensive players were in place!
  It was Inter Milan goalkeeper Cesar who got the ball.

At the end of the half, the Nerazzurri temporarily led their city rivals 2-0.

With the score ahead and the numerical advantage, Leo couldn't figure out how AC Milan could come back.

In the second half, the two sides changed sides and fought again.

AC Milan played clever cooperation on the left. Robinho received Pato's pass and his right foot attack in the left penalty area was obtained by Cesar.

Of course, this can only be a "reflection" at best, and soon Inter Milan counterattacked and hit the frontcourt.

Due to one less player, the Rossoneri's defense against Leo inevitably had loopholes.

Leo advanced from the center to the frontcourt and passed the penalty area. Eto'o broke into the penalty area and faced Abbiati with a single push shot into the lower left corner of the goal!
  Three to zero!
  Inter Milan sealed the victory!

Eto'o also scored twice, scoring the 08th goal for Inter Milan this season, tying the single-season scoring record he set with Barcelona in the 09- season.

This third goal also completely dispelled AC Milan's extravagant hopes of tying the score.

Allegri replaced Pirlo and Cassano for a last-ditch effort.

It is a pity that under Leo's control, the already disadvantaged Rossoneri could hardly touch the ball, let alone create scoring opportunities.

Leonardo saw that it was almost time and replaced Eto'o and Leo with Coutinho and Stankovic.

There should be no more surprises in this Coppa Italia, and now we can start thinking about the Champions League final three days later.

After Leo left the field, Inter Milan's control of the midfield still declined, but after all, there was one less player on the opponent's field, so there was not much pressure.

In the 89th minute, Zambrotta's cross from the left was blocked by Cesar and AC Milan got a corner kick.

The Inter Milan players raised objections to the referee because the cross had already crossed the baseline when it flew in the air.

The protest was ineffective, the Rossoneri took a corner kick, and Cassano's cross landed well!

Milan central defender Thiago Silva, who was in the back of the penalty area, beat Lucio and jumped high to header!

Cesar failed to save in time when facing a header from close range, and the ball went under him and crossed the goal line.

Three to one!

AC Milan pulled one back!
  However, there was not much time left in the game, and it was impossible to equalize the score.

This goal is just to save a little face.

At the end of the game, Inter Milan once again won the Milan derby 3-1!

The Nerazzurri win the Italian Cup for the third consecutive year!

This is also their fifth Coppa Italia trophy in seven years and eighth in history!
  Pirlo's contract with the team expired this season and was not renewed. Many people feel that the midfield master is old.

His previous after-tax annual salary at AC Milan was as high as 6 million euros. Milan did not want to pay such a high salary, so they did not reach an agreement with Pirlo.

It is only a matter of time before he leaves the Rossoneri, where he has played for ten years, but Pirlo has not yet decided where to go.

Originally, he had already agreed to accept the Juventus contract under the instigation of his agent.

But he received calls from Moratti and Leonardo.

The short Inter Milan career of the last century has been somewhat blurred in my memory, but looking at the blue-black soldiers celebrating their victory on the field, Pirlo's eyes became moist unknowingly.

Maybe, this is also an option?

Pirlo's ten years at AC Milan were at his peak. Even if everything else is put aside, the two Champions League trophies are enough to prove his brilliant achievements.

However, since Calciopoli, the Rossoneri has fallen into a trough, and Pirlo has also struggled in the past few seasons.

Maybe AC ​​Milan will usher in a revival soon?
  But what does that have to do with me, an old guy who was "abandoned" by the club?

"You are only 31 years old and we think you can play with Leo for a few more seasons.

Of course, I can't guarantee the main players. It doesn't matter whether I am the head coach of Inter Milan or not at that time, hahaha.

But I really want to see what your partnership with Leo will be like at the club.

Don't care about the opinions of AC Milan fans, consider it from your own perspective and follow your inner choice.

Even if you don't choose Inter Milan in the end, we still want to tell you that a midfield master like you deserves better treatment. "

Recalling the previous conversation with Leonardo, Pirlo fell into thinking again.

"Is it an inner choice..."

After the game, AC Milan received the runner-up medal and left sadly.

The stage is set for champions Inter Milan.

Nerazzurri came to the scene and sang happily in the stands, and Zanetti and Leo also led the whole team to greet the fans.

Winning the championship should be very happy, but Leo couldn't be happy.

First of all, this is his third Coppa Italia championship, and the other is that the Champions League final three days later is always in his mind.

This makes it difficult for them to let go and celebrate the victory.

The media interviews after the game also made Leo feel the same. There is really nothing exciting about an Italian Cup.

"The championship celebrations are scheduled after the Champions League. I hope everyone will not relax. The season is not over yet."

Club president Moratti also appeared on the court and said a few words to the players who were about to raise the cup.

Leo also heard something else from Moratti's words.

After fifteen years at the helm of Inter Milan, I am definitely still a little bit reluctant to say goodbye.

Moratti has been mentally preparing for a long time. He hopes to bid farewell to the team with another Champions League.

　Thanks to the book friend who gave me the reward when I was a kid! Thank you for your monthly support! It's -4 degrees below zero today when I write typing, my hands and feet are cold, and the poor Jiangsu people don't have heating at home, but your support makes my heart warm, thank you all!
  　　
  　
  (End of this chapter)