The Prince of Inter Milan starts with Brother Xiaosa

Chapter 294 Farewell and snow battle

After the game, Leo conducted a profound self-examination. Although he scored one goal and two assists in this game, he played pretty well based on the statistics.

But if he hadn't pursued his own performance too much, he might not have put the team in a difficult situation.

Especially when there were several opportunities, if he didn't force himself to hit the goal or pass through, passing the ball out earlier might have better results.

Of course, this is just Zhuge Liang after the game. It is also difficult to say whether his teammates can seize the opportunity after receiving the ball.

In any case, Leo expressed his apology to the head coach and teammates in the locker room after the game.

“In today’s game I was a little too focused on my own performance, so I may have made some unreasonable choices in handling the ball.

I want to apologize to everyone for this. Winning a game is never the result of one or two people, but relies on the joint efforts of everyone.

I will definitely pay attention to this in subsequent games and not make the same mistake again. "

He corrected his mistakes when he knew they were wrong, and Leo never expected that after such an incident, his prestige among Inter Milan's first-team players would not fall but rise.

As the core of the team, future captain, and shareholder of the club, Leo has no need to care about other people's feelings.

He can play however he wants, as long as he is happy. As long as others want to stay in the team, they don't even have the right to express their opinions on this.

They can still distinguish the big and small kings.

But after realizing that there might be problems with his approach, Leo chose to immediately apologize to everyone and promised to make corrections.

This is the behavior of a real man, not like some people who are coy and unwilling to admit their mistakes after making a mistake.

That is the most shameful and despised kind.

Head coach Carlo Ancelotti was also very pleased. He had originally planned to wait for a few more games and wait until Leo discovered his problem before communicating with him privately.

Unexpectedly, it only took one game for Leo to discover and correct the mistake in time.

There is no reason why this kid can grow to this height.

Many people didn't notice that after beating Naples 3-2, the Inter Milan team seemed to be more united than before.

The players in the frontcourt were still secretly competing with each other, but now they are more active in cooperating.

The head coach saw all this in his eyes. Although An Pang didn't say anything, in his heart he raised his evaluation of Leo to another level.

Again, too much is too little, and of course Leo can perform on his own when the opportunity is right.

But there is no need to force it. In many cases, passing it to teammates is a better choice.

Three days later, in the twentieth round of Serie A, Inter Milan played away against Lecce.

In the first round of the match between the two teams this season, the defending champion defeated its opponent 4-0 at home.

This time on the road, how much trouble can Lecce, currently ranked second from last in the standings, bring to the Nerazzurri?

As a guest at the Via del Mare Stadium, Inter Milan put together a rotation lineup.

Pazzini and Berbatov partnered as a double forward, Coutinho as an attacking midfielder, and Chivo, Thiago Motta, and Modric in the midfield.

Left back David Thornton, right back Srna, center back combination of Samuel and Lucio, goalkeeper Handanovic.

It can be said that Ancelotti has made a comprehensive rotation of the lineup except for Modric and goalkeeper Handanovic.

It cannot be said that they underestimated the enemy too much. First of all, the opponent was indeed weak, and secondly, their lineup was indeed deep enough for them to make such an adjustment.

Inter Milan, playing away from home, took the lead.

After the start, the two sides played a little calmly, and neither was in a hurry to attack.

However, in the eighth minute, Lecce goalkeeper Benassi was playing with fire in the backcourt. Pazzini stole the ball near the baseline and knocked it across. Berbatov was unmarked before the penalty spot and pushed into the empty goal!

The ball went in without any suspense, and the entire Lecce fans fell silent.

They didn't know what they were thinking, but they insisted on making it difficult for themselves to spend money to buy tickets to watch the home team being tortured live.

Inter Milan leads 1-0!

And this is obviously not the end, just a beginning.

A few minutes later, Coutinho's kick from outside the penalty area helped the visiting team expand the score.

Before the end of the first half, David Thornton broke into the penalty area from the left and scored with a low shot, which almost completely killed the game.

At halftime, Inter Milan, playing away from home, already had a three-goal lead.

After the start of the second half, Ancelotti made continuous substitutions.

Verratti, Pandev and Biraghi were replaced one after another.

It wasn't until the end of the game that the home team seemed to wake up and its offensive improved.

Odo made a 45-degree diagonal pass from the right and drew the ball into the penalty area. Samuel made a mistake in the clearance. Giacomasi stopped the ball on the sideline of the penalty area and turned around to volley with his right foot. The ball went into the lower corner of the goal!

Three to one!

Lecce finally scored a face-saving goal.

Guadrado made a pass from the right, Dimichele volleyed with his right foot in front of the small penalty area, and Lucio blocked the ball with his body!

At the end of the game, Inter Milan easily won 3-1 on the road!

Even the newspapers the next day described today's game as "an unsuspicious victory."

Continuous victories have kept the atmosphere within the Inter Milan team very good, and everyone on the training ground is always talking and laughing in a relaxed mood.

But happiness is theirs and has nothing to do with having one person.

Seeing that the winter transfer window is coming to an end, Inter Milan has not carried out any unnecessary signings.

At least the current lineup is more than enough to finish the season. If there is anything that needs improvement or reinforcement, we have to wait until the end of the season and the opening of the summer window.

However, Zhang Linpeng, who was on loan from China, only stayed with Inter Milan for half a season before ending his loan and returning to Hengtai.

His joining at that time indeed helped Inter Milan expand its influence in China to a certain extent.

But after all, it still didn't go beyond the circle of fans.

As a six-time champion for two consecutive years, the Nerazzurri's popularity among Chinese fans has reached a very high level.

So what does it mean? Zhang Linpeng's joining role is there, but it is very limited and does not meet the expectations of Inter Milan's top management at all.

In addition, due to his strength, he had no chance to play in the team, so ending the loan and returning to China early became a fact that Zhang Linpeng had to accept.

As for his experience with Inter Milan, whether he worked hard to catch up and improve himself after returning to China, or whether he just failed to recover has nothing to do with Inter Milan.

Without bothering anyone else, Leo personally drove Zhang Linpeng to the airport.

After all, for Zhang Linpeng, Leo is the only teammate in the team who can communicate with him without any barriers.

"You're going back to China soon. How are you feeling now?"

Zhang Linpeng lowered his head and smiled.

"Relax, I originally wanted to come to Europe to challenge myself, but it turned out that I was still far behind.

It’s hard to imagine that any Chinese player could reach your level..."

At this point, Zhang Linpeng realized that Li Ao, who was driving him off at this time, was not technically a Chinese player.

Those people are really greedy and hopelessly stupid. If nothing like that happened at that time, maybe Leo would be a star in China now.

Shaking his head, Zhang Linpeng changed the topic.

"However, this trip has been worthwhile. My personal improvement and progress are secondary. The main reason is to see the professionalism of Europe's top clubs in all aspects."

Leo nodded, "It's good that you didn't come in vain. At least these six months were not wasted."

Leo parked the car at the entrance and helped Zhang Linpeng unload the luggage from the car.

"I sent you here. You have to go back to training soon."

"Well, thank you very much. I'll treat you to dinner when I get the chance to go back to China!"

"Well, have a nice trip!"

The two of them hugged each other briefly to say goodbye. They were both grown men and not so pretentious.

Many people will come and go in everyone's life, and an ordinary goodbye may mean that we will never meet again.

On February 2012, 2, Inter Milan ushered in the first game of the Devil's schedule in February at home.

In just 26 days from the 1st to the 26th in February, Inter Milan has eight games to play.

On average, there is one game every three days, which is a great test for the Nerazzurri’s lineup depth.

In the 21st round of Serie A, the defending champion Inter Milan faced Palermo at the Meazza Stadium.

The weather in Milan was terrible today, it was still snowing until the start of the game.

Although the heavy snow lasted for a short time, the snow on the turf of the Meazza stadium was not very thick.

After consideration by the referee team, the game can proceed as usual.

But obviously no one likes playing football in such weather.

Leo sighed, frowned and put on his "snow boots".

In the white snow, the white marking lines in the venue were changed to red spray paint, and the game started in conditions of minus 2 degrees Celsius.

Inter Milan's starting lineup was not unexpected, and they still arranged a starting lineup of 4,231.

Balotelli is the lone forward, with Bale and Neymar on the wings.

Leo is the attacking midfielder, and behind him are Pirlo and De Rossi.

Kolarov left back, Zanetti right back, Bonucci and Ranocchia partnered as central defenders, and goalkeeper Handanovic.

For Palermo, former Inter Milan player Viviano, who joined in the winter, started the game.

Amidst the heavy snowfall, the Meazza stadium was actually packed. I hope the enthusiasm of the fans can melt this annoying snow.

"I really don't know why the referee thinks this weather will not affect the game?"

Leo sighed deeply and urged Balotelli to warm up before the game to avoid increasing the probability of injury.

After the game started, players from both teams did not dare to make any moves, obviously affected by the snow on the field.

Especially after Balotelli slipped and fell to the ground without paying attention.

"I told you to be careful. It's no joke if you fall and get hurt in such a cold weather!"

One and a half minutes into the game, Bell stole the ball from the left and made a pass near the baseline. Balotelli headed in and hit the goal!

The ball missed the left post slightly.

But Bashen's wonderful performance still won rounds of applause.

Not only are the players on the field cold, but the spectators in the stands are also cold!

Nerazzurri also took this opportunity to stand up and move around, otherwise they would be frozen before the game was over.

Palermo, playing away from home, were waiting for an opportunity to counterattack. Zahavi made a pass from the front, and Miccoli's shot into the penalty area was blocked by Ranocchia!

A controversial scene occurred on the field in the fourth minute of the game.

Bell dribbled the ball along the left and forced his way out of the defense. He broke into the penalty area and fell to the ground after contact with Palermo midfielder Donati who was returning to defense!

Referee Marco Guida refused to call a penalty kick!

The slow motion showed that the opponent made an obvious push, but the referee insisted on his decision.

Inter Milan had no choice but to admit defeat, and Leo organized again from the outside.

Balotelli's left-footed attack on the line of the penalty area was blocked by Balzaretti with his body!

Inter Milan players once again collectively protested against their opponent's handball, but this time the referee's decision seemed to be fine. Slow motion shows that Balzaretti did not hand the ball.

The game continued, and the visiting team's counterattack quickly reached the frontcourt. Miccoli received Barreto's pass at the front of the penalty area, adjusted slightly, and shot directly with his left foot!

The ball was blocked out of the penalty area by Inter Milan defender Bonucci.

Miccoli passed the ball, and Boudin's volley from the penalty area was blocked by Handanovic and then went over the crossbar.

Palermo took a corner kick from the left, Miccoli shook off the defender and turned around to volley, but the ball was blocked by Zanetti.

Unexpectedly, the visiting team's attack was very simple, but it produced miraculous results.

This weather is not suitable for complex ground coordination, so simple and efficient counterattacks are most effective.

Leo nodded thoughtfully, he had an idea in his mind.

Boudin passed De Rossi in front of the penalty area and then volleyed with his right foot. The ball was cleared by Ranocchia in time.

Inter Milan's quick counterattack opportunity!

Leo took a few steps and found that there seemed to be more snow than at the beginning.

This seriously affected his feel when dribbling the ball, making him unable to directly take a long pass to the right.

Neymar and Zanetti's collision with the wall broke through the two defensive players and came to the right baseline.

Dribbling the ball in heavy snow made Neymar from Brazil really uncomfortable and unable to perform at his best.

At this moment, Neymar really misses his hometown, tropical Brazil.

Neymar sent a cross before Balzaretti stepped forward to press.

Balotelli in the middle of the penalty area, with his back to the goal, leaned against Palermo central defender Silvestre and jumped first!

Another head-tossing attack!

And with the foreshadowing from the previous time, Bashen's movements are more relaxed this time, and it has the charm of "turning back and looking at the moon".

Viviano makes a flying save!

But maybe it was because he hadn't moved his body much for a while and was a bit stiff from the cold. The Palermo goalkeeper failed to touch the ball.

The ball went in!

One to zero!

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

Bashen was very happy after scoring the goal. He opened his arms and flew to the sidelines in a plane.

Seeing the bright smile on the kid's face will make all Nerazzurri fans smile.

Even though it was an away game, Muti did not give up so quickly. He stood on the sidelines despite the heavy snow, frequently gesticulating and shouting loudly at the court.

After conceding the goal, Palermo stepped up their attack!

Zahavi's long shot from outside the penalty area was blocked by Ranocchia.

In the 17th minute, Palermo took a corner kick from the left, and Miccoli's curved ball flew past the goal. Inter Milan's defensive player made a mistake in front of the goal!

Palermo center back Mantovani, who was waiting at the back post, was unmarked and poked into the empty goal from close range!

One to one!

Palermo quickly equalized the score!

However, the consecutive goals made the fans at the scene very happy. They originally thought that the game would be boring with so much snow.

As a result, the goals came one after another.

In the 22nd minute, Bell made a pass from the left, and visiting team defender Silvestre made a mistake with his header and hit it near the corner of the small penalty area!

Balotelli pushed with his right foot from a small angle, and the ball hit the left post and bounced into the net!

Two to one!

Inter Milan scored another goal and took the lead again!

Balotelli also scored twice in just over 20 minutes of the game!

After that, the pace of the game finally slowed down a little, and the two teams also needed to adjust.

Ranocchia was injured when he collided with Miccoli and went to the sideline to receive simple treatment from the team doctor.

Fortunately, he was fine and returned to the field soon.

Leo scored the ball in the midfield, Zanetti broke through from the right and made a precise inverted triangle pass. Neymar passed the defensive player and volleyed high with his right foot in the penalty area.

Kolarov received the ball from Bell and cut inside to the outside of the penalty area. His left-footed volley was blocked by the Palermo defender.

Pirlo made a direct pass, Leo crossed the right side of the penalty area, and Balotelli's powerful low shot missed the far post of the goal and went out of the baseline.

Inter Milan's continuous offensive failed to convert into a goal. Leo was so busy organizing and scheduling that he didn't even bother to shoot.

De Rossi and Bale's long-range shots outside the penalty area were blocked twice by Mantovani and Balzaretti who fell to the ground and used their bodies!

As the first half entered stoppage time, Palermo's attack did not pose any threat to Inter Milan, and Handanovic easily saved the ball.

Referee Guida looked at his watch and saw that the time was almost up, but the game was not over until he blew the whistle.

Bonucci's long pass flew across most of the stadium, and Balotelli headed the ball back to his teammate.

After receiving the ball, Leo moved it to the left, and Bell took two steps and immediately passed it back.

Viviano couldn't panic anymore. Balotelli, Bale, and Neymar were all in the penalty area, and he didn't know who to keep an eye on.

At the top of the arc in the penalty area, Leo moved the ball laterally with his right foot to widen the angle, followed by a powerful and heavy volley that hit the upper right corner of the goal!

Three to one!

Inter Milan successfully extended their lead to two goals before the end of the first half!

At this time, the referee's whistle sounded, and the first half was over. The Nerazzurri temporarily led the opponent three to one.

On the way back to the locker room, Leo noticed Balotelli acting strangely and following him silently.

"Mario, if you have anything to say, you can just say it and don't do this."

"Boss, I scored two goals today."

"Yeah, I know, good job."

"no……"

Seeing Balotelli's dark face turning red, Leo laughed.

"Hahaha, I'm just kidding you.

I know what you mean. I'll pass the ball to you more in the second half to help you get a hat, right? "

Balotelli nodded repeatedly.

"Don't worry, I will create opportunities for you, but you must also be careful not to waste the pass I give you."

Leo smiled and patted Bashen on the shoulder, then took the lead and got into the tunnel.

Playing football on such a cold day naturally consumes more physical energy than usual.

In the home team's locker room, Inter Milan's players nervously replenished their energy and restored their physical fitness.

"Keep up the good work in the second half. Judging from the fighting spirit shown by the opponent in the first half, they will not surrender so easily."

In the second half, the two sides changed sides and fought again. As expected, Palermo launched a counterattack without mercy.

In the 52nd minute, Miccoli dribbled the ball from the right and broke into the left side of the penalty area!

He avoided the pressing of Inter Milan central defender Ranocchia and then volleyed with his left foot from the left wing. The ball went into the lower right corner of the goal!

Three to two!

Palermo gets another goal back!

The difference in score is only one point!

One minute later, Balotelli received a direct shot from Leo and scored with a push!

However, the referee whistled the ball for offside and the first goal was invalid.

The slow motion shows that the penalty is controversial, and it is impossible to tell where Balotelli was offside with the naked eye.

Seeing the hope of tying the score, Palermo attacked more aggressively.

The visiting team coach Muti took the lead in making substitution adjustments. Ilicic and Pisano came on the bench to replace Zahavi and Munoz.

The substitution quickly had an effect, and Palermo quickly counterattacked in the 57th minute!

Balzaretti made a breakthrough pass from the left, and Miccoli made a diving header from the penalty area!

Three to three!

The Palermo team actually scored two goals in a row at the beginning of the second half, really evening the score!

At the dead ball opportunity, Leo winked at Balotelli.

Now Balotelli has scored two goals and Miccoli has also scored twice. Isn't this a tie?

"You won't lose to that old guy, right?"

"of course not!"

Balotelli gritted his teeth and said.

Just three minutes after the score was equalized, Leo organized another goal near the center circle.

Barreto and Donati formed a double-team on him immediately!

Leo stuck the ball under his feet, and a "fried meatball" jumped out from the gap between the two!

Then, looking at the right moment, a scalpel-like through ball penetrated Palermo's defense!

Balotelli successfully broke into the penalty area to counter offside and formed a chance to score a single goal!

All the Inter Milan fans held their breath at this time, and Balotelli responded calmly to the attacking Palermo goalkeeper without any panic.

After passing Viviano with a fake move, Bashen easily pushed the shot into the empty net!

Four to three!

Inter Milan takes the lead again!

Balotelli also scored the third goal of the game!

hat trick!

Bashen ran half a circle around the court in excitement. If he hadn't been pulled by his teammates, he might have continued running.

The score was rewritten again, Ancelotti also made a substitution, and Pirlo was replaced by Chivu.

Obviously, he wanted to use this substitution to strengthen the Nerazzurri's defensive interception ability in the midfield.

The effect is indeed obvious. The Palermo team, eager to equalize the score again, can no longer hit the ball near Inter Milan's penalty area as easily as before.

In the 81st minute, Leo made a clever pass from the frontcourt, and Bell broke into the penalty area from the left!

The Palermo full-back couldn't keep up with Bell's speed, and Pisano could only pull down the Welsh flying wing behind him!

The referee decisively awarded a penalty kick and showed Pisano a yellow card!

Inter Milan's top penalty taker Leo stood on the penalty spot.

If Balotelli has scored two goals and is one short of a hat-trick, he might give the penalty kick opportunity to his friend.

But Leo had already assisted Bashen to score the third goal of the game, so naturally there was no need to do that.

Leo took the penalty kick, and his powerful attack went into the right side of the goal!

Five to three!

Inter Milan expanded the score!

In the final stage of the game, neither side had any good scoring opportunities. In the end, Inter Milan defeated Palermo 5-3 at home.

This goal battle also made the Inter Milan fans who watched the whole game very happy.

"Palermo showed tenacity today at San Siro and they evened the score and caused us a lot of trouble.

Of course, this was also related to the bad weather, and the players on the field did not perform to their full potential.

Maybe for the fans, the process of this game is quite interesting. "

In fact, not only this game was harassed by heavy snow, but many Serie A games this round were even postponed due to blizzards.

These include Juventus vs. Parma, Bologna vs. Fiorentina and many other games.

In general, an unexpected snow battle produced good results. The fans were naturally happy to see many goals.

Former Inter Milan president Moratti also came to watch the game today and gave a thumbs up when interviewed by reporters.

"Whether we win or lose, as far as the game is concerned, it is very exciting and it can be regarded as the best advertisement for Italian football."

However, there are also different voices.

Due to the slippery playing surface, Inter Milan captain Zanetti believed that the game should have been cancelled.

"The turf affected the players' performance. I don't know how many teams can play in such conditions, but the Football Association and especially the referee decided to let us play."

What Zanetti said speaks for all the players who played today.

"Yes, no players were injured during today's game, but playing on such a turf involves taking a lot of risks."

Leo naturally also expressed support for Zanetti's remarks.

"I think the captain is right. It makes no sense for more than 20 players to risk injuries in such bad weather to play such a game!"

　Chapter names are really hard to come up with, so I’ll just post them together without dividing them into chapters.

　　

　

(End of this chapter)